Latest news with #IrishBishops
Irish Times
a day ago
- Health
- Irish Times
Children making Confirmation asked to include vaping in their abstinence pledge
Children making their Confirmation in Ireland will be invited, from next year, to take an expanded 'pledge'. As well as vowing to abstain from alcohol until adulthood, they would abstain from vaping and smoking. The pledge has long been a rite of passage for 12- and 13-year-olds receiving the Catholic sacrament, traditionally involving a promise to abstain from alcohol and drugs. The development forms part of Church leaders' efforts to encourage children to make healthier lifestyle choices in their formative years. The Irish Bishops' Drugs and Alcohol Initiative, in partnership with the Catholic Primary School Management Association, which provides advice and support to the boards of management of over 2,800 schools, will make a new online module available to all schools whose students wish to take the updated pledge. READ MORE The expanded pledge seeks to honour Matt Talbot who died 100 years ago last week. Talbot was first exposed to alcohol aged 12 and became a heavy drinker before quitting when he was 28 and devoting his life to spirituality. He was described as 'a person of hope, faith, and charity' by Archbishop of Dublin, Dermot Farrell. The Irish Catholic Bishops Conference said that the updated pledge 'supports our young people in terms of physical and mental health, and goes some way to address the concerns of parents regarding new and harmful substances impacting the health and wellbeing of their children'. [ Child-related benefits lift 150,000 children out of poverty, ESRI finds Opens in new window ] Chris Macey, director of advocacy with the Irish Heart Foundation, said such practices 'normalise vaping in the eyes of children'. A ban on the sale of vaping products and e-cigarettes to people under 18 came into effect in 2023. According to a 2024 Growing up in Ireland survey, almost 10 per cent of 13-year olds had tried vaping.
BreakingNews.ie
a day ago
- Politics
- BreakingNews.ie
Irish bishops accuse Israeli government of ‘genocidal actions' in Gaza
Irish bishops have accused the Israeli government of 'genocidal actions' and 'ethnic cleansing' in the Gaza Strip. The Irish Catholic Bishops' Conference called for arms supplies to Israel to be 'cut off' and urged parishioners to lobby their local politicians. Advertisement It said that during the month of June, all parishes on the island of Ireland are being asked to express their solidarity with the suffering of Palestinians. 'In Gaza people are starving and adequate aid is being denied; it seems clear that famine is being used as a weapon of war. Already over 600,000 Palestinians have been displaced,' it said. 'The evidence points to a staged strategy of ethnic cleansing aimed at removing the Palestinian people from their homes and their homeland. 'It is becoming increasingly clear to people on the ground that these are genocidal actions sanctioned by the Government of Israel.' Advertisement Israel's 20-month military campaign in Gaza has killed nearly 55,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's health ministry. The military operation has destroyed vast areas of Gaza and displaced around 90% of its population, often multiple times over. A two-and-a-half-month blockade imposed by Israel when it ended a ceasefire with Hamas have raised fears of famine and a new Israeli and US-backed aid system has been marred by chaos and violence. 'What is happening in Gaza – and the West Bank – is the death of tens of thousands of non-combatants, many of them women and children,' the Irish bishops said. Advertisement 'This is unconscionable and disproportionate. It is immoral for world leaders to stand by inactively in the face of this outrageous tragedy for humanity.' The bishops urged people to lobby their political representatives, support humanitarian aid and to pray for the conflict to end. It added: 'There is an urgent need for the international community to intervene, cut off arms supplies and bring the carnage to an end. 'This will call for courage on the part of leaders. Examples of courage are being given every day by heroic doctors, nurses and aid workers risking their lives in service of the wounded and those who have been displaced.' Advertisement The statement, issued on Friday, quoted Pope Leo XIV from a general audience he gave on May 28th, where he said parents in the Gaza Strip 'clutch the lifeless bodies of children and who are continually forced to move in search of a little food and safer shelter from bombing'. 'I renew my appeal to the leaders: ceasefire, release all hostages, fully respect humanitarian law.' Israel launched its military operation in Gaza after Hamas-led militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251 hostages on October 7th, 2023. The militants still hold 55 hostages — less than half of them believed to be alive — after more than half the captives were released during ceasefires or other deals. Advertisement
