News briefings Britain and Ireland

A painting that was at Campion Hall in Oxford has been confirmed as an original work by Flemish master Quentin Massijs (1466–1530). The rediscovery followed a chance visit by an expert connected to the National Gallery, which led to an investigation by leading Flemish art authority Dr Maximiliaan Martens. Using infra-red imaging and other techniques, he confirmed that the painting’s under-drawing and composition match Massijs’ own working methods. The image, “Christ Blessing”, is now on display at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford.

Sarah Teather, former director of the Jesuit Refugee Service, has been appointed to the House of Lords.  Prior to working at the JRS, Sarah was MP for Brent East and Brent Central and served as a minister at the Department for Education.

Pope Leo has appointed Professor Adrian Pabst, Professor of Politics at the University of Kent as an ordinary member of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences. He has taught political theory and political economy at the University of Kent and is the author of numerous academic books and articles, as well as the editor of various collections. He has been a member of the Scientific Committee of the Centesimus Annus Pro Pontifice Foundation since 2014 and its secretary since 2016.

Pic: Columbans
 
The final ecumenical vigil of 2025 took place earlier today outside the Home Office in Central London to pray for refugees. Around 30 people were there, representing London Catholic Worker, Westminster Justice and Peace, Columban Justice, Peace and Ecology, Faithful Companions of Jesus, Sisters of the Holy Cross, Anglican Franciscans, Pax Christi, Laudato Si Animators, Quakers and several Catholic and Anglican parishes. Names were read out of migrants who died in December 2024, trying to find a safe route to Europe from Iraq and many African countries. Sr MaryAnne Francalanza FCL said, “Saying the names and remembering the people who died hoping for a safer life, while standing in front of the Home Office, birthplace of the hostile environment, was a powerful moment. This is especially true as we remember the Christmas story, in which the Holy Family had to flee” A reflection was given by Brother Johannes Martens. Music included Bernadette Farrell’s Advent Liturgy. Columbans led a hymn, titled ‘Welcome and Love’, written by the JPE coordinator in Britain, James Trewby. He said, “Each verse of the hymn explores different aspects of welcoming refugees and migrants, grounded in Catholic Social Teaching and calling the listener to act with compassion.”  

This Jubilee icon was painted by Mulugeta Araya from Ethiopia.

Cafod’s Jubilee Icon is visiting Westminster diocese this month. Commissioned to celebrate the Jubilee Year and created by artist Mulugeta Araya in Ethiopia for the Catholic Church in England and Wales, this week it will be in Bishop’s Stortford, Enfield, Pimlico, Leicester Square, and Queensway parishes, before being displayed at Westminster Cathedral for Christmas. Fr Patrick van der Vorst, precentor of the cathedral and Founder of Christian Art, suggests that icons, “act as windows into the heavenly realm, drawing us beyond mere words into sacred presence”. The icon will travel to Nottingham diocese for the closing of the Jubilee Year.

London’s Jesuit Centre School of Public Theology is running a year-long course, starting in January, aimed at equipping students to engage theologically with public life. It comprises six taught modules in five-week courses, four research-based study days, and three pieces of written work. The cost is a discounted £400, and bursaries are available for students on low income. Students will learn about issues and how to engage theologically with crucial questions facing society today.

Students from St Peter’s Catholic High School, Wigan, helped decorate The Giving Tree at Merseyway Shopping Centre, Stockport, in support of a project to enable struggling children to receive a present at Christmas. The project involves hanging gift tags on the tree, detailing the age of a local child and their chosen gift, which shoppers can purchase and place near the tree. The gift will then be given to the child. The students, who are anti-bullying ambassadors, selected tags and bought gifts with funds raised. St Peter’s described the day as “a brilliant community effort that boosted their teamwork, confidence and compassion.”

St Charles Catholic Primary School in Gosforth, Newcastle, has been named the Northeast’s Primary School of the Year for a second successive year by the highly respected Sunday Times Parent Power Guide, which evaluates and ranks UK schools. Headteacher Louise Nealings, who has underlined that the school’s vision is underpinned by Catholic Social Teaching, said it was “unbelievable” to be named again. Highlighting “exceptional pastoral care, quality trips and visits, and lasting friendships” as some of the reasons St Charles’ won the award, Nealings added: “The children are the best part of our community, and we want the best for every single one of them.”

The Catholic Church does not seek a monopoly on education, according to Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin Denis Nulty, patron of the 163 primary schools in the diocese. Speaking at a Mass to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Catholic Primary School Management Association, he said that Catholic schools are “not exclusive clubs but respect the diversity of faith and culture in the school community”. Reducing Catholic schools to places simply for sacramental preparation misses the point, he said. A school living its ethos fully allows that ethos to “permeate all aspects of school life for the good of all”.

The Irish bishops have approved the terms of reference for new working groups to guide the national and diocesan reflection for the National Synodal Assembly’s seven priorities. The approval was given at the bishops’ winter meeting in Maynooth following regional meetings with diocesan synodal teams in early December. The Assembly takes place in October 2026. The National Synodal Team is currently gathering a range of contributors around each priority to ensure that local wisdom informs the national process

Dr Michael Shortall has been appointed as the new President of St Patrick’s College, Maynooth. A priest of the Archdiocese of Dublin, he had been serving as interim President of Maynooth for the past year and previously carried out a number of senior roles there, including Registrar, Dean of Theology, and Dean of Postgraduate Studies. Originally from Kilkenny, Fr Shortall studied politics and philosophy at University College, Dublin, completing a Masters in 1995. He studied for the priesthood at Clonliffe College, Dublin and was ordained in 1998 and in 2006 he obtained a Doctorate in Theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.

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