Michael

Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **'' Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **'' Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, t ...

Browne, O.P. (born David Browne, 6 May 1887 – 31 March 1971), was an Irish priest of the

Dominican Order The Order of Preachers ( la, Ordo Praedicatorum) abbreviated OP, also known as the Dominicans, is a Catholic mendicant order of Pontifical Right for men founded in Toulouse, France, by the Spanish priest, saint and mystic Dominic of ...

and a

cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Co ...

. He served as Master General of the Dominicans from 1955 to 1962, and was elevated to the

cardinalate The College of Cardinals, or more formally the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. its current membership is , of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Cardinals are ap ...

in 1962.

Early Biography

Michael Browne was born in

Grangemockler Grangemockler () is a village, civil parish and townland in southeastern County Tipperary, Ireland. It is located southwest of Ninemilehouse on the N76 national secondary road. As of the 2011 census, Grangemockler townland had a populatio ...

County Tipperary County Tipperary ( ga, Contae Thiobraid Árann) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary, and was established in the early 13th century, shortly after ...

Formation

Browne joined the Order of Friars Preachers, commonly known as the Dominicans, in 1903. After studying at

Rockwell College Rockwell College ( ga, Coláiste Charraig an Tobair), founded in 1864, is a voluntary day and boarding Catholic secondary school near Cashel, County Tipperary in Ireland. The school has a rugby tradition and has won the Munster Schools S ...

, the Dominican

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Angl ...

at the Basilica of San Clemente in Rome, and the

University of Fribourg The University of Fribourg (french: Université de Fribourg; german: Universität Freiburg) is a public university located in Fribourg, Switzerland. The roots of the university can be traced back to 1580, when the notable Jesuit Peter Canisi ...

, he 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 ...

to the priesthood on 21 May 1910.

Career

Browne taught at the Dominican

in Tallaght, where he was Master of Novices until 1919 when he was appointed professor at the

Pontifical University of Saint 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 ...

, ''Angelicum'' in Rome. Browne served as

Prior Prior (or prioress) is an ecclesiastical title for a superior in some religious orders. The word is derived from the Latin for "earlier" or "first". Its earlier generic usage referred to any monastic superior. In abbeys, a prior would be low ...

of the convent of St. Clemente from 1925 to 1930. He was the ''Angelicums rector ''magnificus'' from 1932 to 1941 Browne was appointed Master of the Sacred Palace from 1951 to 1955. He became Master General of the Dominicans on 11 April 1955, remaining in that position until his resignation in 1962. He was created Cardinal-Deacon of S. Paolo alla Regola by

Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII ( la, Ioannes XXIII; it, Giovanni XXIII; born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, ; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Roman Catholic Church, Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 28 Oc ...

in the

consistory Consistory is the anglicized form of the consistorium, a council of the closest advisors of the Roman emperors. It can also refer to: *A papal consistory, a formal meeting of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church * Consistor ...

of 19 March 1962, appointed

Titular Archbishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

of Idebessus on 5 April 1962, and consecrated as bishop on 19 April by John XXIII, with Cardinals Giuseppe Pizzardo and

Benedetto Aloisi Masella Benedetto Aloisi Masella (29 June 1879 – 30 September 1970) was an Italian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church who served as prefect of the Discipline of the Sacraments from 1954 to 1968, and as chamberlain of the Roman Church (or camer ...

serving as

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 ...

, in the

Lateran Basilica The Archbasilica Cathedral of the Most Holy Savior and of Saints John the Baptist and John the Evangelist in the Lateran ( it, Arcibasilica del Santissimo Salvatore e dei Santi Giovanni Battista ed Evangelista in Laterano), also known as the Papa ...

. Browne attended the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions), each lasting between 8 and ...

from 1962 to 1965. A Traditionalist Catholic, he was opposed to the reforms of the Council (including

religious liberty Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freedo ...

) and was a friend of Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre.SSPX, District of Asia
The New Theology
1998 He was one of the

cardinal electors A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Col ...

who participated in the

1963 papal conclave The 1963 papal conclave was convoked following the death of Pope John XXIII on 3 June 1963 in the Apostolic Palace. After the cardinal electors assembled in Rome, the conclave to elect John's successor began on 19 June and ended two days later, ...

that selected

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his ...

. From 20 January 1971 until his death, Browne served as

Cardinal Protodeacon A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Col ...

. He died in Rome, at age 83, and was buried in the priory cemetery in Tallaght, County Dublin, Ireland.

Family

His brother was Pádraig Monsignor de Brún, a notable priest, poet and scholar, and he was an uncle of

Máire Mhac an tSaoi Máire Mhac an tSaoi (4 April 1922 – 16 October 2021) was an Irish civil service official, writer of Modernist poetry in the Corca Dhuibhne dialect of Munster Irish, a writer, and highly important figure within Modern literature in Irish. Al ...

, scholar, poet, wife of Irish diplomat, writer and politician

Conor Cruise O'Brien Donal Conor David Dermot Donat Cruise O'Brien (3 November 1917 – 18 December 2008), often nicknamed "The Cruiser", was an Irish diplomat, politician, writer, historian and academic, who served as Minister for Posts and Telegraphs from 1973 ...

, and daughter of his sister, Margaret Browne and her husband, the Irish revolutionary and statesman Seán MacEntee.

The Big Sycamore

''The Big Sycamore'' (1958) is a fictionalised account of the early life of the future Cardinal Browne and his family, fictionalised as 'the Fitzgeralds' (his mother's maiden name was Kate Fitzgerald). It was written (under the pen-name Joseph Brady) by another of his brothers, Maurice

Monsignor Monsignor (; it, monsignore ) is an honorific form of address or title for certain male clergy members, usually members of the Roman Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" ...

Browne (1892-1979), parish priest of Ballymore Eustace, County Kildare, and

Hollywood, County Wicklow Hollywood () is a village in west County Wicklow, Ireland. It is situated on the Wicklow Gap road, near its junction with the N81 national secondary road. It is known for its pre-1950s themed fair which takes place in August of every year. A ...

, and the author of plays such as ''Prelude to Victory'' (1950), and novels such as ''In Monavalla'' (1963) and ''From a Presbytery Window'' (1971), as well as the afore-mentioned ''The Big Sycamore''.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Browne, Michael 1887 births 1971 deaths Irish cardinals 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Ireland People from County Tipperary Protodeacons Participants in the Second Vatican Council Coetus Internationalis Patrum Irish Dominicans Dominican cardinals Cardinals created by Pope John XXIII University of Fribourg alumni Masters of the Order of Preachers People educated at Rockwell College