One of the files in the state papers just released by the Department of Foreign Affairs relates to the visit of Pope John Paul II to Ireland in Aug 1979.

Only the hardest heart could fail to be moved by the image of Michaela McAreavey’s heartbroken husband, John cutting such a lone figure at her graveside.

Close your eyes and the Gregorian chants from the heavenly-sounding massed choirs at the opening ceremony of the International Eucharistic Congress could easily transport you back to the last staging of the event in Ireland 80 years ago.

The parish priest who caused uproar when he projected pornographic images during a presentation at a school in Tyrone has said he destroyed the computer memory stick on which the material was held.

The Catholic Church is describing as "inconclusive", a meeting last night between parents in the Parish of Pomeroy in Co. Tyrone and representatives of the Archdiocese of Armagh, to discuss an incident involving a local priest last month.

A lawsuit against the Vatican that was dismissed as a publicity stunt moved forward when the US Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal from the Holy See.

CARDINAL Seán Brady confirmed yesterday that a parish priest in his diocese is at the centre of a child protection investigation.

THE Catholic Church has silenced a senior cleric who claimed priests did not have to answer to the law on the reporting of child abuse.