Brian Farrell, LC (born 8 February 1944), is an Irish prelate 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 ...

. He was named a bishop and the Secretary of the

Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity The Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, previously named the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity (PCPCU), is a dicastery whose origins are associated with the Second Vatican Council which met intermittently from 1962 to 1965. Po ...

in December 2002.

Biography

Farrell was born in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

, Ireland, and joined the

Legion of Christ The Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ ( la, Congregatio Legionariorum Christi; abbreviated LC; also Legion of Christ) is a Roman Catholic clerical religious order made up of priests and candidates for the priesthood established by Marci ...

in 1961. He was ordained a priest on 26 November 1969 in Rome. From 1970 to 1976 he was the novice director in the Legionary seminary in

Orange, Connecticut Orange is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 14,280 at the 2020 census. The town is governed by a Board of Selectmen. History The Paugusset, an Algonquian people, once lived in the area that is now Orang ...

, US. He obtained his licentiate in philosophy at the

Pontifical Gregorian University The Pontifical Gregorian University ( it, Pontificia Università Gregoriana; also known as the Gregorian or Gregoriana,) is a higher education ecclesiastical school ( pontifical university) located in Rome, Italy. The Gregorian originated as ...

and his licentiate in theology at the

Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas A pontifical ( la, pontificale) is a Christian liturgical book containing the Christian liturgy, liturgies that only a bishop may perform. Among the liturgies are those of the ordinal (liturgy), ordinal for the ordination and consecration of dea ...

, and in 1981 earned a doctorate in

dogmatic theology Dogmatic theology, also called dogmatics, is the part of theology dealing with the theoretical truths of faith concerning God and God's works, especially the official theology recognized by an organized Church body, such as the Roman Catholic Ch ...

from the Pontifical Gregorian University. From 1981 to 2002 he worked in the offices of the Vatican's Secretariat of State, from 1999 as head of the English desk in the Office of General Affairs. Retrieved 26 January 2016. In 1985, as an official of the Secretariat, he opposed legislation to allow the sale of condoms in Ireland. On 19 December 2002 he was appointed

Titular Bishop 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 Abitinae and Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. He was consecrated a bishop on 6 January 2003 by

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 ...

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. ...

confirmed his appointment to the Council on 19 February 2014. As Secretary of the Council he is ''ex officio'' the Vice-President of the Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews. In 2003 Farrell contributed an article to the catalogue for "The Tension of Origin," an exhibition of works by Italian artist Giovanni Bonaldi which engaged in Jewish-Christian dialogue through artistic expression. In 2010 Farrell was one of four advisors to

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

Velasio De Paolis when De Paolis was Papal Delegate to the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ tasked with reorganizing that congregation. Brian Farrell is the older brother of Cardinal

Kevin Farrell Kevin Joseph Farrell, KGCHS (born September 2, 1947) is an Irish-American prelate and Cardinal. A former member of the Legion of Christ, he served as the seventh bishop of the Diocese of Dallas, as well as the chancellor of the University o ...

Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church The Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church is an office of the papal household that administers the property and revenues of the Holy See. Formerly, his responsibilities included the fiscal administration of the Patrimony of Saint Peter. As regul ...

, Prefect of the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life, former Bishop of Dallas.

External links

Bishop Brian Farrell: Quest for Christian Unity: Where It Stands
2004 Interview With Bishop Farrell, Secretary of Council for Promoting Christian Unity.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Farrell, Brian 1944 births Living people Christian clergy from Dublin (city) Irish Roman Catholic titular bishops Pontifical Gregorian University alumni Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas alumni 21st-century Roman Catholic titular bishops Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity