News briefing from Britain and Ireland

A Catholic RE teacher has won a prestigious national award in recognition of outstanding classroom practice and a commitment to social justice.

Shelley McCrory, 36, Head of RE at St Ambrose College, Hale Barns, won the Silver Award for Teacher of the Year in a Secondary School in the Pearson National Teaching Awards. The Pearson judges highlighted McCrory’s contribution towards establishing St Ambrose Academy in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Currently oversubscribed, St Ambrose Academy is ‘thriving’ and ‘the second-best performing school in Sierra Leone’ for exam results, according to McCrory, growing from 300 students since opening in 2010 to 950 today. McCrory, from Short Strand, Belfast, has fundraised extensively for Sierra Leone projects like building toilets and classrooms, whilst helping lead the ‘Immersion’ Programme. This involves taking St Ambrose College students to Sierra Leone, where they teach lessons and support St Ambrose Academy in a country where extreme poverty is widespread. The Pearson judging panel said McCrory’s impact had been ‘so significant that one of the school’s houses has been named after her.’ Explaining her approach to teaching, McCrory told The Tablet: “Every child in front of you is made in the image of God.  You have a duty to help them fulfill their gifts and talents. It comes from challenging them, instilling discipline, and helping them recognise what they are capable of.”

The annual pilgrimage for Life in Scotland took place on Saturday 1 August at Carfin Grotto in north Lanarkshire. Bishop of Paisley John Keenan celebrated Mass at mid-day in the grotto, Scotland’s national shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes. Eucharistic adoration was also held during the day, and the Rosary and the Divine Mercy Chaplet were recited. Participants also prayed the Stations of the Cross.

The Bishop of Portsmouth Philip Egan has issued a statement concerning the SSPX in his diocese. “All the bishops and priests who belong to the SSPX and the laypeople who exclusively attend their services are now excommunicated. The Masses they offer are illicit. Attendance at them does not fulfil the Sunday obligation. The sacraments they celebrate – of marriage and confession – are invalid,” he said, adding: “As a Bishop, I cannot help but feel the pain of this, not least because the SSPX has centres within the Diocese of Portsmouth, including a well-known school. I must now urge all Catholics not to take part in their activities”.

Robert Ashdown has been appointed the new chair of Trustees of the Catholic maritime charity,  Stella Maris UK. He succeeds Capt. Esteban Pacha, the previous chair. Ashdown is Secretary General of the International Association of Classification Societies and a former head of the technical division of the UK Chamber of Shipping.  He said: “Safe shipping is as much about people as vessels. Stella Maris plays a vital role in supporting the seafarers and fishers who keep the maritime world moving, particularly when they are far from home or facing crisis.”

George O’Neill, chief executive of the Cardinal Hume Centre, has invited prime minister Andy Burnham to visit, saying, “As housing costs have risen and the supply of homes has fallen, more people have lost not just a home, but also the stability and support that prevent an ongoing crisis. If you are looking for a circuit breaker on homelessness and rough sleeping, we believe it starts here: be serious about ending homelessness earlier and remove its ability to shape children’s lives. That means investing in families before the crisis becomes entrenched.” He adds, “The right solution will involve the construction of more affordable homes, which is of course essential, but so is a little of that care that you promised to put at the heart of your decision making. Get that right and you won’t only significantly increase your chances of keeping your promise on rough sleeping, you will also change the trajectory of thousands of lives.”

Archbishop of Westminster Richard Moth has celebrated his first Mass at Northampton since Pope Leo XIV appointed him Apostolic Adminstrator. He was given oversight of the diocese after Bishop David Oakley was charged with two counts of raping a female under 16. Oakley, 70, is due to appear before Cannock magistrates on14 August. In his homily, Archbishop Moth said he had been visiting regularly and his aim was to give one day a week to the diocese. “We must pray, each and every one of us, for everybody involved in what is now a legal process. We must pray for everyone engaged in that difficult work.” He added, “When things are difficult and we cannot find our way, it is the Lord who will show it to us. That is true of each and every one of us in this cathedral this evening, and of all those in this diocesan family who cannot be with us.”

Professor Celia Deane-Drummond, director of the Laudato Si’ Research Institute, has been awarded the title Professor of Contemporary Catholic Theology by the University of Oxford under the Recognition of Distinction scheme which honours academics whose achievements demonstrate outstanding scholarly excellence and international distinction. Campion Hall, which she joined as senior research fellow in 2018, said the award “recognises a career that has shaped contemporary Catholic theology through pioneering work at the intersection of theology, ecology, ethics and the biological sciences, alongside exceptional academic leadership”.

Timothy Schmalz who made Homeless Jesus, a bronze sculpture depicting Jesus as a homeless person asleep on a park bench, will give a free talk at St Mary’s Cathedral, Edinburgh at 11 am on Tuesday 18 August. The previous night, the Schola Cantorum will deliver a concert inspired by the sculpture, which is exhibited outside the cathedral. Tickets for the 7.30 pm performance on Monday, 17 August start at £15 (£10 for children).

To walk the Fife Pilgrim Way in the footsteps of medieval pilgrims on Saturdays from 22 August please contact Deacon Pat Carrigan at columbasway@gmail.com

Members of Priests Against Genocide from Ireland and the UK have demanded urgent action to stop the Central Bank of Ireland from transferring approval of the 2026 Israel Bonds prospectus to any EU member state. In a letter to the Taoiseach, Tánaiste and the Governor of the Central Bank of Ireland the priests’ network write: “We plead and demand that you now take immediate action to end Ireland’s pivotal enabling role in Israel’s fundraising for genocide and other grave crimes.” The group, which has 2500 members in 62 countries including bishops and cardinals, says facilitating these sales is indefensible.

A new online record of the interiors of more than 3,000 Irish catholic churches was launched at the Catholic Historical Society of Ireland’s annual conference at Dublin City University. Bishop Paul Connell said ahead of the conference ‘Irish Catholic Spaces: Pasts and Futures’ that the built heritage of the Catholic Church in Ireland was “a wonderful legacy” and it was “vital” to maintain and preserve it. Professor John McCafferty of UCD said the conference sought to give an understanding of the extent to which, from the middle ages to the post-Famine years, ordinary lay people constructed and funded thousands of churches across Ireland.

The Christian Brothers in Ireland have been criticised by a High Court judge over their legal strategy in cases alleging historical abuse by members of the order. Ms Justice Mary Rose Gearty said Brother David Gibson and his predecessor Brother Edmund Garvey had made a “morally extraordinary decision” to refuse to act as a nominee for the congregation for the purpose of dealing with such lawsuits. As an unincorporated association, the Christian Brothers cannot be sued if it does not provide a nominee. The only way around this is for a survivor to sue everyone who was a member of the community at the time they were abused under the doctrine of vicarious liability, even if they were not involved in any abuse and had left the congregation.

The Religious Sisters of Charity are to sell a 16-acre site in Dublin to the Health Service Executive for around €40m. The land is where St Mary’s nursing home and Caritas convalescent home in Mount Merrion were located before they closed in 2020. The congregation said that proceeds of the sale will go towards supporting the future care of the congregation’s elderly sisters as well as projects in Nigeria, Zambia and Malawi helping vulnerable and marginalised communities access education and skills development.
In Ireland and Britain the congregation continues to work with the homeless and with those affected by human trafficking as well as in education.

Pope Leo has appointed Bishop Ger Nash of Ferns as the new Bishop of Ossory uniting both dioceses under his shared pastoral leadership. In a statement, Bishop Nash said that the amalgamation of dioceses in the Irish Church is set to continue as opportunity allows. He said the challenge of being one bishop for two dioceses mirrored the experience of many priests as they take on responsibility for more than one parish.  He also identified vocations to priesthood and religious life as an area where the two dioceses will collaborate. “Already some very good prospects for the diocesan priesthood are emerging,” he said.

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