Patrick Dorrian (1814–1885) was an Irish

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

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 ...

and 23rd Lord Bishop of Down and Connor.

Early life and education

Dorrian was born in

Downpatrick Downpatrick () is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is on the Lecale peninsula, about south of Belfast. In the Middle Ages, it was the capital of the Dál Fiatach, the main ruling dynasty of Ulaid. Its cathedral is said to be the bu ...

on 29 March 1814, one of four sons of Patrick Dorrian and his wife Rose (née Murphy), and was educated first by a Unitarian minister in the classical school in the town, where he excelled, and then in

St Patrick's College, Maynooth St Patrick's Pontifical University, Maynooth ( ga, Coláiste Naoimh Phádraig, Maigh Nuad), is the "National Seminary for Ireland" (a Roman Catholic college), and a pontifical university, located in the town of Maynooth, from Dublin, Ireland. ...

, where he was ordained in 1833.

Priestly ministry

His first appointment was as a curate in the then developing town of

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

, attached to

St Patrick's Church, Belfast St. Patrick's Church, Belfast ( ga, Eaglais Naomh Padraig) is a Roman Catholic church located in Donegall Street area of Belfast, Northern Ireland. The first church was opened on the site in 1815 while the current building dates from 1877. Fir ...

, where he ministered for ten years. At a relatively young age he was appointed parish priest in

Loughinisland Loughinisland ( , ) is a small village and civil parish in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is between Downpatrick and Ballynahinch, about 21 miles (34 kilometres) south of Belfast. History The village of Loughinisland grew up in the townland ...

, (from 1847 to 1860) at which time he became Bishop of Gabala (

Qabala Qabala ( az, Qəbələ) is a city and the administrative centre of the Qabala District of Azerbaijan. The municipality consists of the city of Gabala and the village of Küsnat. Before the city was known as Kutkashen, but after the Republic of ...

) and

Coadjutor Bishop A coadjutor bishop (or bishop coadjutor) is a bishop in the Catholic, Anglican, and (historically) Eastern Orthodox churches whose main role is to assist the diocesan bishop in the administration of the diocese. The coadjutor (literally, "co ...

Down and Connor The Diocese of Down and Connor, ( ga, Deoise an Dúin agus Chonaire) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Northern Ireland. It is one of eight suffragan dioceses in the ecclesiastical province of the ...

to assist the ailing, frail and irenic Bishop Cornelius Denvir.

Episcopal ministry

Dorrian was consecrated bishop on 19 August 1860, in

St Malachy's Church, Belfast Saint Malachy's Church is a Catholic Church in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is located in Alfred Street, a short distance from Belfast City Hall , though it precedes that building by over 60 years. The Church is the focal point of the local pari ...

, and eventually succeeded as bishop five years later on 4 May in 1865. Dorrian was known for his authoritarian style of leadership, referred to as "

Cullenite A Cullenite is a follower of any person named Cullen. Notable Cullens to have followers referred to as Cullenites have included the Scottish physician William Cullen and particularly Paul Cardinal Cullen, archbishop of Dublin and the first cardina ...

". As the post-Famine population of Belfast grew, so too did sectarian attitudes, especially among those moving into the city from rural districts all over Ulster looking for work. Dorrian sought to defend Catholic interests, insisting on the necessity of separate Catholic education and seeking, where possible, to influence the social and political interests of his church. In this respect historians

Sean Connolly (academic) Sean Joseph Connolly, (born 9 December 1951) is an Irish historian, initially specialising in the social history of Irish Catholicism in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, but more recently on post-Reformation and early modern ...

and Gillian McIntosh refer to Dorrian's "pugnacious" presiding over the rapid expansion in priests, churches and religious houses in contrast to the "scholarly but ineffective" Bishop Denvir. It is estimated he was responsible for doubling the number of Catholic churches in the city of Belfast, and in 1866, early in his episcopate,

St Peter's Cathedral, Belfast Saint Peter's Cathedral, Belfast ( ga, Ard Eaglais Naomh Peadar, ), is the Catholic cathedral church for the Diocese of Down and Connor, and is therefore the episcopal seat of the Catholic Bishop of Down and Connor. It is located in the Divis Str ...

in Derby St in the Lower Falls area was first used as a pro-cathedral. His episcopal chair, placed in that church for the occasion, is still in use by the bishops of the

Diocese of Down and Connor The Diocese of Down and Connor, ( ga, Deoise an Dúin agus Chonaire) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Northern Ireland. It is one of eight suffragan dioceses in the ecclesiastical province of the me ...

. He attended the

First Vatican Council The First Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the First Vatican Council or Vatican I was convoked by Pope Pius IX on 29 June 1868, after a period of planning and preparation that began on 6 December 1864. This, the twentieth ecu ...

and was one of the leading Irish delegation to the event. Dorrian died at the Episcopal Palace, Chichester Park, Belfast, on 3 November 1885, at 7 a.m., the Feast of

Saint Malachy Malachy (}; Modern ga, Maelmhaedhoc Ó Morgair; ) ( 1094 – 2 November 1148) is an Irish saint who was Archbishop of Armagh, to whom were attributed several miracles and an alleged vision of 112 popes later attributed to the apocryphal ...

, Patron of the Diocese; his remains were interred within the chancel of

, on Friday 6 November. At a meeting of the parish priests held in the chapel of the

Diocesan College The Diocesan College (commonly known as Bishops) is a private, English medium, boarding and day high school for boys situated in the suburb of Rondebosch in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. The school was established on ...

, 6 November 1885, immediately after the funeral of Dorrian,

Patrick MacAlister Patrick McAlister (1826–1895) was an Irish Roman Catholic Prelate and 24th Lord Bishop of Down and Connor. Education and Priestly Ministry McAlister was born in Bonecastle, parish of Down, and was baptised by Fr Cornelius Denvir (afterwards ...

was elected

Vicar Capitular :''See: Catholic Church hierarchy#Equivalents of diocesan bishops in law'' A diocesan administrator is a provisional ordinary of a Roman Catholic particular church. Diocesan administrators in canon law The college of consultors elects an admini ...

. McAllister was then named by

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-old ...

as Dorrian's successor as the 24th Lord Bishop of Down and Connor. In November 2017 the historic chapel of Belfast's

Mater Infirmorum Hospital The Mater Infirmorum Hospital, commonly known as The Mater, is an acute hospital in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It provides services to most of North Belfast and South Antrim, reaching as far as Glengormley, Carrickfergus and Newtownabbey It is m ...

was re-opened after extensive refurbishment. It has, as a result of its connection with Dorrian, become known as the Dorrian Chapel.

References

External links

Bishop Patrick Dorrian at catholic-hierarchy.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dorrian, Patrick 1814 births 1885 deaths People from Downpatrick 19th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Ireland Alumni of St Patrick's College, Maynooth Roman Catholic bishops of Down and Connor