Abuse survivor relieved Kenneally lived long enough to see major state report into his crimes

A SURVIVOR OF Bill Kenneally’s horrific abuse has said he doesn’t “feel anything” about the paedophile’s death but is “glad to see” he lived to see the inquiry report published on the case earlier this month.

Kenneally died this morning at Midlands Prison while serving a 19-year sentence for the abuse of 15 boys. He had been under palliative care in recent weeks.

It was only last week that a State inquiry about the wider case was published, examining how authorities dealt with reports of his crimes in the decades before he was finally brought to justice.

The major state report into the case found the failure of two senior local gardaí in Waterford to conduct a proper investigation into the activities of Kenneally was “a clear and serious dereliction of duty” even by the standards of the late 1980s.

Colin Power, one of the survivors who campaigned for the establishment of the Commission of Investigation, told The Journal that it was “extraordinary” that Kenneally had died almost 48 hours after survivors were told they would receive a state apology during a meeting with justice minister Jim O’Callaghan.

The inquiry had heard evidence from Kenneally himself about how he had kept abreast of the news, in particular for coverage about himself through the prison’s newspaper service, and Power said this meant he likely learned of the developments over the past week.

“I’m glad he was around to serve the last 10 years in prison, but I’m also very happy that he was around for the verdict of the Commission of Investigation that took eight and a half years,” Power said.

‘There isn’t much there’

For Power, he explained that he had little reaction when news came through this morning of his abuser’s death.

“There isn’t much there. It doesn’t have an impact on me, good bad or indifferent,” he said.

Kenneally, added Power, “destroyed a lot of lives over the years and had huge collateral damage on people”, particularly on the family members of victims.

“For me, when he went to jail in 2016, he hasn’t been in our thoughts,” Power said.

Instead, the focus for Power and other campaigners had been how victims “were let down by state bodies, political party members in Waterford and senior clergy”, who it became clear had known about the abuse but failed to report Kenneally to property authorities.

Power added that he was happy that Kenneally also lived to see “that his family members were also criticised by the report”, referring to the role played by Kenneally’s late uncles Billy Kenneally and monsignor John Shine, to his cousin Brendan Kenneally.

All were found to have had knowledge of the abuse allegations.

Both Billy Kenneally and Brendan Kenneally had been Fianna Fáil TDs for Waterford and were part of a family dynasty in the city.

The inquiry found that, when informed of his cousin’s crimes in 2001, Brendan Keneally did not report this to any formal agencies.

Instead, he informed his father, Billy Kenneally, who in turn told him to contact Shine.

Brendan Kenneally stated at the inquiry that he took this course of action due to the victims not wanting to go further and involve gardaí.

This led to psychiatric treatment being arranged for Bill Kenneally – the second time that Shine had taken this course of action, following similar in the late 1980s.

This decision, the report found, at “the very least fell substantially below the standards the Commission would expect from a TD of Mr Kenneally’s experience”.

The Commission further reported that “it cannot definitively on the balance of probabilities establish knowledge by Brendan Kenneally of Bill Kenneally’s sexual abuse of boys prior to 2001”.

The Irish Prison Service confirmed that there had been a death of a person in custody at Midlands Prison earlier Thursday morning.

Reacting to the death, O’Callaghan said that Kenneally had caused much damage because of his “very serious and heinous” crimes.

“There’s a tradition in Ireland that we don’t speak ill of the dead, but I have to say it’s hard to stick to that tradition in respect of the death of Bill Keneally, and that’s all I’ll say in respect to that,” O’Callaghan told reporters in Dublin this morning.

O’Callaghan reiterated his plan that the victims will receive an official state apology no later than July.

In 2016, the serial abuser was jailed for 14 years, and in 2023, received another four-and-a-half year sentence for indecent assaults on five boys, to run consecutively to the earlier term.

Bill to end three-day abortion wait moves forward as decisive Dáil vote splits government parties

TDS HAVE VOTED to remove the three-day waiting period for those who seek an abortion.

The Sinn Féin bill united both opposition and some government TDs last night on what has historically been a divisive topic.

The Taoiseach and Tánaiste’s support for the proposal has set them at odds with the majority of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael TDs, who voted no last night.

When the Eighth Amendment was repealed in 2018, the new legislation stipulated that women who chose to have an abortion in Ireland would be made to wait three days between their GP consultation and the termination.

It was thought that some women may change their mind in this timeframe. However, there is no comprehensive data on how many have.

Some 86 TDs voted in favour of scrapping this rule and 70 voted against.

Opening the debate on Wednesday, Sinn Féin TD David Cullinane described the legislation as a “straightforward and targeted bill” that would do just one thing: remove the mandatory three-day waiting period before an abortion can take place during early pregnancy.

He said the proposal would not require an abortion to take place on the day of a first consultation, but would instead allow a woman to make the decision in her own time without a legally mandated delay.

“When a woman is certain that this is what she wants, it allows her to make that decision for herself in her own time about her own pregnancy without a mandatory delay,” Cullinane said.

Having passed second stage in the Dáil, the bill will now proceed to Committee Stage, where TDs will examine the legislation in detail and can propose amendments.

If approved at committee stage, it will return to the Dáil for report and final stages before moving to the Seanad, where it must go through a similar legislative process.

If both houses of the Oireachtas approve the bill, it will then be sent to President Catherine Connolly to be signed into law.

Government split

Government TDs were given a free vote on the legislation as a matter of conscience, leading to significant divisions within both coalition parties.

A majority of Fianna Fáil TDs voted against the bill, including five cabinet ministers.

Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan, Minister for Social Protection Dara Calleary, Minister for Housing James Browne, Minister for Children Norma Foley and Government Chief Whip Mary Butler all opposed the proposal.

Speaking today at government buildings, O’Callaghan said he was not worried about a potential backlash from his choice. 

O’Callaghan, who had campaigned for repeal, said he voted against ending the three-day wait because he considered it a carefully calibrated arrangement, set out before the referendum in 2018, and which he did “not want to start unpicking now.” 

“My view is in the context of that statutory scheme that was set out,” he said. 

He said he welcomed the fact that Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael allowed a free vote on the issue, and said Sinn Féin had not done so.

Thirty Fianna Fáil TDs voted against the bill, while 12 supported it and six were absent. Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers and Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien were among those to vote in favour.

Fine Gael was similarly divided.

Tánaiste Simon Harris and Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill were the only cabinet ministers to back the legislation, while 23 Fine Gael TDs voted against it, including Minister for Enterprise Peter Burke and Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon.

Fine Gael currently has 38 TDs in Dáil Éireann. 

Eleven of their TDs voted in favour, while four were absent.

‘Unnecessary provision’

The National Women’s Council welcomed the passing of the bill to change the “paternalistic and medically unnecessary provision”.

Corrinne Hasson, the executive director, said: “We know that women in situations of domestic abuse, women living in IPAS centres, disabled women, rural women, and women on lower incomes all face more difficulties attending two GP appointments.

“We also know that in some cases the mandatory 3-day wait timed women out of care, forcing some to travel. So it’s very welcome that this will now change.”

After the Eighth Amendment was repealed in 2018, a review, which was carried out by barrister Marie O’Shea, recommended significant changes to the new legislation.

Three years on from the review being published, none of the recommendations had been acted upon, and no expert committee group has been established to look at the review.

Scrapping the three-day waiting period was one of the recommendations.

After the general election, Simon Harris and Micheál Martin said the incoming government would consider making changes to Ireland’s abortion legislation. 

A year after those remarks, the Taoiseach said the government would examine the recommendations of the review. 

However, it took a bill put forward by the Social Democrats for the issue to get some political traction this year. 

Sinn Féin and others did not support the Social Democrats’ bill, which included a further provision around widening access to abortions in the cases of fatal foetal abnormalities.

Current laws only allow terminations where a condition is likely to lead to the death of the foetus before birth or within 28 days after birth.

Defence will oppose any delay in Preliminary Enquiry for Donegal priest

Edward Gallagher had been charged with one count of attempted sexual communication with a child on dates between and seven further offences

A barrister has told Derry Magistrate's Court that any attempt to change the date for a Preliminary Enquiry in relation to a priest facing sex offences would be opposed.

Edward Gallagher (58) of Orchard Park in Lifford had been charged with one count of attempted sexual communication with a child on dates between April 2 and April 17 2025 and seven further offences, including inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and causing a child to watch sexual activity on April 17 this year as well as charges of possessing indecent images of children.

The hearing was told a date for a Preliminary Enquiry had been fixed for July 16. A prosecutor said that the case was in today simply for a review but he asked for another review as there were “some outstanding items.”

Defence counsel Stephen Mooney said that this was a “long-standing case” and added that any attempt to miss the Preliminary Enquiry date would be opposed. A further review was ordered for July 2.

JD Vance calls his meeting with Vatican officials right before Pope Francis died ‘unsettling’ in new book

Vice President JD Vance has launched a fresh attack on the Vatican in a new book on his faith.

In his memoir, Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith, Catholic convert Vance details his encounter with church officials in April last year.

In extracts published by The Washington Post, Vance wrote that the Vatican’s secretary of state Cardinal Pietro Parolin discussed the topic of migration with him during their meeting.

However, the vice president was not pleased with the tone of the conversation and described it as “unsettling.”

​“Here I was, the most senior Catholic in the United States government, and the Vatican seemed unwilling to move its moral guidance past the point of trite platitudes,” Vance wrote. ​

According to Vance, Parolin acknowledged that the U.S. has the right to control its own borders while encouraging the Trump administration to treat migrants humanely.

The vice president, who converted to Catholicism in 2019, went on to claim that the diplomats “never specified” exactly what aspects of the administration’s tough immigration policies they took issue with​, “out of a desire to be, well, diplomatic”.

Taking another swipe at the Vatican’s top officials, Vance claimed that he was “struck that one of the few institutions with the moral authority and global perspective to address the migration question seemed so afraid of saying something controversial that it chose, effectively, to say nothing at all.”​

Vance’s meeting preceded a face-to-face visit with Pope Francis on Easter morning, 24 hours before the pontiff passed away.

The vice president explained there were concerns about the meeting given the Pope’s health, while Vatican and American diplomats alike were “clearly worried” whether it “would be seen as a snub” if it fell through. ​

While attending a Good Friday Mass in St Peter’s Basilica, a priest pulled the vice president aside and said that the pope had yet to make a decision on whether he was able to attend.

​Vance responded by saying that the pope “should feel under no pressure to see me”, but later received a text message on Easter morning informing him that Francis was able to meet. When they finally did, Vance said the pontiff was “more fragile than I realized.”​

The vice president later called his wife and Second Lady Usha Vance from the car, describing Francis as being in “very bad shape” but added that he had been “very kind”, giving gifts for their children.

​After arriving in India, Vance was informed of Francis’s death by one of his Catholic staffers.​

“We had different jobs, and I preferred his specific exhortations to the vagueness I had encountered during our Vatican meeting,” Vance wrote. “Better to have an honest conversation than one masked by cliches.”

​Vance has urged Francis’s successor, American-born Pope Leo XIV, to “be careful” when he talks about matters of theology while speaking at an event in April.

He also encouraged Leo, who has criticized the administration’s immigration policy, to focus on “matters of morality.”

Advisers cleared mother and baby amendment for debate before Speaker Poots blocked it

Advisers cleared for debate a mother and baby amendment around posthumous payments just days before Speaker Edwin Poots blocked any further consideration, documents seen by the Irish News reveal.

In a surprise move last month, the Speaker dropped the amendment from the bill lifting a bar on relatives of those who died on or before a date in 2011 from applying for redress.

Days earlier, the main Stormont advisers on legislation told Mr Poots it was “comfortably within the scope of the bill” and “considered admissible for debate”.

The Inquiry and Redress Scheme Bill, currently making its way through the Assembly, will establish a public inquiry into mother and baby homes and Magdalene Laundries, and set up a redress scheme.

In the face of criticism from MLAs and victims, Mr Poots made clear under the rules he did not need to give an explanation for his decision, though he added that it was taken after receiving the “best advice”.

Questions are likely now to be asked over the source of that advice as the Bill Office, the key unit tasked with legislative guidance, told him there was no reason for denying Assembly members the opportunity to further debate the amendment.

It was delivered just days ahead of the Speaker’s May 18 announcement that it was to be removed from further consideration.

The confidential advice paper, which The Irish News obtained from a political source, specifically mentioned the committee amendment “removing any posthumous date for certain survivors’ relatives to qualify for redress”. The amendment was passed at committee, with only the DUP members opposing.

“The opportunity to alter the details of the execution of the general principles of the bill remain open to the Assembly, even where amendments may have substantial financial or operational implications,” the Bill Office wrote in its paper addressed to Mr Poots.

Along with one other amendment around increased payments, the office said that “these are comfortably within the scope of the bill and are considered admissible for debate”.

This is believed to be only the second time in the recent history of the Assembly a speaker has unilaterally blocked further consideration of an amendment to legislation that has been passed by committee.

The first time was last September when Mr Poots decided there should be no further discussion around girls and their families being allowed to decide whether female pupils can wear trousers in school.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the Speaker said his “procedural decisions are final and the parliamentary convention is that the Speaker does not give reasons for them”.

It continued: “It is also important that officials are able to provide full and frank advice to the Speaker, and every individual Member, on a confidential basis.

“Therefore, the Speaker’s Office does not comment on speculation around advice given or the reasoning behind individual decisions.”

But the statement also noted Mr Poots “took the exceptional step” of addressing the Assembly, on June 2, “to give Members some guidance on amendments for when the Bill returns to the Assembly in the next few weeks”.

Mr Poots said then that his decision to block further consideration “should not be interpreted as meaning that a different amendment proposing an alternative date or approach cannot be tabled or selected at further consideration stage”.

In its statement to the Irish News, the Speaker’s office said: “The selection of amendments often involves complex issues which sometimes require balanced judgments on a range of matters such as the scope of an individual Bill and the existing legal framework.

“However, it is the Speaker who carries the responsibility to make the ultimate judgements and decisions on these issues, informed by procedural advice.”

Campaigner Adele Johnstone’s mother was forced to give her up for adoption in 1951. Her mother died in 2007 following a troubled life Ms Johnstone believes stemmed from her time in the Mater Dei institution in Belfast.

“He is not obliged to give an explanation but we are asking him to work with victims and survivors and to give us his rational,” Ms Johnstone previously told The Irish News.

Planning permission refused for Manna Air delivery hub after objection from senior Dublin cleric

CONTENTIOUS PLANS FOR a drone aerial delivery hub for Dundrum opposed by a senior Dublin Catholic cleric have been refused.

This follows Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council refusing planning permission to Manna Drones Ltd for its planned aerial delivery hub on lands to the rear of Holy Cross Church in Dundrum.

The proposal faced local opposition including one objection from Monsignor Paul Callan from Holy Cross Church And Pastoral Centre in Dundrum which stated that “the prospect of a drone take-off during mass is simply unprecedented and disrespectful”.

Now, the Council has refused planning permission due chiefly to noise concerns.

The Council stated that the noise impact of the proposed aerial delivery hub and associated drone operations on residential amenity and other sensitive receptors, through the submitted Noise Impact Assessment, has not been sufficiently evidenced or modelled. 

As a result, the Council has concluded that the applicant has “failed to demonstrate that the proposed development would not give rise to adverse noise impact or injury to the amenities of property in the area”.

The Council also refused planning permission over biodiversity impact concerns.

It stated that the submitted Ecological Impact Assessment does not provide a sufficient evaluation of impacts on biodiversity nor reconcile findings in the scientific literature with the conclusion of ‘no significant effect’.

As a result, the Council stated that it is therefore not satisfied that the proposal can mitigate or avoid the likelihood of significant adverse impacts on relevant ecological receptors and species. 

In the ‘Holy Planning Row’, planning consultant on behalf of Monsignor Callan, Ann Mulcrone claimed that the hub “would create a hostile noise environment and would seriously injure the amenities of the Church and Pastoral Centre and Parish House”.

When plans were first lodged by Manna in June 2025 216 third party submissions were lodged with the Council with 193 concerned with noise, 144 with privacy and 86 with safety.

In Monsignor Callan’s follow-up objection lodged last month, Ms Mulcrone stated that the submission is made in the public interest of the community of over 4,700 homes that the Holy Cross Church and Pastoral Centre, part of the Catholic Archdiocese serves.

Monsignor Callan resides in the parochial house and Ms Mulcrone stated that the community concerns about the impact of the noise have not been addressed by the applicant in the further information response.

On behalf of Monsignor Callan, Mulcrone said that the church “provides a quiet space of refuge and the variety of activities in the church and pastoral centre include mindfulness, meditation, stillness, yoga, therapy groups for young and old”. 

Mulcrone said: “There is a fundamental land use conflict between the proposed use and the proposed use and the impacts on the Church have not and cannot be properly addressed as the proposed use is simply incompatible with the quiet environment essential to the Church and pastoral centre.”

Mulcrone stated that “daily flight numbers amounting to 288 flights from the aerial hub indicate a significant level of intensity which is a major land use conflict with the nature of the use of the adjoining Church and parochial house where there is a need for a quiet environment supportive of spiritual contemplation and prayer”.

The planning refusal coincides with new accounts showing that expansion costs at the Irish arm of drone delivery firm, Manna Drones resulted in pre-tax losses rising to €16.9m in 2024.

Accounts filed by Manna Drones Ltd show that the losses of €16.9m for 2024 were a 37% increase on the post tax losses of €12.33m for 2023.

The firm revenues from drone deliveries increased more than six-fold from €20,439 in 2023 to €136,004 in 2024 while revenues for 2025 are expected to be a multiple of what was recorded in 2024.

In 2024, the firm upped its R&D spend to €2.37m from €2.1m while another contributor to the increased losses was a foreign exchange loss of €2.5m compared to a foreign exchange gain of €808,073 in the prior year.

The accounts were signed off the directors, including CEO Bobby Healy, on 11 June.

A spokesman for Manna said today that “as a frontier tech company Manna has continued to invest heavily in R&D, more than doubling its headcount to nearly 200 people across manufacturing, robotics, regulation and aviation,”.

He said: “As a result these accounts reflect a deliberate investment strategy focused on scaling the business, expanding internationally and building the technology and operational infrastructure required for long-term growth.

The spokesman said that since 2024, Manna has continued to see strong growth in deliveries, expanded its operational footprint and announced further international expansion plans.”

The spokesperson added: “As part of the Dundrum planning process, independent expert assessments concluded that ‘the predicted operational noise impact of the air delivery hub is insignificant’ and that drone operations would result in ‘little to no perceptible noise level change’.” 

The spokesperson said that the Operational Environmental Management Plan also concluded that there would be “no significant adverse noise impact associated within the standard operations of the drones” in relation to biodiversity and wildlife.

They added that these assessments were based on measured drone operations, detailed acoustic modelling and internationally recognised standards, including WHO guidance, the EU Environmental Noise Directive, EASA guidance, ISO standards and Irish EPA methodologies.

Numbers employed at the Irish unit in 2024 increased from 90 to 97 as staff costs increased from €5.22m to €6.62m. The staff costs included severance costs of €157,507.

The company enjoyed a corporation tax credit of €593,582 in 2024.

In April, Manna announced plans for a further 400 jobs following a $50m (€43m) funding round that will drive growth at the company.

The new jobs, to be split between Ireland and the US, will be in robotics, software engineering, aviation and operations. 

Manna Drones is the only European or Irish company competing with Google, Amazon and another company Zipline in the drone delivery sector.

The company has already completed more than 250,000 deliveries of books, medical supplies such as antigen tests, food and clothing, including 60,000 deliveries at its Dublin 15 base, and has expanded its operations to Texas and Finland.

It has plans to open more bases in Ireland, concentrating on locations outside the capital.

Church of Sweden launches inquiry into PM's wife over unspecified ethical concerns

The Lutheran Church of Sweden, which has some 5.4 million members in a country of 10.6 million, formally separated from the Swedish state in 2000.

The Church of Sweden said on Tuesday it had launched an investigation into Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson's wife, who is a Lutheran priest, after media reports raised ethical concerns about her role in a spiritual foundation she runs.

The church said complaints had been filed with Birgitta Ed's local diocese about her, and the chapter had decided to launch an investigation into her suitability to carry out her work as a priest, without specifying the nature of the reports.

Ed has recently come under scrutiny after newspaper Aftonbladet published a series of reports about her foundation Fållöknastiftelsen.

According to the newspaper, the foundation recruited volunteers to raise funds and refurbish the foundation's manor house, in exchange for a "good network" of contacts and meetings held at the prime minister's official residence.

Ed, who often wears her clerical collar when appearing in public with her husband, also allegedly used her contacts in the church to get donations and free services, such as IT support, for the foundation, according to Aftonbladet.

In the statement, the church said such investigations usually take "a few months," after which a decision is made public, but that no comments would be made during the inquiry.

"The investigation may result in no disciplinary action being taken, or alternatively in the priest receiving one of three sanctions," the church said.

The possible sanctions include "a written reprimand, a probationary period for continued authorisation to exercise ordained ministry, or a declaration that the priest is no longer authorised to exercise ordained ministry."

The Lutheran Church of Sweden, which has some 5.4 million members in a country of 10.6 million, formally separated from the Swedish state in 2000.

The investigation comes as the Scandinavian country prepares to hold legislative elections in September, with current opinion polls giving the left-wing opposition an edge over Kristersson's right-wing minority government, which is propped up by the far-right Sweden Democrats.

China detains two leaders of influential underground church

An influential Protestant church in China has said two of its leaders were detained after more than dozens of congregants, including children, were rounded up for interrogation.

They were midway through Sunday service in the south-western city of Jiangyou, when armed police officers stormed the room they were in, Early Rain Covenant said in a statement on Monday.

Founded in 2008 in Chengdu city, the church has long been on the Chinese Communist Party's radar given how religion is tightly controlled in the region.

Founding pastor Wang Yi was detained in a raid in December 2018 and is serving a nine-year jail term for "inciting subversion of state power" and "illegal business operations".

The grounds for detaining two of its leaders, Yan Hong and Wu Wuqing, on Sunday are still unclear, the church said in its statement posted on Telegram. 

Chinese authorities have not responded to the statement, or made any comment so far.

The church also shared photographs and videos that show the congregants, seated in a hotel ballroom surrounded by a team of SWAT (Special Weapons and Tactical Unit) officers.

At least 50 police officers were present during the raid at 11:00 local time, according to some members' estimates.

More than 30 members and leaders were "forcibly taken away in several police vehicles" and questioned in the Jiangyou detention centre, the church said. 

Throughout the process, they "fellowshipped, sang hymns, and prayed until most of them were released," it added.

The remaining congregants, which included elderly and children, were locked up in the ballroom and subject to identity checks, according to the church. 

Clips show some congregants singing even as an officer in plain clothes took to the stage and repeatedly shouted for them to stop.

Early Rain Covenant Church

At least 50 police officers were present during the raid, according to some members' estimate

The church said officers tried to get those in the ballroom to sign an affidavit in exchange for their release, but did not disclose what was in the affidavit. The congregants refused and were eventually released at 18:00.

Apart from Yan and Wu, those who were taken away for interrogation were released between 21:00 and 23:00 on Sunday.

The two preachers have previously been detained by authorities, the most recent being in January, when they were summoned by police for "picking quarrels and provoking trouble".

Chinese authorities said in 2018 that there were 44 million Christians in the country, but it is unclear if this number includes those who attend the many underground churches.

The Communist Party pressures Christians to join only state-sanctioned churches led by government-approved pastors.

Many have turned to underground churches, also known as "house churches", over the years, but Christian groups say the government's grip has tightened noticeably, with arrests becoming more common.

"[Sunday's] raid is another stark reminder that the Chinese Communist Party continues to treat peaceful Christian worship as a threat to state control," says Bob Fu, founder of non-profit ChinaAid, which monitors religious persecution.

In October last year, 30 leaders of Zion Church, another one of China's biggest underground churches, were rounded up across seven cities. Its founder Ezra Jin is still in custody.

Cuban churches ration Communion wafers amid worsening power shortages

Catholic churches in Cuba have begun rationing Communion wafers as the country's deepening energy crisis disrupts production, priests have told AFP.

The wafers, used during Mass to symbolise the body of Jesus Christ, are produced at a Carmelite monastery in Havana, but extended electricity outages have now severely limited manufacturing capacity.

Several priests said on Sunday that church authorities had instructed parishes to conserve supplies.

Communion wafers are made from a mixture of flour and water pressed into thin discs, which are distributed to worshippers during Mass.

Like much of Cuba, the monastery has been affected by prolonged power cuts, which have intensified amid fuel shortages. According to AFP, the situation has been worsened by a five-month-old US oil blockade.

In recent weeks, some areas of the island have experienced blackouts lasting more than 24 hours, affecting daily life for millions of people.

George Payano, a 35-year-old Dominican priest, said the nuns responsible for producing the wafers were often able to operate the presses for only a limited period each day.

"That means lower production, and as they (the nuns) told the priests and bishops, you have to ration them a bit so that there are enough for all," he said.

Despite the shortages, worshippers attending Mass on Sunday were still able to receive Communion. However, many expressed concern about the possibility of further restrictions if the energy crisis continues.

After leaving the church and finding another power outage in the neighbourhood, parishioners said they remained committed to their faith.

"People who don't receive communion can do so spiritually, but let's hope it doesn't come to that," said 70-year-old pensioner Mariela Shuman.

Future vicars to receive bigger grants as Church of England invests in new clergy

People training for ordained ministry in the Church of England are set to receive increased financial support under a new grant scheme worth an additional £2m a year.

The denomination said the investment comes as the number of people entering ordained ministry has risen for the first time in four years, going from 329 last year to 442 entering training in September. 

From the 2026/27 academic year, eligible ordinands undertaking full-time training will receive grants ranging from £17,141 to £26,127. The amount awarded will be based on average housing costs across three designated geographical zones.

Those studying part-time will also benefit from an annual £1,000 grant to help cover the cost of books and computer equipment, as well as being able to claim travel expenses.

The Church of England's director for ministry, Rev Canon Nicholas McKee, said the changes are designed to provide better support for those preparing for ministry.

“We will be listening carefully to feedback from our ordinands and making any necessary adjustments should they be needed as the new system rolls out.

"These new grants are part of a wider package to improve the wellbeing of clergy from the beginning of their ministry through to retirement.”

The new scheme will be introduced in four phases. During the next academic year, ordinands will apply for support through their dioceses. 

Once fully operational, the process will move to a national system, which the Church said will reduce administration costs for Theological Education Institutions (TEIs).

The project team overseeing the new grant programme includes senior officers from across the National Church Institutions. 

An advisory board made up of representatives from TEIs, dioceses and the Ordinands' Association is also helping to shape its development.

Spanish priest faces protests after denying Communion to man in same-sex union

A parish priest in a small Andalusian town has come under sustained protest after informing a parishioner in a civil same-sex marriage that he could no longer receive Holy Communion, citing the public and persistent nature of the union as incompatible with the Church’s discipline for the Eucharist.

On May 30, following Sunday Mass at the Parish of San Fernando in Villanueva del Río y Minas near Seville, the priest, identified in local reports as Fr Manuel C, asked José Antonio Hurtado to remain behind. 

According to Hurtado’s public account, the priest told him he would no longer administer the Eucharist because Hurtado’s same-sex “marriage” – widely known in the town – placed him in a state of manifest grave sin.

British archbishop ‘deeply disappointed’ at reintroduction of assisted suicide bill to parliament

Following news that a member of the British Parliament intends to reintroduce the assisted suicide bill into parliament after it recently ran out of parliamentary time, an archbishop has reiterated why he considers the bill to be dangerous and flawed.

In a statement, Archbishop John Sherrington of Liverpool, the Lead Bishop for Life Issues at the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, called the proposed legislation “flawed and full of unresolved matters.”

“I am deeply disappointed that the previously unsuccessful Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill is being reintroduced in the House of Commons. It is likely to be debated in September. The Catholic Church opposes this Bill in principle and joins with many other people of faith and none in arguing that we should not cross this watershed,” Sherrington said.

“The recent debate about this Bill showed how many people found the proposed legislation, even if they accepted it in principle, to be flawed and full of unresolved matters. The majority in the Commons reduced between readings, the Lords identified many shortcomings and bad legislation,” he added.

Lauren Edwards, the Labour Member of Parliament (MP) for Rochester and Strood, has said that she will bring the same bill to the Commons that Kim Leadbeater, also a Labour MP, initially brought. She recently came second in a private members’ bill ballot.

“Laws passed in the House of Commons are then refined by the House of Lords but they don’t have the opportunity to block them,” Edwards told the BBC in an interview. 

“It’s perfectly reasonable for us to ask the House of Lords to finish the job,” she added.

Leadbeater’s bill passed in the House of Commons by 25 votes in June 2025 but not the House of Lords after over 1200 proposed amendments delayed its progress and it ran out of time. 

Sherrington said that many professional bodies argued against the bill the first time around, and that the concerns about it had not been resolved.

“Many professional bodies argued against this Bill, including the Royal College of Psychiatrists and the Royal College of Physicians, whose members would be required to be involved under the provision of the Bill. Disability rights groups, those fighting against eating disorders, and against domestic abuse were highly concerned and considered it dangerous,” he said.

“Concerns that were raised remain unresolved. The Bill undermines freedom of conscience for medical professionals and care workers. It also requires care homes and hospices to participate in assisted suicide, threatening not only their future existence but also the wellbeing of their more vulnerable staff,” Sherrington added.

If MPs pass the legislation again, then there is the chance that supporters of the bill could use the Parliament Act to overcome potential opposition in the House of Lords.

“Reintroducing this legislation, once again, places the most vulnerable at risk. I ask MPs to reject this Bill,” said Sherrington.

“Recent debates have exposed the uneven provision of palliative care across the country. Surely what is now needed to help the terminally ill is an improvement in compassionate, high-quality palliative care, and proper hospice funding. I urge a debate about priorities in healthcare funding, especially for those living with terminal illness,” he added.

Labour MP Ashley Dalton said she was “deeply concerned” by the news.

“Voters put us in power to reduce the cost of living and fix the NHS. We have debated this deeply divisive and flawed assisted dying bill for over a year and supporters have refused to listen or to make the necessary changes,” she said.

Nuncio, other Christian leaders lament Russian attack on historic Ukrainian monastery

The apostolic nuncio to Ukraine lamented a Russian attack on Kyiv Pechersk Lavra (Kyiv Monastery of the Caves), an eleventh-century Orthodox monastery recognized by UNESCO as a world heritage site.

The attack set ablaze the roof of Dormition Cathedral, located in the monastery.

“With about 30 ballistic missiles and hundreds of drones, the Russians also struck a very important symbol,” said Archbishop Visvaldas Kulbokas, the nuncio.

Archbishop Kulbokas added:

When we observe and feel the vibrations of these explosions, there is almost no other response left, because in the face of bombardment, there is only God and you; no human hand is capable of intervening. In this sense, this latest bombardment also serves as a personal encouragement for me to continue praying to God for the conversion of those responsible for this war, and for every war.

Metropolitan Epiphanius of Kyiv, the primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, condemned the attack as a crime “against humanity, against history, and against Christianity.”

“The wounds of the Dormition Cathedral represent the tragedy of the Ukrainian people wounded by the war,” added Metropolitan Kliment of Nizhyn and Pryluky, head of the Synodal Department for Information and Education of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. “The Orthodox Church of Ukraine firmly condemns Russian military aggression against Ukraine, which has caused the deaths of thousands of people and the destruction of sacred sites. God does not bless wars.”

The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church posted a statement by the Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations condemning the attack.

“The Russian attack on the Lavra constitutes yet another crime against humanity, against Christianity, and against Ukraine’s spiritual, historical, and cultural heritage,” according to the statement.

“It should be recalled that since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion, nearly 800 religious buildings belonging to Christian, Muslim, and Jewish communities in Ukraine have been fully or partially destroyed or damaged by Russian attacks.”

The statement continued:

It should be noted that during this massive attack on Kyiv, the Oleksandr Dovzhenko National Film Studio and the Mystetskyi Arsenal National Cultural, Artistic, and Museum Complex were also damaged; a large postal terminal was destroyed; multi-story residential buildings and private homes were hit; and strikes were carried out against the city’s power supply and water supply systems. We mourn those who were killed and pray for the swift recovery of all who were wounded as a result of this Russian terrorist attack.

All these crimes are being committed by the Russian Federation, a state that bears the obligations of a UN member, is a member of UNESCO, and yet, taking advantage of the lack of political will within international institutions and the insufficient resolve of democratic nations, continues its cynical terrorist attacks against Ukrainian cities and perpetrates ever new acts of genocide against the Ukrainian people.

It is never too late to turn towards God: Pope

In his message for the World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly, Pope Leo XIV said it is “never too late” to turn towards God.

The Vatican yesterday published the Pope’s message for the World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly, which this year will be celebrated on July 26 with the theme “I Will Never Forget You”.

Reflecting on this theme, taken from a verse of the book of the prophet Isaiah, Pope emphasised that “these are words that fill us with comfort and hope.” He recalled the “painful feeling of being forgotten,” something shared by many people, especially the elderly.

In the face of this sense of abandonment, Pope Leo recalled that God’s love, which “forgets no one,” is also “an act of justice and a response to the anonymity in which human life all too often ends up lost.”

The pontiff turned his attention to elderly people who have been forgotten and who live in homes “where loneliness reigns” or in care facilities “where each person’s uniqueness risks being reduced to a bed number or an illness”.

He proposed the World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly as an opportunity “to rediscover that the Church is called to be a mother to all and that at any age it is always possible to recognise ourselves as sons and daughters of God.”

He also invited this day to be “an inspiration for everyone, especially the young, to revive the beautiful custom of visiting their grandparents, the elderly members of the family, and even those who have no one to visit them.”

Leo said the Church “understands the suffering of her elderly members; she knows full well that they are all too often viewed through the lens of stereotypes and considered a burden”.

He noted in particular the weakening of family ties and the abandonment of many elderly people by children forced to migrate or to fight in wars.

He said the final stage of life “can become the right time to begin or resume a spiritual life” and to encounter God anew.

The Pope invited the elderly “not to feel embarrassed by the fragility that emerges” and to recognise that “we are always in need of one another and in need of attention and care.” 

To God, he said, “we can now turn with filial trust in prayer. It is never too late to begin turning to him.”

McElory bans the installation of communion rails in the churches of the Diocese of Washington

Cardinal Robert McElroy, Archbishop of Washington, has ordered that no communion rails be installed or reinstalled in the churches of the archdiocese, in a new liturgical controversy in the United States over kneeling communion and traditional forms of reverence before the Eucharist.

The alleged directive was initially reported by journalist Christine Niles of Stella Maris Media, following a recent meeting with priests. To date, the Archdiocese of Washington has not issued a formal decree or official communication regarding this measure.

No communion rails or temporary kneelers

The directive attributed to McElroy indicates that communion rails should neither be installed nor reinstalled in the churches of the archdiocese. The use of temporary kneelers for receiving Holy Communion is also discouraged.

Among the arguments presented during the meeting, according to the information circulated, were the possible disruption of the communion procession and the risk that the use of kneelers could turn an individual choice of the faithful into a more widespread practice.

The issue directly affects the manner of receiving communion. In the United States, the norm approved by the Episcopal Conference and confirmed by the Holy See establishes that the faithful receive communion standing, after making a gesture of reverence.

However, the universal law of the Church also makes clear that Holy Communion must not be denied to a member of the faithful for the sole reason of kneeling to receive it.

A controversy that already erupted in Charlotte

The possible decision in Washington comes after a similar controversy in the Diocese of Charlotte, North Carolina. There, Bishop Michael Martin ordered that communion rails, kneelers, or individual kneelers not be used for receiving communion in public celebrations.

Martin defended in a pastoral letter published in December that the norms approved by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops do not contemplate the use of communion rails or kneelers for receiving communion, and maintained that their use would contradict the normative stance established by the American bishops.

The measure provoked a strong reaction within the diocesan clergy. More than thirty priests formally submitted dubia to the Vatican to clarify the extent of a bishop’s authority to restrict these practices.

McElroy, once again at the center of controversy

The information about the possible prohibition in Washington has drawn particular attention because it involves one of the most prominent archdioceses in the United States and because of the profile of its current archbishop.

McElroy was installed as Archbishop of Washington in March 2025, after governing the Diocese of San Diego for a decade, and is considered one of the most influential figures in the American episcopate.

The controversy also comes shortly after another decision that made headlines. In early June, the cardinal removed Msgr. Stephen Rossetti as exorcist of the Archdiocese of Washington and ended the diocese’s affiliation with the St. Michael Center for Spiritual Renewal, following statements linking UFO phenomena with demonic activity.

McElroy stated at the time that those declarations “seriously undermine the very precise teaching of the Church on the devil, demons, and exorcism.”

Now, attention is once again focused on a fundamental liturgical question: whether a diocese can prevent the installation of elements that facilitate kneeling communion when the Church recognizes that the faithful must not be deprived of the Eucharist for choosing that posture.

Archbishop of Milan celebrates a Mass for an LGBT group during the 'Pride'

The celebration of a Mass presided over by the Archbishop of Milan, Mario Delpini, for a group of LGBT Catholics during «Pride» week has sparked intense controversy in Italy. 

The initiative, organized by the so-called Gruppo del Guado, has been harshly criticized by various ecclesiastical sectors, which consider that the event sends an ambiguous message regarding Catholic doctrine on homosexuality.

According to La Nuova Bussola Quotidiana, the celebration took place last Friday at the Church of San Carlo al Lazzaretto, located in one of Milan’s neighborhoods traditionally associated with the homosexual community. 

The Mass also coincided with the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and with events linked to Milan Pride.

A gathering marked by rainbow symbolism

The controversy was fueled by the very image used to promote the celebration. The poster shared by the organizers showed a church decorated with rainbow colors and announced the participation of the Archbishop of Milan.

The Gruppo del Guado is an association founded in the 1980s that brings together homosexual individuals who identify as Catholic and promotes spaces for encounter, reflection, and religious celebration for this group within the Church.

During the homily, Delpini recalled that God loves each person regardless of their situation and cited a biblical passage stating that the Lord chose His people not because they were numerous, but out of love: “The Lord has bound Himself to you and has chosen you, not because you are the most numerous people; you are the smallest, but He loves you.”

The controversial T-shirt during Communion

The controversy grew after one of the participants shared images on social media of the T-shirt he wore to the celebration. It featured a depiction of Jesus in rainbow colors accompanied by the phrase “Ah Men,” a play on words between the traditional “Amen” and an English expression related to attraction to men.

The same participant later stated on Instagram that he had uttered this expression while receiving Communion from the Archbishop.

Criticism over the timing with ‘Pride’

Objections have not focused solely on the episode that occurred during Communion. Various voices have questioned the appropriateness of celebrating a Mass specifically aimed at an LGBT group on the days when the city hosts Pride events.

La Nuova Bussola Quotidiana described the initiative as a sign of implicit support for positions promoted by the LGBT movement and especially criticized the fact that the celebration coincided with the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Pope Leo XIV receives the President of South Korea and discusses preparations for WYD 2027

Pope Leo XIV received the President of the Republic of Korea, Lee Jae-myung, in audience this Monday at the Vatican Apostolic Palace. 

The meeting served to confirm the good state of relations between the Holy See and South Korea, as well as to address preparations for the next World Youth Day, which will be held in Seoul in 2027.

According to a statement released by the Holy See Press Office on June 15, after the audience with the Pontiff, the South Korean leader also held meetings with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State, and with Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations.

The South Korean leader’s visit was preceded by his participation in a “special Mass for peace and solidarity” celebrated at the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls. 

In a message posted on his social media before the audience, Lee expressed his desire to reflect in Rome on “the authentic meaning of peace”.

Recognition of the Church’s work in Korea

During the meetings held at the Secretariat of State, both sides highlighted the good relations existing between the Holy See and the Republic of Korea, as well as the contribution that the Catholic Church makes to South Korean society.

The Vatican communiqué notes that special emphasis was placed on the work carried out by the Church in the fields of education and social assistance, sectors in which Catholic institutions play a significant role in the Asian country.

Recalling that the Church in South Korea has become one of the most dynamic Catholic communities in Asia and maintains a relevant presence in education, healthcare, and social action.

World Youth Day Seoul at the center of the conversations

One of the main topics addressed during the visit was the organization of the next World Youth Day, scheduled for 2027 in Seoul.

The event will bring together hundreds of thousands of young people from around the world and will mark the first World Youth Day held in South Korea. It will also provide an opportunity to showcase the history of Korean Catholicism, marked by the witness of thousands of martyrs and by the remarkable growth of the Church in recent decades.

Thus, the preparation of WYD is a priority both for the local Church and for South Korean authorities, who see the event as an opportunity for international projection for the country.

A visit marked by the message of peace

Before meeting with the Pontiff, Lee took part in a liturgical celebration alongside Cardinal Lazarus You Heung-sik, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Clergy and one of the prominent figures of the Korean Church in Rome.

The South Korean president described the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls as a place that conveys to the world “a message of peace and love” and expressed his gratitude for being able to share that moment with members of the Korean clergy present in the Italian capital.

In the same message, Lee also highlighted the personal closeness of Leo XIV and praised the Pontiff’s spontaneous gestures toward young people. As an example, he mentioned the episode in which the Pope agreed to sign a Pokémon card presented to him by a boy during a public encounter.

According to the leader, “these small acts of kindness and affection bring people closer together and also contribute to making the world more peaceful”.

Attention to the regional and international context

In addition to matters related to the Church in Korea, the conversations addressed various aspects of the regional and international situation.

Although the Holy See’s communiqué provides no further details, the reference to the regional context comes at a time marked by tensions on the Korean Peninsula and by the geopolitical challenges affecting East Asia.

The audience is the first official meeting between Leo XIV and the new South Korean president since the beginning of his mandate, and it confirms the willingness of both parties to continue strengthening the existing cooperation between the Holy See and the Republic of Korea.

Orthodox Churches of Bulgaria and Romania warn that the 'Pride' movement threatens the family and social peace

Tens of thousands of people took part this weekend in the Pride marches held in Bucharest and Sofia to demand legal recognition of same-sex unions and greater legal protection for same-sex couples. 

The response was not long in coming from the main Orthodox Churches of both countries, whose synods denounced that the demands of the LGBT movement threaten the family, generate moral confusion and may endanger social peace.

The synods of the Orthodox Churches of Bulgaria and Romania issued statements coinciding with the demonstrations held in both capitals. In them they reaffirmed Christian doctrine on marriage, family and sexual identity, while insisting on the respect due to every person and rejecting any form of violence or discrimination.

Same-sex unions at the center of the debate

This year’s Pride marches were marked by calls for Bulgaria and Romania to legally recognize civil unions between people of the same sex. Although both countries joined the European Union in 2007 and adopted legislative reforms, they still do not recognize “same-sex marriage” or civil unions.

The organizers of the demonstrations maintain that thousands of same-sex couples currently lack legal protection in areas such as inheritance, hospital visits, medical decision-making or survivor pensions.

At the same time, the “March for the Family,” promoted by conservative and religious groups, was held in Sofia, while a “March for Normality” took place in Bucharest as a counterpoint to the demands of the LGBT movement.

The Bulgarian Orthodox Church defends marriage between a man and a woman

The Holy Synod of the Patriarchate of Bulgaria openly criticized the holding of the Pride march in Sofia and recalled that Christian teaching holds that the human being was created by God “as male and female.”

The Bulgarian bishops also stressed that the family, founded on the sacramental union between a man and a woman, constitutes the natural environment for the upbringing of children and one of the fundamental pillars of society.

In its statement, the synod accused the promoters of these demonstrations of spreading ideas and behaviors incompatible with Christian morality, expressing particular concern about the influence these messages may have on children and adolescents.

“The Church rejects no one and prays unceasingly for every person,” the bishops stated, while recalling their duty to proclaim the Gospel and protect the faithful from spiritual confusion.

The declaration also includes a reflection on the concept of freedom that contrasts with the usual demands of the LGBT movement. “True freedom does not consist in yielding to every desire or inclination, but in following the truth that leads man to the fullness of life in God,” the synod affirmed.

The bishops also called on public authorities to protect the institution of the family and preserve the spiritual and cultural values on which Bulgarian society has historically been built.

Romania warns of the deterioration of social peace

In similar terms, the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church expressed its concern about the social consequences arising from the activities promoted by the LGBT movement.

The Orthodox hierarchy warned that this type of initiative may endanger mutual respect and social peace, elements it considers indispensable for the common good.

According to the Romanian bishops, the Pride marches may contribute to increasing confusion about spiritual values in a society already facing problems such as demographic decline and various forms of social instability.

The synod recalled that the defense of certain moral positions should not translate into hostility toward individuals and stressed that Christians are called to behave with a spirit of peace, prayer and respect for human dignity.

Two majority Churches intervene in the European debate

The statements are particularly relevant because they come from two of the Christian Churches with the greatest social presence in Eastern Europe. In Romania, the Orthodox Church encompasses the vast majority of the population, while in Bulgaria it remains the country’s main religious denomination.

In the face of the advance of LGBT demands in much of Europe, the Orthodox Churches have maintained an explicit defense of marriage between a man and a woman and consistent opposition to attempts to redefine the family and sexual identity.

The political importance of this debate was also reflected in Bulgaria, where the ruling party publicly expressed its support for the “March for the Family” and defined the traditional family as one of the pillars of national identity, security and the country’s future.

The patriarchates of Sofia and Bucharest consider that these issues do not affect only the religious convictions of believers, but have direct consequences for social stability, the education of young people and the demographic future of their respective nations.

Doctrinal firmness and rejection of violence

Although both Churches insisted on distinguishing between the rejection of certain behaviors or ideologies and the respect due to every person, the Patriarchate of Romania expressly emphasized that it does not support or promote any form of offensive speech, defamation or violence, considering that such behaviors contradict the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

For its part, the Bulgarian Orthodox Church reiterated that its mission consists in proclaiming the truth of the Gospel without renouncing charity toward all people.

The statements of both synods reflect a position widely shared in the Orthodox world, where the defense of the traditional family continues to occupy a central place in the ecclesial response to the cultural and anthropological debates currently facing Europe.

Pope asks Syro-Malankara faithful in Europe to keep their traditions alive

Pope Leo XIV received participants in the first congress of the faithful of the Syro-Malankara Church residing in Europe in audience this Monday.

During the meeting, held in the Vatican Apostolic Palace, the Pontiff highlighted the importance of preserving the spiritual and liturgical heritage of this Eastern Catholic Church and encouraged its faithful to remain united to their traditions and to their hierarchy.

The Syro-Malankara Church is one of the Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with Rome. It has its roots in the ancient Christian tradition of India linked to the preaching of the Apostle Saint Thomas and currently has several million faithful, mainly in the state of Kerala. 

In recent decades, emigration has favored the growth of Syro-Malankara communities in Europe, North America, and other regions of the world.

In his address, Leo XIV recalled the figure of the Venerable Mar Ivanios, promoter of the reunification of the Syro-Malankara Church with Rome in the twentieth century, highlighted the missionary vocation of this community, and insisted on the need to preserve its liturgical and spiritual traditions in the countries of the diaspora.

Full Address of Leo XIV:

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Peace be with you!

Your Beatitude, Excellencies,
Dear priests, religious brothers and sisters,
Dear brothers and sisters:

I am pleased to welcome this significant delegation of the Syro-Malankara Church on the occasion of the first congress of your clergy and faithful residing in Europe. Your Major Archbishop, Cardinal Baselios Mar Cleemis, turns 67 today. Happy Birthday, Your Beatitude! I also wish to express my congratulations and prayers on the occasion of your upcoming Silver Episcopal Jubilee, which you will celebrate in August and whose commemorations already began yesterday here in Rome with a special celebration. I also extend a particular greeting to Bishop Kuriakose Mar Osthathios, recently appointed Apostolic Visitor for the Syro-Malankara faithful residing in Europe, who has organized this congress.

Dear brothers and sisters, I understand that your entire sui iuris Church has undertaken an intense multi-year journey of spiritual renewal in preparation for its centenary. Now that we have just entered the ninety-fifth year since the establishment of your hierarchy through the apostolic constitution Christo Pastorum Principi of Pope Pius XI, promulgated on June 11, 1932, I wish to recall that text of my illustrious predecessor, which opens with thanksgiving to Christ, the Prince of Shepherds.

We too “render the most humble and fervent thanks” to God for the Venerable Mar Ivanios, who, together with Mar Theophilos, led several priests and a good number of the faithful, including religious brothers and sisters of the Bethany Congregations, to rediscover ecclesial communion with the successor of the Apostle Peter as an essential part of Christian life. The first Syro-Malankara Metropolitan Archbishop of Trivandrum was truly a shepherd after the Heart of Jesus, through whom the Holy Spirit guided the flock of God.

He admirably embodied that “great desire for a united Church, a sign of unity and communion, which becomes leaven for a reconciled world” of which I spoke during the solemn Mass inaugurating my pontificate.

Even as a young priest, Mar Ivanios looked far beyond the borders of his own Christian community in Kerala and clearly perceived the need to recover the dynamism of the good seed planted in India by the preaching and martyrdom of the Apostle Saint Thomas. He also insisted that missionary work should not be carried out only with words, but through a virtuous life and authentic service of charity.

For this reason, from its origins your Church has always been a beacon of evangelical energy and apostolic charity, bringing social justice, education, and integral human development to those on the margins of society. In this way the Gospel spreads, as my venerable predecessor Benedict XVI pointed out: by “attraction,” just as Christ “draws all to himself” through the power of his love, culminating in the sacrifice of the Cross.

The Syro-Malankara Church thus began to grow rapidly beyond ethnic and linguistic boundaries, initially in Tamil Nadu, as the fruit of an evangelizing effort dating back to 1934. These vigorous Syro-Malankara Catholic communities flourished thanks to the commitment of the hierarchy and also to the dedication of the religious sisters of the Congregation of the Daughters of Mary.

I encourage the Synod of Bishops and the religious institutes of your Church to show the same commitment to the more recently created circumscriptions in India, especially the extensive eparchies of Saint Ephrem of Khadki and Saint John Chrysostom of Gurgaon.

At the same time, it is equally urgent to commit to the preservation and promotion of the inestimable treasures embodied by all the Eastern Churches, especially in the growing diasporas, as I had occasion to point out during your Jubilee, celebrated a few days after my election as Pope.

In this context, recognizing the presence of numerous Syro-Malankara faithful in North America, Pope Benedict XVI erected an Apostolic Exarchate for the Syro-Malankara faithful in the United States. Ten years later, upon elevating that Exarchate to the rank of Eparchy, my venerable predecessor Francis extended the pastoral care of the eparchial bishop to all Syro-Malankara faithful in Canada.

With a similar intention, already in the first year of my pontificate, I appointed the first permanent Apostolic Visitor for Syro-Malankara Catholics throughout Europe, Bishop Mar Osthathios. His responsibility is to assess the current state of pastoral care and to present proposals both to local bishops and to the Holy See for the spiritual good of the faithful.

In this regard, I have asked the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches to help me “define principles, norms, and guidelines by which Latin bishops can concretely support Eastern Catholics in the diaspora in their efforts to preserve their living traditions and, through their particular witness, enrich the communities in which they live.”

The same curial institution will also help me evaluate the best ways to establish solid and lasting foundations so that future generations of Syro-Malankara faithful may continue to deepen their friendship with the Lord Jesus through their own traditions, thereby benefiting the entire Catholic Church.

Dear brothers and sisters, I ask you to promote greater knowledge of the precious identity of the Syro-Malankara Church and a deeper identification with it, actively participating in its ecclesial life and experiencing the richness of your particular heritage, aware of your great dignity and remaining united to the Major Archbishop and the Synod of Bishops.

Knowing that the Christians of Saint Thomas of India enjoy a well-deserved reputation for the solidity of their families and for the numerous priestly and religious vocations that arise from them, I pray that a strong faith may continue to flourish in your homes and in your hearts, especially in those of the young.

Invoking abundant graces from Almighty God upon all who participate in this joyful celebration, so that you may follow Christ each day with greater fidelity and become messengers of hope for all, I gladly impart the Apostolic Blessing.

May the Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of Peace, the Apostle Saint Thomas, and all your patron saints, especially the Venerable Mar Ivanios, intercede for you.

Thank you very much.