A large cohort of people never returned to regular religious worship since the Covid lockdowns, new figures from the CSO show.

Of those who regularly attended religious ceremonies in person prior to March 2020, more than half (55%) still regularly attend in-person, 8% say they only attend online, while more than one-third (37%) say they no longer frequent religious ceremonies on a regular basis.

Older respondents are most likely to still attend religious ceremonies either in person or online. Nearly seven in ten (69%) respondents aged 70 and over who attended religious ceremonies in person before the onset of the pandemic say they still regularly attend in person while one in eight (12%) of those in this age group opt to attend online instead. Conversely, two-thirds (67%) of younger respondents, i.e. those aged 18-29, say they no longer attend religious ceremonies regularly in any form. Three in ten (31%) say they still attend in person with only 2% saying they attend online.

Two cases alleging that an unborn baby was wrongly diagnosed with a so-called “fatal foetal abnormality” leading to an abortion have been lodged with the State Claims Agency.

The parents allege they received the incorrect pre-natal finding that the foetus had a condition likely to lead to a death in utero or within 28 days of birth. This is because of the inaccuracy of some of the screening tests.

The number of babies wrongly diagnosed and then aborted could be much higher because many parents might not have had their children tested again for a genetic abnormality post-abortion.

Health Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill was responding to a question from Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín who commented that he was not surprised. He said that Aontú was calling on the minister “to examine all notifications of abortions she has received – as mandated under section 20 of the Act – to ensure that the law is being adhered to. It is extremely worrying to learn that there are multiple cases of abortion following misdiagnosis”.

Hungary’s fertility declined starkly last year reaching a low of 1.38, down from a figure of 1.51 in 2023, according to preliminary data from the country’s Central Statistical Office (KSH).

A rate of 2.1 is needed for a population to sustain itself.

Annual births dropped to a historic low of 77,500, a decline of 9.1pc, or 7,725 fewer than the previous year.

Marriages also declined with only 46,550 couples tying the knot in 2024, down 7.2pc or, 3,589 compared with 2023.

The figures come despite years of extensive tax and economic benefits designed to encourage child-bearing.

Despite the apparent failure, the Government has doubled down on the policy by announcing new laws under which mothers with one child will be exempt from income tax until they turn 30, while those with two or more children will pay no income tax for life.

Mothers with four or more children are already totally tax exempt.

Married people are more likely to be happier than their divorced, separated and widowed counterparts, according to the latest figures from the CSO.

The Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC) 2024 measured various indicators of well-being.

Married respondents were more likely to report high overall life satisfaction at 29.6pc, compared with 20.0pc of those who were separated.

Likewise, the separated and divorced were more likely to report low overall life satisfaction, with rates of 22.7pc and 25.4pc respectively, compared with 7.9pc of married respondents.

When it comes to feeling downhearted or depressed, 9.1pc of divorced and 5.3pc of separated respondents and 5.4pc of those who never married said they felt like this always or most of the time in the four-week period prior to interview. The comparable rate for married persons was 1.7pc. The rate for widowed respondents was 4.3pc.

Married respondents were less likely to report feeling lonely with less than one in ten (8.3pc) feeling so at least some of the time. The comparable rates for separated, widowed or divorced respondents was three times higher at approximately 30pc for each of these three groups.

Euthanasia cases in Spain increased 24 percent in 2023, according to the Government’s latest annual report.

Half of the 766 requests for euthanasia were approved, and 334 assisted suicides were completed.

In about 25 percent of the cases, applicants died before their request could be approved, and some patients voluntarily withdrew their applications for medical assistance in dying. The report did not detail why some applications for the procedure were rejected and others were accepted.

Under the euthanasia law, people experiencing “grave, chronic, or impossible suffering” caused by a “chronic and incurable disease” can apply for assistance in dying. Those requests are submitted by the patient’s doctor to a review committee that has the authority to issue a final approval.

Polonia Castellanos, president of Abogados Cristianos, a nonprofit legal defense group, says the 2021 law is “very poorly drafted” and “too ambiguous.” She says it can apply to almost anyone suffering from a chronic medical condition. She fears abuses can occur when a vulnerable patient suffering from a long-term illness is treated by a strongly pro-euthanasia doctor.

Euthanasia cases in the Netherlands rose by 10 per cent in 2024, according to official figures. Almost 10,000 people were euthanised last year compared to 9,068 in 2023. Since its introduction the number of Dutch opting for euthanasia has been rising rapidly, and the grounds under which it is offered have kept expanding.

There has also been a notable increase in the number of people choosing euthanasia for psychiatric reasons, with 219 such cases in 2024, up from 138 in 2023, and a dramatic leap from just two back in 2010.

This has prompted the regulatory body to call on doctors to exercise “great caution” when handling such requests.

Six cases in 2024 were found to have fallen short of due care. One case involved a doctor who granted euthanasia to a woman in her 70s, despite failing to consult a psychiatrist. The woman had suffered a spinal fracture and could no longer meet her obsessive-compulsive urge to clean, leading her to request euthanasia.

Damiaan Denys, professor of psychiatry at Amsterdam University Medical Center, expressed concern over the growing number of young people opting for euthanasia due to mental health issues, “especially in young people under 30”.

Two more priests were kidnapped in Nigeria, as Christian persecution continues in a country that is also experiencing exponential growth in Catholicism.

Rev. Fr. John Ubaechu, of Izombe, southeastern Nigeria, was taken captive on Sunday, March 23, on his way to the Priests’ Annual Retreat.

On the same day, a joint security team consisting of police, army, civil defense, and vigilante groups succeeded in securing the release of Fr. Stephen Echezona, who had been kidnapped earlier in the day.

Fr. Echezona was abducted while refueling his car at a petrol station in Ichida, southern Nigeria.

He was released unharmed after a security team engaged the armed criminals in a gunfight, and successfully overpowered them.

There is a real need for good news, because society is wallowing in despair and meaninglessness, the bishop of Derry Donal McKeown has said.

Speaking to The Irish Catholic, Dr McKeown said Catholics need to participate in cultural life. He urged believers to “get out there and engage in debates about creation, about human life, about AI, about all those things”.

To do this, he said, they need to embrace an intellectual faith that is different from mere piety, adding that the Church is not retreating: “it is actually re-shaping for mission, we’re not downsizing for the sake of downsizing, we’re doing it in order to be better, fitter, leaner and better able to engage with our society at the intellectual level and all other sorts of levels.”

He said that for Derry, he hoped that the opening of the St Paul’s religious bookstore in Derry would help that task.

There has been a 1.15% increase in the global Catholic population, going from approximately 1.39 billion Catholics in 2022 to 1.406 billion in 2023.

Africa has registered the greatest growth, with the Catholic population on the continent increasing by 3.31%, from 272 million in 2022 to 281 million in 2023. It currently represents 20% of the world’s Catholic population.

Meanwhile, the Americas continue to be the region of the world with the highest proportion of Catholics, accounting for 47.8% of the global total. This increase is moderate, with a growth of 0.9% over the period.

In Asia, the Catholic population grew by 0.6% while Europe, home to 20.4% of the world’s Catholics, remains the least dynamic with its Catholic population increasing by only 0.2% between 2022 and 2023, reflecting a near-stagnant dynamic.

In Oceania, the Catholic population experienced an increase of 1.9%, with a total population of just over 11 million Catholics in 2023.

The Irish Government has handed over €2.3 million of taxpayers’ money, since 2022, to the world’s leading pro-abortion group, International Planned Parenthood Federation.

The bombshell news was contained in a reply to a Parliamentary Question by Independent TD Carol Nolan.

In response, the Pro-Life Campaign’s Eilís Mulroy called the revelation “astounding”.

“Planned Parenthood is the single largest provider of abortions in the US. In addition, many of its practices are deeply questionable. There is credible evidence that Planned Parenthood has been involved in the sale of the body parts of aborted babies. Meanwhile, its international affiliate International Planned Parenthood Federation is the main supplier and promoter of abortion worldwide”, she said.

Deputy Carol Nolan was also scathing in her criticism of the Government’s move.

“Not content with directing millions in taxpayers funding to abortion and ending innocent lives here in Ireland, the Government is now actively blurring the lines for abortion access abroad and promoting an ideology that is inextricably linked to its practice. How much death is enough?”