Colm O'Reilly (born 11 January 1935) is an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...

of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. He served as the

Bishop of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

from 1983 to 2013.

Early life and education

The youngest of seven children, O'Reilly was born to John and Alicia O'Reilly in

Colmcille Columba or Colmcille; gd, Calum Cille; gv, Colum Keeilley; non, Kolban or at least partly reinterpreted as (7 December 521 – 9 June 597 AD) was an Irish abbot and missionary evangelist credited with spreading Christianity in what is toda ...

County Longford County Longford ( gle, Contae an Longfoirt) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Longford. Longford County Council is the local authority for the county. The population of the county was 46,6 ...

. His eldest brother, Peter (died 1988), was

superior general A superior general or general superior is the leader or head of a religious institute in the Catholic Church and some other Christian denominations. The superior general usually holds supreme executive authority in the religious community, while t ...

St. Patrick's Missionary Society St. Patrick's Society for the Foreign Missions (Latin language, Latin ''Societas Sancti Patritii pro Missionibus ad Exteros''; also known as the Kiltegan Fathers) is a Catholic Church, Catholic society of apostolic life of pontifical right for me ...

for sixteen years, and another brother, Brendan (died 2000), was a member of the

Divine Word Missionaries The Society of the Divine Word ( la, Societas Verbi Divini), abbreviated SVD and popularly called the Verbites or the Divine Word Missionaries, and sometimes the Steyler Missionaries, is a Catholic Church, Catholic clerical religious congregation ...

. He studied at St. Mel's College in

Longford Longford () is the county town of County Longford in Ireland. It has a population of 10,008 according to the 2016 census. It is the biggest town in the county and about one third of the county's population lives there. Longford lies at the meet ...

, and was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

on 19 June 1960. in Maynooth. He spent his priesthood in

parishes A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

in the

Diocese of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise The Diocese of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise ( ga, Deoise Ardach agus Chluain Mhic Nóis) is a Roman Catholic diocese in Ireland. Geography The diocese is entirely within the Republic of Ireland and contains most of counties Longford and Leitrim, wit ...

, ministering first in

Granard Granard () is a town in the north of County Longford, Ireland, and has a traceable history going back to AD 236. It is situated just south of the boundary between the watersheds of the Shannon and the Erne, at the point where the N55 nationa ...

for nine years. In 1969 he was appointed

curate A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...

and later administrator at St. Mel's Cathedral.

Episcopal ministry

On 24 February 1983, O'Reilly was appointed

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

. He received his

episcopal consecration A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or offic ...

on the following 10 April 1983 from Cardinal

Tomás Ó Fiaich Tomás Séamus Cardinal Ó Fiaich KGCHS (3 November 1923 – 8 May 1990) was an Irish prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as the Catholic Primate of All Ireland and Archbishop of Armagh from 1977 until his death. He was created a Cardin ...

, with Archbishop

Gaetano Alibrandi Gaetano Alibrandi (14 January 1914 – 3 July 2003) of the Roman Catholic Church was a senior papal diplomat and former Personal Secretary to Giovanni Battista Cardinal Montini (later Pope Paul VI) Biography Born at Castiglione di Sicilia in the ...

and Bishop

Cahal Daly Charles (Cahal) Brendan Cardinal Daly KGCHS (1 October 1917 – 31 December 2009) was an Irish philosopher, theologian, writer and international speaker and, in later years, a Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. Daly served as the Roman Cath ...

co-consecrators A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churches, ...

. Widely seen as pastorally sensitive and displaying an empathy for people given his parish as opposed to academic experience he generally adopted a low-profile approach to his episcopal ministry but did some wider work within the

Irish Bishops Conference The Irish Catholic Bishops' Conference ( ga, Comhdháil Easpag Caitliceach Éireann) is the episcopal conference of the Roman Catholic bishops in Ireland. The conference meets a number of times a year in Maynooth which is the location of St Patri ...

. He was

Chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

of the Commission for the Missions and of the Liaison Committee for Child Protection; and a member of the Conference Department of Social Issues and International Affairs, Committee for Family and Children, Commission for Justice and Social Affairs, and

Trócaire Trócaire (, meaning "compassion") is the official overseas development agency of the Catholic Church in Ireland. History The roots of the charity lie in Pope Paul VI's 1967 encyclical ''Populorum Progressio'',

. In 2009 he was greatly shocked by the fire at

St Mel's Cathedral The Cathedral Church of St Mel is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise, located in the town of Longford in Ireland. Built between 1840 and 1856, with the belfry and portico as later additions, it has been ...

with which he had sigh a long association and O'Reilly spearhead the campaign to rebuild and restore the fire ravaged building. A 2011 investigation into the handling of child sex abuse allegations stated that Bishop O'Reilly "displays a gentle caring approach but with great wisdom and honesty," and further that he along with the diocese's designated person in the area of child safeguarding, "ensures that allegations are addressed in full."

Resignation

On 17 July 2013, Bishop O'Reilly's resignation from the

pastoral A pastoral lifestyle is that of shepherds herding livestock around open areas of land according to seasons and the changing availability of water and pasture. It lends its name to a genre of literature, art, and music (pastorale) that depicts ...

government of the Diocese of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise was accepted by

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

, in accordance wit
Canon 401 §1
of the

Latin Rite Latin liturgical rites, or Western liturgical rites, are Catholic rites of public worship employed by the Latin Church, the largest particular church ''sui iuris'' of the Catholic Church, that originated in Europe where the Latin language once ...

1983 Code of Canon Law The 1983 ''Code of Canon Law'' (abbreviated 1983 CIC from its Latin title ''Codex Iuris Canonici''), also called the Johanno-Pauline Code, is the "fundamental body of ecclesiastical laws for the Latin Church". It is the second and current comp ...

. In 2018, it was alleged by Richard McDonnell, former boyfriend of

Ann Lovett Ann Rose Lovett (6 April 1968 – 31 January 1984) was a 15-year-old schoolgirl from Granard, County Longford, Ireland who died giving birth beside a grotto on 31 January 1984.

, that, following Lovett's death, O'Reilly had a local priest bring McDonnell to Longford for a meeting. Once there, O'Reilly allegedly made McDonnell tell him everything that he had told the local police, before making him kiss his ring and swear to never to tell the story again. O'Reilly denied the allegations.

References

External links

Irish Catholic Bishop's Conference
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oreilly, Colm 1935 births Living people People from County Longford Roman Catholic bishops of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise Alumni of St Patrick's College, Maynooth People educated at St Mel's College