Patrick Egan, (20 July 1923 – 9 July 2016) was an Irish Catholic ( Redemptorist) priest, notable for being in charge of the Men's Confraternity in

Clonard Monastery Clonard Monastery is a Catholic church located off the Falls Road in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and home to a community of the Redemptorists religious order. History In late 19th century Belfast, the Catholic population grew to such an extent ...

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 ...

, when the "

Troubles The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an " ...

" broke out in August 1969. He anointed those who were shot that day and tried to stop a potential massacre of Catholics by calling in British troops. Egan spent much of his time working as a priest in the

Gaeltacht ( , , ) are the districts of Ireland, individually or collectively, where the Irish government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant vernacular, or language of the home. The ''Gaeltacht'' districts were first officially recog ...

areas of the west of Ireland. He was a first cousin of Monsignor Brian Egan.

Early life

Patrick Egan was born in Carrowbeg,

County Mayo County Mayo (; ga, Contae Mhaigh Eo, meaning "Plain of the Taxus baccata, yew trees") is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Conn ...

, on 20 July 1923, to Daniel Egan (1888 – 1986) and Mary Conway (1882 – 1966). His father was a farmer. Patrick grew up as the youngest of five children. He was professed as a Redemptorist on 3 October 1947 in

Dundalk Dundalk ( ; ga, Dún Dealgan ), meaning "the fort of Dealgan", is the county town (the administrative centre) of County Louth, Ireland. The town is on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the east coast of Ireland. It is h ...

County Louth County Louth ( ; ga, An Lú) is a coastal county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. Louth is bordered by the counties of Meath to the south, Monaghan to the west, Armagh to the north and Down to the ...

, and he was ordained a priest on 27 August 1950, in Cluain Mhuire,

County Galway "Righteousness and Justice" , anthem = () , image_map = Island of Ireland location map Galway.svg , map_caption = Location in Ireland , area_footnotes = , area_total_km2 = ...

The Troubles

Egan was in charge of the Men's Confraternity in Clonard Monastery, Belfast, when the "Troubles" broke out. Between 12 and 16 August 1969, there was an outbreak of political and

sectarian Sectarianism is a political or cultural conflict between two groups which are often related to the form of government which they live under. Prejudice, discrimination, or hatred can arise in these conflicts, depending on the political status quo ...

violence in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. Civil rights marches, demanding an end to discrimination against

Catholics 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 ...

and

Irish nationalists Irish nationalism is a nationalist political movement which, in its broadest sense, asserts that the people of Ireland should govern Ireland as a sovereign state. Since the mid-19th century, Irish nationalism has largely taken the form of cu ...

, had been repeatedly attacked by Ulster Protestant loyalists and also came into frequent conflict with the

Royal Ulster Constabulary The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) was the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001. It was founded on 1 June 1922 as a successor to the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC)Richard Doherty, ''The Thin Green Line – The History of the Royal ...

(RUC), the overwhelmingly Protestant police force. On the night of 14 August 1969, an attack on Clonard Monastery by loyalist mobs begun. Around an hour and a half later, shots rang out from the loyalist side. Fiann Gerald McAuley, only fifteen years old, was shot, and later died. He was anointed where he fell by Egan. who had been watching events unfold from the upstairs window in the Monastery. He would anoint four others within the next hour. Fearing a massacre, he attempted to contact the British Army's general officer commanding (GOC) to request the presence of troops to deter more violence. When the first British soldiers reached Falls Road at 7 pm, Egan tried to persuade their commanding officer to move into the Clonard area, but he declined, as the soldiers had other orders. Many nearby streets had been set on fire by the loyalists. In the aftermath of the burning of nearby Bombay Street, hundreds of members of the local community gathered in the church of Clonard Monastery, where Egan delivered a sermon to the Men's Confraternity on the violence he had witnessed and on his hope that peace could be restored. Transcripts and audio recordings of this sermon exist today.

Later life

Egan spent much of his life working as a priest in the

areas of County Galway. He also gave retreats in the now infamous

St Joseph's Industrial School, Letterfrack St Joseph's Industrial School was an industrial school for young boys in Letterfrack, County Galway, Ireland. The school was built in 1886/7 after the designs of the architect William Hague, opened in 1887, and run by the Congregation of Chris ...

. Egan lived at his sister Kay Egan's (1918-2013) home on the family farm in Carrowbeg, County Mayo, and the Redemptorist community in Esker, County Galway.

Death

Egan passed away on 9 July 2016 at

University Hospital Galway University Hospital Galway ( ga, Ospidéal na hOllscoile, Gaillimh) is a major acute hospital in Galway, Ireland. It is managed by Saolta University Health Care Group. History The hospital has its origins in the Galway Central Hospital which was ...

at around 5 pm. He was 92 years old.

Notes

External links

Fr Patrick Egan's sermon to the Men's Confraternity in Clonard Monastery in 1969.

Transcript of Fr Patrick Egan's sermon to the Men's Confraternity in Clonard Monastery in 1969.

"The Clonard Pogrom, 1969"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Egan, Patrick 1923 births 2016 deaths Religious leaders from County Mayo 20th-century Irish Roman Catholic priests