The Vatican is gearing up for a bruising showdown over the global priest sex abuse scandal, forced for the first time to defend itself at length and in public against allegations it enabled the rape of thousands of children by protecting paedophile priests and its own reputation at the expense of victims.

Ireland's Catholic bishops have claimed people are being misled in the debate over planned abortion law reform.

The Catholic hierarchy will not mount a legal challenge to the Government’s planned legislation on abortion.

The four Catholic Archbishops of Ireland have said the Government's decision to legislate for abortion when the life of a woman is at risk, will pave the way for the direct and intentional killing of unborn children.

Barnardos chief executive Fergus Finlay has described as "a childish excuse" comments from Bishop of Clonfert John Kirby that he previously regarded paedophilia as a "friendship that crossed a boundary line".

Film festival celebrates its 65th birthday with typical glamour and glitz, says Don O’Mahony

Travellers fighting to stay on the UK’s biggest illegal site should today discover whether they have won the latest round of a legal battle.c

THE National Forum on Patronage and Pluralism in the Primary Sector is the body charged with mapping out the future of the country’s 3,200 primary schools.

THE Catholic Bishops have called into question the Government’s decision to cut the minimum wage when senior executives at semi-state companies are still earning six-figure salaries.

Bishopsfurze survived poor jumps at the final two flights to hold his stablemate Skorcher in the Surehaul Mercedes-Benz Novice Hurdle at Clonmel.

Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin today called for Irish society to show solidarity to get through the economic crisis.

The Government must reaffirm commitments to protect children on the first anniversary of the damning Murphy Report into clerical child sex abuse.

WHEN Pope John Paul II visited Ireland in the middle of autumn 31 years ago the welcome was absolute, the joy considerable and genuine.

A protest is due to take place later over the Vatican's decision to reject the resignation of two Irish bishops in the wake of the Murphy report on clerical child abuse.

SURVIVORS of abuse have called on the two bishops whose resignations were not accepted by the Pope to resign irrespective of the pontiff’s wishes.

CLERICAL abuse survivors reacted with dismay last night as it emerged that two bishops criticised forneglecting victims are to be allowed retain their positions in the Church.

Two Catholic bishops whose resignations over a child sex abuse report were rejected by the Vatican will still be able to administer Confirmation, it emerged today.

The Pope has decided not to accept the resignation of two auxilliary Bishops who stepped down in the wake of the Murphy report.

I FIND it extraordinary that John Gormley and now Eamon Gilmore (Irish Examiner, June 28) want Catholic voters to keep quiet and not become involved in parliamentary matters.

Rights groups rounded on the Catholic Church today after Bishops called for TDs to be allowed a free vote on new civil partnership laws.

The Green Party leader has asked Catholic Bishops not to interfere with the passage of civil partnership legislation through the Oireachtas.

Gay rights activists today responded to a statement by ireland’s Catholic Bishops in which they said the Civil Partnership Bill undermines the constitutional position of marriage.

Senior Catholic Bishops have expressed concern at the creation of the first synthetic living cell, which they said could be a "devastating" development.

THE Vatican was last night expected to make its most detailed defence yet against claims that it is liable for US bishops who allowed priests to molest children.

The Vatican will make its most detailed defence yet today against claims that it is liable for US bishops who allowed priests to molest children.

THE recent comment by Cardinal Sodano, dean of the College of Cardinals, who described the criticism of the Holy See relating to clerical child sex abuse as “truly incomprehensible” is absurd, unworthy and mischievous.

The Pope has apologised to the victims of clerical sex abuse in Ireland, saying he is "truly sorry".

CARDINAL BRADY is a learned man and the many bishops, priests and lay people who have worked with him over the course of his esteemed career speak of him with the highest regard.

CARDINAL BRADY is a learned man and the many bishops, priests and lay people who have worked with him over the course of his esteemed career speak of him with the highest regard.

Victim of clerical sex abuse Colm O'Gorman has said the meeting between Ireland's Bishops and the Pope in Rome earlier this week was "a cynical PR exercise".

Survivors of clerical abuse tonight rounded on Pope Benedict XVI for not acknowledging senior clergy covered up decades of sickening abuse.

A Vatican meeting between Irish bishops and Pope Benedict XVI gets under way today with the past handling of child abuse scandals on the agenda.

Survivors of clerical abuse tonight demanded leadership and accountability from Pope Benedict as bishops prepared for a major Vatican summit over the devastating scandals.

Catholic Bishops have told survivors of institutional child abuse that they will personally deliver a letter from them to the Pope.

Pressure is mounting on the only serving bishop named in the Murphy report yet to resign.

Two more Bishops have resigned in the wake of the damning Murphy report.

A prominent priest has said Irish society is "morally bankrupt".

There is increasing pressure on the three remaining Bishops named in the Murphy report to resign.

The country’s Catholic hierarchy faced further damage tonight after an under-fire Bishop clashed with a colleague over a sickening child abuse scandal.

Garry O’Sullivan argues that, to have a credible long-term future, the Irish Catholic Church needs radical surgery

VICTIMS support group One in Four has accused the Vatican of making a “wholly inadequate” response to the Murphy report and failing to accept responsibility for the cover-up of sexual abuse worldwide.

THE Archbishop of Dublin, Diarmuid Martin, has called for “radical reform” within the Church and once again urged bishops to take responsibility for their actions following the resignation yesterday of the Bishop of Limerick, Donal Murray.

Archbishop Diarmuid Martin tonight said he hoped justice had been served after a paedophile priest named in a damning State inquiry was jailed for sexually assaulting an altar boy.

THE publication of the report of the Murphy commission ought to have promptly triggered the instant and simultaneous resignation from their current posts of the surviving bishops and monsignors cited in the report rather than a display of stubborn obduracy in the case of some and silence, evasion and cunning in the case of others.