Senator Rónán Mullen has warned that Ireland’s same-sex marriage legislation may “exclude religious bodies from a role in civil marriage unless they change their current form of ceremony”. During a debate on the Marriage Bill 2015, Seanator Mullen expressed grave concerns over apparent problems with the proposed legislation in terms of “the right of religious...
A Roma family whose two-year-old child was removed by gardaí in a case of “overzealous policing” have received €60,000 in damages under a settlement of a legal action they took. The child at the centre of the case was removed from the family home in Dublin in October 2013, under the Child Care Act of...
Justice Minister, Frances Fitzgerald, has told the Seanad she will consider changing the “prohibited degrees of relationship” to allow those currently considered too closely related to marry, to do so in some cases. She was responding to Senator David Norris who said in the Seanad on Tuesday that gay cousins should be allowed to marry because...
An Australian prelate has condemned new adoption legislation to accommodate same-sex couples as against human rights and religious freedom. Responding to news of planned reforms to adoption laws in the state of Victoria, Archbishop Denis Hart of Melbourne said the lack of exemptions for Catholic-backed organisations faced with same-sex couples wishing to adopt would place...
The rate of teenage pregnancies in Ireland has plummeted, latest figures show. According to annual figures released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO), the year 2014 saw 23 births to mothers aged 15 and under, a decline of 44% in the space of five years. Overall, the birth rate in Ireland was slightly down in...
Pope Francis has stressed that the family is the foundation of all human society during an address in Rome. As the Synod on the Family continues its work at the Vatican, the Pontiff returned to the theme of the family during his weekly Wednesday audience. Dealing with the themes of love and fidelity, he asserted...
The Northern Ireland Assembly is to debate the issue of same-sex marriage, for a fifth time, this November 2, it has been announced. According to the Christian Institute, despite four previous defeats for motions in favour of same-sex marriage – the latest being in April – members of Sinn Fein, the SDLP and the Green Party are...
Ireland’s Catholic marriage preparation and care service, Accord, dealt with 60,000 men, women and children in 2014, its latest annual figures show. Describing the figure as “extraordinary”, Accord president, Bishop Denis Nulty of Kildare & Leighlin said it “demonstrates the relevance and value of Accord for our society today, as well as the high esteem...
Insurance companies are paying out for euthanasia and assisted suicide as the practices become ‘normalised, the EU Ombudsman said. Speaking at a conference in Dublin on ‘Strengthening the Voice of Older People’, Emily O’Reilly warned that Ireland cannot avoid a debate on euthanasia and assisted suicide as populations across the European Union age. Quoted in...
Religious freedom in Australia is at a turning point as the country faces a referendum on same-sex marriage, a leading Catholic prelate has warned. Archbishop Anthony Fisher of Sydney issued his warning about the implications for freedom of religion should the nation give approval for a proposed redefinition of marriage. Addressing the Centre for Independent Studies, Archbishop Fisher stated that already there...
