‘Catholic News’ is a podcast carrying interviews with a diverse range of people – lay people, religious and clergy – involved on the front line of the Catholic Church’s work in England and Wales.
29th October 2025
‘Dying to Live’ was a panel discussion that took place in the Grimshaw Room of St Chad’s Cathedral, Birmingham, on Sunday 26 October. It examined how faith traditions approach dying, death, and bereavement and the religious and cultural practices observed in end-of-life settings.
Moderated by Associate Professor Maggie Doherty, Lead at the Centre for the Art of Living and Dying Well, the session presented findings from the Centre’s new community-based participatory research.
The panel members, who shared deeply personal insights, represented six religions:
Ruth Jacobs, Judaism; Shamim Merali, Islam; Shobha Sharma, Hinduism; Simon Romer, Buddhism; Harr-Joht Kaur, Sikhism; Christina Ronayne, Christianity.
The panel discussion was part of the national event to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Nostra Aetate.
Nostra Aetate – ‘In Our Time’ – was a ground-breaking declaration of the Second Vatican Council focusing on the Catholic Church’s relations with non-Christian religions.
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START – 2m 28s
Introduction
Most Reverend Bernard Longley, Archbishop of Birmingham
Chair, Department for Dialogue and Unity, CBCEW
2m 29s – 3m 28s
Panel Introduction
Maggie Doherty, Lead, Centre for the Art of Living and Dying Well
3m 29s – 9m 41s
Ruth Jacobs
Jewish community
9m 41s – 14m
Shamim Merali
Muslim community
14m – 23m 59s
Shobha Sharma
Hindu community
24m – 26m 27s
Simon Romer
Buddhist community
26m 28s – 32m 30s
Harr-Joht Kaur
Sikh community
32m 31s – 39m 21s
Christina Ronayne
Christian community
39m 22s – 46m 48s
Centre for the Art of Living and Dying Well
Maggie Doherty, Lead
46m 48s – END
Concluding comments
Right Reverend Patrick McKinney, Bishop of Nottingham
Lead Bishop for Interreligious Dialogue, CBCEW
16th October 2025
Catholic News – October 2025
In this Catholic News podcast we are joined by Anton Asfar, Secretary General of Caritas Jerusalem and Fr Elias Tabban, Parish Priest of Zababdeh Parish, near Jenin.
We learn about the happy, hopeful but also cautious mood on the ground among the people following the Gaza ceasefire agreement which marks the end of the war and the beginning of the first phase of the peace process in the Holy Land.
There are many challenges which are arising, including the lack of fresh water, sanitation and food supplies, which means that families are struggling. There are also technical challenges for the Caritas teams to get to those who most need help. However, Caritas, fuelled by its mission as being “love in action” continues to do everything it can to serve those most in need on the ground – from providing hot meals and recreational activities to psychosocial support and urgent medication.
Fr Elias shares the experiences of local families and the ways the war has affected their lives, including how the local Christian and Muslim communities have been moved to build bridges and work together to overcome the challenges they are facing. We learn about how the parish is the heart of the community, serving as a school, pastoral centre and place of entertainment, prayer and solace – not just for Christians but also the wider community.
These are stories of resilience, solidarity and hope inspired by the Gospels and born out of love for each other as one human family.
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25th September 2025
The Right Reverend Patrick McKinney, Bishop of Nottingham, joined the National Jubilee Pilgrimage of Hope on its last day as pilgrims descended on his diocesan Cathedral Church of St Barnabas.
Geographically, Nottingham worked well as the intersection point where the four pilgrimage ‘Ways’ – north, south, east and west – came together to complete a huge Cross that was traced by the footsteps of the pilgrims across England and Wales.
Bishop Patrick linked up with the pilgrims walking the final miles of St John’s Way on Saturday, 13 September, braving torrential rain on the way to Nottingham Cathedral.
Speaking to Catholic News he shared his experience:
“There was prayer, there was singing, there was silence. And the silence was really important because it brought home to us all that there are two journeys at work. There is the physical journey of walking through areas, but also there is that inner journey in each of us of moving, of growing in our relationship with the Lord, in our relationship with others, in our relationship with the beauty of creation, with God behind it.”
This was a pilgrimage of hope blessed by the Holy Father himself, Pope Leo XIV:
“At the end of our prayer service on Saturday, the Vigil of the Feast of the Exaltation, I was delighted to be able to announce to everyone gathered that we had received a blessing from Pope Leo on the Pilgrimage, and particularly on all the people who had taken part… people were delighted, surprised, and found it so fitting that Dr Phil McCarthy, the organiser of the Jubilee Pilgrimage of Hope, should receive it on behalf of everyone.”
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12th September 2025
On today’s Catholic News podcast we’re speaking to our Lead Bishop for Africa, Bishop Paul Swarbrick.
Our focus is Ethiopia – and in particular Tigray.
Six months ago, from 17-28 March, Bishop Paul travelled to the country at the invitation of CAFOD, the Church’s Aid and Development agency here in England and Wales, and the charities SCIAF, the equivalent in Scotland, and Trócaire, the Irish Bishops’ agency.
Bishop Paul has a love for Africa and her people having served as a missionary priest in Zambia for almost 15 years, but how did he feel travelling to Tigray – a region where some areas are still occupied and thousands have been internally displaced after one of the deadliest conflicts of the 21st century?
Listen to find out.
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15th August 2025
As the UK endures its fourth heatwave of the year, more people than ever are using their spare time to get out and about to enjoy the sunshine and the many walking routes our country has to offer. Yes, you have to be sensible – you have to be prepared – but why not use this seasonal time of rest and relaxation to combine faith, prayer, and pilgrimage to walk a path of witness that medieval English and Welsh people followed religiously pre-Reformation.
One man who wants to see that ancient tradition of walking pilgrimage resurrected and embedded into the Catholic consciousness is Phil McCarthy, the project lead for an initiative called ‘Hearts in Search of God’. We have spoken to Phil more generally about his passion for pilgrimage, but today we have a very particular focus.
The Pilgrimage of Hope is a national walking pilgrimage with four main ‘Ways’ that form a cross – north, south, east and west – converging in Nottingham at the Cathedral of St Barnabas on Saturday 13 September 2025, for shared prayer and celebration.
Inspired by what Phil has said? There’s still time for you to join the National Jubilee Pilgrimage as a Day Pilgrim, but you must register by Thursday, 21 August 2025.
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Image: With thanks to pilgrimways.org.uk.
23rd May 2025
World Communications Day falls this year on Sunday, 1 June. The theme centres around the need to communicate responsibly to foster a culture of hope and peace.
For this Catholic News podcast, we speak to our Media Bishop, the Rt Revd John Arnold, to discuss the final Communications Day message of Pope Francis’s pontificate and how Pope Leo XIV has picked up where his predecessor left off to speak positively about the need to build bridges with our words:
“Pope Leo was very measured with the media professionals [in a meeting four days after his election]. He presented language as a force for good if used properly. He was clearly critical of those who would want to lead us astray by using aggressive language or spreading misinformation, but he praised those who use language to present the truth in a reasoned way, which isn’t divisive or aggressive, but helpful to us when we’re trying to build that sense of unity and peace.
“This was so clear in the speech he made from the balcony when he was elected Pope. He used the word ‘peace’ nine times and spoke about building bridges.
“The language that journalists use can be a real foundation for building bridges and avoiding those walls of division.”
Interviewer Fionn Shiner also quizzes Bishop Arnold on:
The journalistic skill of asking tough questions fairly.
How we can be better communicators in this fast-paced digital world.
Pope Leo echoing Pope Francis’s strong words on the need to disarm communication of prejudice, resentment, fanaticism, and hatred.
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11th May 2025
Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster and President of the Bishops’ Conference, gave a Sunday morning homily in the chapel of the Venerable English College in Rome, in which he spoke at length about the intense focus on prayer in the Sistine chapel that prevailed in the conclave that elected Pope Leo XIV as Bishop of Rome.
The homily was given on Sunday, 11 May 2025.
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24th April 2025
Three days after the death of Pope Francis, Cardinal Vincent Nichols speaks to us from Rome about his personal feelings and experiences ahead of the papal funeral.
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2nd April 2025
Bishop William Shomali, Patriarchal Vicar for Jerusalem and Palestine, joins us for this Catholic News podcast.
The Bishop was in the UK at the invitation of two charities helping Christians under intense pressure – Aid to the Church in Need and Friends of the Holy Land.
During his visit, he met with Bishop Nicholas Hudson, Moderator of the Holy Land Coordination, and gave a talk in central London titled ‘Christians in the Holy Land: Challenges and Hopes’.
Listen to Bishop William Shomali discuss how the Christians of the West Bank are fearful for their future, with unemployment rife, severe restrictions on their movement and an ongoing anxiety over the conflict in Gaza.
He also talks about the Holy Family parish in Gaza, Pope Francis’ daily calls to the parish priest there – even from his hospital bed – and the ways in which the Catholic community in England and Wales can be of help.
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28th March 2025
The National Director of the Pope’s charity for world mission in England and Wales, Father Anthony Chantry, joins us for this Catholic News podcast to bring us up to date on the work of Missio.
After a recent visit to Cambodia, Fr Chantry spoke about the many challenges the Catholic Church faces in the country. He explains how the Church literally had to “start from scratch” and focus its efforts on healing after dictator Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge regime.
We then turn our attention to the incredibly difficult situation for the people of neighbouring Myanmar, before Fr Chantry talks about how missionaries stay hopeful in such a variety of challenging circumstances, Missio’s work during a Year of Jubilee, and how Lent can be a fertile time for missionary activity.
All this and more on today’s Catholic News podcast.
You can subscribe to our Catholic News podcasts via Apple Podcasts, Amazon/Audible or Spotify.
20th March 2025
For this Catholic News podcast, Archbishop-elect John Sherrington of Liverpool, Lead Bishop for Life Issues here at the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, explains our objection to the proposed legislation passing through parliament seeking to legalise assisted suicide.
Ahead of the Bill’s Third Reading and vote, likely to take place in late April or early May, Archbishop-elect Sherrington insists all is not lost and that there’s still time to contact your MP to ask them to oppose assisted suicide becoming law.
In addition to our Bishops’ principled objection, there are many other compelling reasons why this Private Members’ Bill on assisted suicide should not pass – lack of time and scrutiny dedicated to a matter of life and death, the removal of safeguards, the likelihood that vulnerable groups will be dragged into scope down the line, the fundamental change in the doctor-patient relationship, the impact on the end of life care provided by hospices, and more.
Archbishop-elect Sherrington explains further, and gives a personal perspective in this 24-minute podcast.
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24th February 2025
A special Catholic News podcast in which we speak to the charismatic Right Worshipful Lord Mayor of Westminster, Councillor Robert Rigby.
When you picture a Lord Mayor you probably conjure up images of mayoral chains and hats, meeting important people, being the ‘first citizen’ of a city with all the trappings that accompany such an office – but it’s also a role that comes with great responsibility to the people you serve.
Faith and humility play a key part in that service, and the Lord Mayor is not afraid to discuss how his Catholic faith underpins his approach to his work:
“To be honest, my faith is important to me, and I’m not shy when it comes to talking about it. I was educated, actually, by the Benedictines, so I’m proud of that. It instilled in me certain characteristics that have stuck with me in my life…
“I come from a Catholic family and I’m an active Catholic,” says the Lord Mayor. “I go to Church regularly and I find it a great source of inspiration. I want to bring that through to what is a very high-profile position, and it gives me a great benchmark to work from.”
In this 40-minute podcast we also discuss:
His passion for exercise and how, as a distance runner, he is keen to champion the need to be active to Westminster’s school pupils. He promotes the Daily Mile – an initiative that encourages all young children to walk or run a mile every day.
His heart for charitable works – particularly tackling homelessness on London’s streets. One of the two official charities for his mayoral year is the Cardinal Hume Centre.
How the political life is in his blood – his father was a local Councillor and a mayor in 1963.
Being the first Lord Mayor of Westminster to have a Japanese Lady Mayoress – and a little linguistic show-boating to the visiting Emperor and Empress of Japan!
A few light-hearted quirkies – including the official handover, in Oslo, of a Norway Spruce that is transported to the UK and ends up bedecked in lights in London’s Trafalgar Square.
All this and more…
You can subscribe to our Catholic News podcasts via Apple Podcasts, Amazon/Audible or Spotify.
