Pope writes letter to Irish bishops

Oliver Plunkett honoured in Vatican ceremony

Dublin, 26 August 1918 - Cardinal Logue has written to the press apologising for the delay in forwarding the letter from Pope Benedict XV addressed to the Irish bishops. The delay was attributed to the Dublin printers’ strike.

In his letter, published in Latin with an English translation, he made reference to the difficulties in which the ‘Bishops of the Universal Church’ and their clergy find themselves at present, and urged that they, in the face of ‘insidious attacks, retain their Ancient Faith, and be united by yet closer bonds to the Apostolic See’.

The Pope also referenced Ireland during a ceremony of the beatification of the Venerable Oliver Plunkett which took place in the Throne Room of the Vatican on St Patrick’s Day. During his address, the Pope referred to the ancient title of Ireland, the ‘Island of Saints’, stating that the ‘heroic Irish nation has always been a strenuous defender of the Catholic faith’.

[Editor's note: This is an article from Century Ireland, a fortnightly online newspaper, written from the perspective of a journalist 100 years ago, based on news reports of the time.]