Paul Brendan Murray, (born 26 November 1947) 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 ...

Dominican

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 ...

of the

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 ...

, poet, writer, and professor. Murray was born at

Newcastle, County Down Newcastle () is a small seaside resort town in County Down, Northern Ireland, which had a population of 7,672 at the 2011 Census. It lies by the Irish Sea at the foot of Slieve Donard, the highest of the Mourne Mountains. Newcastle is known fo ...

, 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 ...

. In 1966 he joined the Irish Dominican Province, and was ordained a

in 1973. Since 1994 he has lived in Rome, Italy, where he teaches the literature of the mystical tradition at the

Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas A pontifical ( la, pontificale) is a Christian liturgical book containing the liturgies that only a bishop may perform. Among the liturgies are those of the ordinal for the ordination and consecration of deacons, priests, and bishops to Holy O ...

, also known as the Angelicum. He holds a doctorate in English Literature from

University College Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland ...

. In 2012 Rev. Prof. Murray was conferred with the STM degree from the Angelicum at a ceremony in St Mary's Priory, Tallaght, Dublin.

Bibliography

Prose

* ''The Mysticism Debate'' (1977) * ''T.S. Eliot and Mysticism: The Secret History of the Four Quartets'' (1991) * ''A Journey with Jonah: The Spirituality of Bewilderment'' (2002) * ''Preachers at Prayer'' (2003) * ''The New Wine of Dominican Spirituality: A Drink Called Happiness'' (2003) * ''"I Loved Jesus in the Night": Teresa of Calcutta, A Secret Revealed'' (2008) * ''Door into the Sacred: A Meditation on the Hail Mary'' (2010) * ''Praying with Confidence: Aquinas on the Lord's Prayer'' (2010) * ''In the Grip of Light: The Dark and Bright Journey of Christian Contemplation'' (2012) * ''Aquinas at Prayer: The Bible, Mysticism and Poetry'' (2013) * ''Scars: Essays, Poems and Meditations on Affliction'' (2014) * ''God's Spies: Michelangelo, Shakespeare and Other Poets of Vision'' (2019) * ''Saint Catherine of Siena: Mystic of Fire, Preacher of Freedom'' (2020)

Poetry

* ''Ritual Poems'' (1971) * ''Rites and Meditations'' (1982) * ''The Absent Fountain'' (1992) * ''These Black Stars'' (2003) * ''Stones and Stars'' (2013) * ''Light at the Torn Horizon'' (2022) * ''Moling in Meditation: A Psalter for an Early Irish Monk'' (2023)

References

* ''Irish Poetry of Faith and Doubt:The Cold Heaven'', p. 187, ed. John F. Deane, Wolfhound Press, 1990. {{DEFAULTSORT:Murray, Paul Irish Catholic poets People from Newcastle, County Down 1947 births Living people Irish Dominicans Male poets from Northern Ireland Male writers from Northern Ireland 21st-century writers from Northern Ireland 21st-century poets from Northern Ireland 20th-century Irish Roman Catholic priests 21st-century Irish Roman Catholic priests Alumni of University College Dublin Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas alumni Academic staff of the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas Christian clergy from County Down Writers from County Down

Bibliography

Prose

Poetry

See also

References