Leo XIV Appoints Irish Pro-Migration Bishop: "Women Should Lead Liturgies"
He was ordained a priest in 1989 for the Diocese of Kilmore and has served as Auxiliary Bishop of Armagh since 2019.
Francis Was "Commited to Gospel"
In April 2025, Bishop Router wrote a warm statement on Francis's death. He described the late pope as a spiritual and inspirational leader who guided the faithful over twelve years with humility, compassion, and commitment to the Gospel.
He also said Francis embodied simplicity and service from his earliest days as priest and bishop.
Demanding Irish Houses for Immigrants
On [Muslim] immigrants, in a January 2020 statement, Bishop Router urged Ireland, as the country of "a thousand welcomes," to consider with compassion its responsibility to welcome the stranger.
The Irish should meet the housing needs of immigrants, he demanded.
Praise For and From the Wrong Faction
In January 2025, the US Episcopal woman bishop Marianne Edgar Budde attacked Donald Trump: “There are gay, lesbian and transgender children in Democratic, Republican and independent families who fear for their lives,” Budde said.
Trump called the words “very ungracious” and spoke of Budde correctly as a "so-called Bishop" and a "Radical Left hard line Trump hater".
Then, Bishop Router came to her help in a homily in February 2025. He considered Budde’s words “a forthright and courageous sermon”, "Bishop Budde of the Episcopalian Church, called on President Trump to show mercy and to have compassion on those who were most vulnerable in society – people whom she claimed where scared."
Bishop Router's words were lauded by the homosexual outlet NewWaysMinistry.org.
"Synod's Final Report Brings Abundant Fruits"
In November 2024, Bishop Router preached about the final report from the Synod. He dreamed that “the fruits as outlined in its final report will be abundant and hope filled for those who have the eyes to see the wider picture and whose focus is not limited to just a few issues of personal concern."
In this homily on the Synod, he welcomed:
- mandatory parish and diocesan pastoral councils ("...ensure the creation of pastoral councils in every diocese and every parish. These councils from now on will be mandatory and given an important and significant role... a role that cannot be sidelined or bypassed.")
- a greater decision-making role for women ("I am filled with hope that women... will be given a greater say in the decisions that are taken about all issues within the church." )
- women exercising leadership in liturgical celebrations ("the new formal Ministry of catechist will give many women an opportunity to take a leadership role in parishes in faith formation and in liturgical celebrations.")
- a more inclusive Church ("the call contained in the final report to create a more inclusive Church where the young, the marginalized, and those of different faiths are valued and listened to.")
At the same time, he framed critics of the Synod dismissively. He acknowledged that the Synod has faced criticism, “both from within the Church and beyond - some have dismissed its findings, fearing change or clinging to the status quo. Yet all are encouraged us to see beyond the negativity and recognise the abundant fruits of the Synod’s work.”
Synodality Rooted in Holy Trinity
In a homily in May 2026, Monsignor Router even divinised synodality:
“A synodal Church is a Church that walks together, listens together and discerns together. Synodality is not simply a method of governance or administration. It is rooted in the life of the Trinity itself. Just as the Father, Son and Holy Spirit exist in communion, so too the Church is called to become a communion of listening, participation and shared responsibility.“
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