BISHOPS have predicted a dramatic rise in the number of homeless people in Ireland using church buildings for warmth this winter.
At the Catholic Church's annual meeting in St Patrick's College, Maynooth, the Irish government was criticised for giving "a lack of assistance" in the latest budget to community facilities.
With soaring energy and heating costs, Bishops said there was now a serious risk of "drastic closures" of church buildings and parish centres.
RTÉ report that Bishops at the meeting called on the Government to make "assistance available so that these vital community resources can remain open on a sustainable basis throughout this stressful period, and to offer grant support to equip such facilities to be more energy efficient in the future".
Church goers were also encouraged to challenge the “unacceptable level of social deprivation” caused by the cost of living crisis.
In a statement, they said: “A combination of economic pressures have resulted in an unacceptable level of social deprivation and hardship which, if not dealt with equitably by those who have public responsibility, will threaten social cohesion and undermine the common good.”
They added: “Catholics also have a responsibility to continue to lobby those in authority to ensure that their policies and actions do not widen the gap between rich and poor.”
The church leaders went on to welcome a statement from northern bishops last week, who said issues like a border poll and the protocol should take a back seat to the "life or death situation" caused by the cost of living crisis.
