Pope Francis at the Nagasaki Martyrs’ Monument on Nishizaka Hill Nov. 24, 2019. / Vatican Media.
ACI Prensa Staff, Feb 5, 2024 / 15:40 pm (CNA).
In the 16th century, a young Franciscan friar from Mexico was blown off course en route back to his… […]
Newly appointed Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O’Neill made history Feb. 3, 2024, by becoming the first Catholic and first Irish nationalist to lead the country’s government in its 103 years of existence. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Sinn Féin/Wikimedia, CC BY 2.0 DEED
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Feb 5, 2024 / 14:40 pm (CNA).
Newly appointed Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O’Neill made history over the weekend by becoming the first Catholic and first Irish nationalist to lead the country’s government in its 103 years of existence.
“As an Irish republican, I pledge cooperation and genuine honest effort with those colleagues who are British, of a unionist tradition, and who cherish the Union,” O’Neill, who is a member of the Irish nationalist and democratic socialist party Sinn Féin, said in an address to the Northern Ireland Assembly on Saturday after assuming the position of first minister.
“This is an assembly for all — Catholic, Protestant, and dissenter,” O’Neill added. “Despite our different outlooks and views on the future constitutional position, the public rightly demands that we cooperate, deliver, and work together. We must build trust and confidence in our ability to do that.”
Sinn Féin, which has historical ties to the Provisional Irish Republican Army, officially supports the reunification of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, which were separated in 1921 through a peace treaty between Irish revolutionaries and the United Kingdom. The treaty ended the 1919–1921 Irish war for independence from the United Kingdom.
Northern Ireland is currently part of the United Kingdom. Yet, per the Good Friday Agreement, which was signed in 1998, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland can reunite as one country if the majority of both countries vote in favor of such a change via referenda.
The Good Friday Agreement, which received overwhelming support in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, brought an end to “The Troubles,” which was a 30-year violent conflict between Irish republicans and Ulster loyalists. The violence stemmed from disputes over the status of Northern Ireland and allegations of discrimination against Catholics through political gerrymandering, de facto segregation from housing policies, and workplace hiring practices that prevented Catholics from working in major industries that were mostly controlled by Protestants.
Despite this historical division, O’Neill’s address mostly focused on domestic problems rather than Irish reunification.
“There are many nettles to grasp,” O’Neill said. “The rising cost of living has been a heavy burden on many households and businesses. There are people living from hand to mouth, and they need our support. There are too many patients waiting for treatment and support. Our teachers, nurses, and all public sector workers are being forced onto the picket line. This demands urgent action.”
However, in an interview with Sky News that aired the following day, O’Neill suggested that a vote to reunite the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland could occur within the next decade.
“I believe that we are in the decade of opportunity and I believe … that we can do two things at once,” O’Neill said. “We can have power-sharing, we can make it stable, we can work together every day in terms of public services and while we also pursue our equally legitimate aspirations.”
United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak responded to those comments in an interview with Sky News, encouraging O’Neill to focus on local issues instead of reunification, citing a £3.3 billion funding deal for Northern Ireland.
“Our new deal gives them more funding and more powers than they’ve ever had so they can deliver for families and businesses across Northern Ireland,” Sunak said. “And that’s what everyone’s priority is now. It’s not constitutional change. It’s delivering on the day-to-day things that matter to people.”
Sinn Féin won the plurality of Northern Ireland Assembly seats in May 2022 for the first time in the country’s history. However, a failure to reach a power-sharing agreement delayed the appointment of a first minister for nearly two years.
Despite Sinn Féin’s historical association with Irish Catholics, O’Neill and the party are at odds with Church teaching on a number of issues. For example, Sinn Féin supported the increase in access to abortion and the party supports children having access to transgender drugs.
Cardinal José Luis Lacunza. / Credit: Diocese of David, Panama
ACI Prensa Staff, Feb 5, 2024 / 14:10 pm (CNA).
Cardinal José Luis Lacunza, the bishop of the Diocese of David in Panama, apologized Feb. 4 at the end of the Sunday Mass at St. Jose… […]
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CNA Staff, Feb 5, 2024 / 07:00 am (CNA).
After a year of major efforts to prohibit irreversible and untested transgender operations on young children, lawmakers across the U.S. are continuing the push to protect chil… […]
Bishop Jean-Marc Micas of Tarbes and Lourdes. / Credit: Courtney Mares/CNA
Lourdes, France, Feb 5, 2024 / 06:00 am (CNA).
The bishop of Lourdes says that he has received a “pile of letters” from Catholics all over the world as he considers whet… […]
This painting of St. Peter visiting St. Agatha was created by Federico Zuccari between 1597 and 1599 for the altar of Sant’Agata in the Milan Cathedral. It was directly commissioned by Milan native Federico Borromeo, a cousin of St. Charles Borr… […]
The latest “Note” from the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, titled Gestis verbisque, addresses the issue of using proper form to celebrate the sacraments. It does so within the larger context of a […]
Young people use mobile devices in isolation from each other at Willowbrook Mall in Langley, British Columbia. In their pastoral letter on social media, the Canadian bishops suggest fasting from screens once a week and taking a “Technology Sabba… […]
Pope Francis delivers his Sunday Angelus address at St. Peter’s on Feb. 4, 2024. / Credit: Vatican Media
Vatican City, Feb 4, 2024 / 09:22 am (CNA).
Pope Francis reminded the faithful during the Sunday Angelus that Jesus’ example of being “on the move,” in his preaching and in performing miracles, is a reminder that God is never distant, but “always close to us.”
Reflecting on today’s Gospel reading from Mark 1:29-39, the pope observed in his exegesis that Jesus, “after teaching in the synagogue, comes out so that the Word he preached can reach, touch and heal people.”
While acknowledging that the idea of a God that “is distant, cold, indifferent to our fate” is prevalent, the pope underscored that today’s reading dispels this notion, revealing to us instead that Jesus shows “to us that God is not a detached master who speaks to us from on high.”
“On the contrary, he is a Father filled with love who makes himself close to us, who visits our homes, who wants to save and liberate, heal from every ill of the body and spirit,” the pope said to the faithful gathered in St. Peter’s Square on Feb. 4.
Summarizing God’s attitude in three key words, “closeness, compassion, and tenderness,” the Holy Father reiterated that God is made known to us and comes “close to accompany us, tenderly, and to forgive us.”
The pope then called upon the faithful to undertake an interior reflection by asking the following questions: “Does faith instill in us the restlessness of journeying or is it an intimist consolation, that calms us? Do we pray just to feel at peace, or does the Word we listen to and preach make us go out, like Jesus, towards others, to spread God’s consolation?”
Though acknowledging that this literal and metaphorical walking of Jesus “challenges us,” it is our “spiritual task” to answer these questions, which, in turn, will lead us to “convert every day to the God Jesus presents to us in the Gospel, the Father of love and compassion.”
“When we discover the true face of the Father, our faith matures, we no longer remain ‘sacristy Christians, or ‘parlor Christians,’ but rather we feel called to become bearers of God’s hope and healing,” the pope added.
Following the recitation of the papal blessing, Pope Francis expressed his closeness to all those in China, Southeast Asia, and around the world who are celebrating the Lunar New Year, observing that “this celebration be an opportunity to experience relationships of affection and gestures of attention, which contribute to creating a supportive and fraternal society, where every person is recognized and welcomed in their inalienable dignity.”
The Lunar New Year, also known as the Chinese New Year or the Spring Festival, is a celebration of the new year according to the lunisolar Chinese calendar. The holiday commences on the new moon that falls between the end of January and early February and concludes on the subsequent full moon. This year the celebration runs from Feb. 10 to Feb. 15 and ushers in the year of the Dragon.
On Friday, Feb. 2 Pope Francis received a Delegation of the Italy-China National Federation in the Apostolic Palace, where the pontiff was greeted by a folkloric dance by the Chinese Martial Arts Academy of Vercelli.
The pope congratulated the group for their work in spearheading “a number of initiatives aimed at fostering dialogue between Italy and China, and seeking to respond to the challenges posed by cultural integration, education and the promotion of shared social values.”
Netflix highlights the fire at the Cathedral of Notre Dame in France in 2019 in which the crown of thorns that the Roman soldiers placed on the Lord’s head was almost lost in a new series called “Mysteries of the Faith.” / Credit: “Mysteries of … […]
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