The Government is to meet Catholic Church leaders next week as part of the “structured dialogue” process for 
only the second time since it was elected.
It is expected that the Government’s proposal to legalise abortion and proposals to divest Catholic-run schools to other patron bodies will be on the agenda.
Recent unrest in Northern Ireland and pressures facing families during the recession may also feature, The Irish Times reports.
A Government spokesman said: “It’s expected the issue of the Government’s plan to proceed in relation to dealing with the A, B and C judgment will be discussed.”
The meeting between the Catholic Church and the Government will take place on Friday, January 18th.
The structured dialogue process was set up by then Taoiseach Bertie Ahern in 2007 as part of the Lisbon Treaty as an official channel for Church leaders to express their views on a range of issues.
At the time Mr Ahern was congratulated by Cardinal Sean Brady for being the first head of government in Europe to establish an official body for talks between politicians and religious leaders.
On leaving office, Mr Ahern spoke of his frustration at a growing hesitation to refer to issues of faith and belief in public debate. At a reception for churches and faith communities involved in the structured dialogue, he said this hesitation “upsets me and irritates me”.
Mr Ahern said he had observed “a growing hesitation in public debate to refer to religion, the churches, issues of faith and belief, and sometimes even to acknowledge the very fact of the impact on our culture and institutions of the historical contribution of the church communities”.