Amid claims by Bishop Michael Smith that funeral Masses are being ‘dumbed down’, Fr Paul Crosbie notes that they are as much about offering comfort to the living as it is praying for the peaceful repose of the dead

The decision by Dr Michael Smith, the Bishop of Meath, to ban appreciations or eulogies by family members or friends of the deceased in church raises a number of questions.

Only one-third of Irish students say that they believe in God, with 83.5% saying abortion should be allowed in Ireland.

The latest pronouncement on funerals demonstrates a Church hierarchy that seems to be turning inwards, away from aspects of Irish culture that many hold dear, writes Claire O’Sullivan