John O'Donohue
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John O'Donohue (1 January 1956 – 4 January 2008) was an Irish poet, author, priest, and
Hegel Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (27 August 1770 – 14 November 1831) was a 19th-century German idealism, German idealist. His influence extends across a wide range of topics from metaphysical issues in epistemology and ontology, to political phi ...
ian philosopher. He was a native Irish speaker, and as an author is best known for popularising Celtic spirituality.


Early life and education

Eldest of four siblings, O'Donohue was reared in west Ireland in the area of
Connemara Connemara ( ; ) is a region on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of western County Galway, in the west of Ireland. The area has a strong association with traditional Irish culture and contains much of the Connacht Irish-speaking Gaeltacht, ...
and
County Clare County Clare () is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster in the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern part of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council ...
, where his father Patrick O'Donohue was a stonemason, while his mother Josie O'Donohue was a housewife. O'Donohue became a
novice A novice is a person who has entered a religious order and is under probation, before taking vows. A ''novice'' can also refer to a person (or animal e.g. racehorse) who is entering a profession with no prior experience. Religion Buddhism ...
at
Maynooth Maynooth (; ) is a university town in north County Kildare, Ireland. It is home to Maynooth University (part of the National University of Ireland and also known as the National University of Ireland, Maynooth) and St Patrick's College, Maynoo ...
, in north
County Kildare County Kildare () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the Local gove ...
, at age of 18, where he earned degrees in English, philosophy, and theology at St Patrick's College in County Kildare. He was ordained as a
Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
priest on 6 June 1979. O'Donohue moved to
Tübingen Tübingen (; ) is a traditional college town, university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer (Neckar), Ammer rivers. about one in ...
, Germany in 1986, and completed his dissertation in 1990 on German philosopher
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (27 August 1770 – 14 November 1831) was a 19th-century German idealist. His influence extends across a wide range of topics from metaphysical issues in epistemology and ontology, to political philosophy and t ...
for his PhD in
philosophical theology Philosophical theology is both a branch and form of theology in which philosophical methods are used in developing or analyzing theological concepts. It therefore includes natural theology as well as philosophical treatments of orthodox and het ...
from
University of Tübingen The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (; ), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The University of Tübingen is one of eleven German Excellenc ...
. In 1990, he returned to Ireland to continue his priestly duties, and began his post-doctoral work on the 13th-century mystic,
Meister Eckhart Eckhart von Hochheim ( – ), commonly known as Meister Eckhart (), Master Eckhart or Eckehart, claimed original name Johannes Eckhart,
.


Career

O'Donohue's first published work of prose, '' Anam cara'' (1997), catapulted him into a more public life as an author, speaker and teacher, particularly in the United States. O'Donohue left the priesthood in 2000. O'Donohue also devoted his energies to
environmental activism The environmental movement (sometimes referred to as the ecology movement) is a social movement that aims to protect the natural world from harmful environmental practices in order to create sustainable living. In its recognition of humanity a ...
, and is credited with helping spearhead the Burren Action Group, which opposed government development plans and ultimately preserved the area of Mullaghmore and
the Burren The Burren ( ; ) is a karst/glaciokarst landscape centred in County Clare, on the west coast of Republic of Ireland, Ireland.
, a
karst landscape Karst () is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble carbonate rocks such as limestone and Dolomite (rock), dolomite. It is characterized by features like poljes above and drainage systems with sinkholes and caves underground. Ther ...
in
County Clare County Clare () is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster in the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern part of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council ...
. Later in life, O’Donohue became a prominent speaker on creativity in the workplace. He consulted executives in the corporate sector "on integrating a sense of soul and of beauty into their leadership and their imagination about the people with whom they work." Just two days after his 52nd birthday and two months after the publication of his final complete work, ''Benedictus: A Book of Blessings'', O'Donohue died suddenly in his sleep on 4 January 2008 while on holiday near
Avignon Avignon (, , ; or , ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the Communes of France, commune had a ...
, France. The exact cause of death has not been released by his family, leaving writers of non-fiction to speculation regarding the cause. Articles and posts have listed an
aneurysm An aneurysm is an outward :wikt:bulge, bulging, likened to a bubble or balloon, caused by a localized, abnormal, weak spot on a blood vessel wall. Aneurysms may be a result of a hereditary condition or an acquired disease. Aneurysms can also b ...
, heart problem, and aspiration as possible causes. He was survived by his partner Kristine Fleck, his mother Josephine (Josie) O'Donohue, his brothers, Patrick (Pat) and Peter (PJ) O'Donohue, and his sister, Mary O'Donohue. Posthumous publications include a reprinting of ''The Four Elements'', a book of essays, in 2010 and ''Echoes of Memory'' (2011), an early work of poetry originally collected in 1994. In March 2015, a series of radio conversations he had recorded with close friend and former RTÉ broadcaster John Quinn was collated and published as ''Walking on the Pastures of Wonder''.


Litigation regarding his will

O'Donohue's last will was held to be invalid by the High Court in December 2011, Justice Gilligan holding that "As a piece of English, the Will is unclear on its face" and that the will was void for uncertainty. The will did not leave anything to his partner Kristine Fleck. In the absence of a valid will his estate devolved on his mother, Josie O'Donohue.


Quotations

* "When you cease to fear your solitude, a new creativity awakens in you. Your forgotten or neglected wealth begins to reveal itself. You come home to yourself and learn to rest within. Thoughts are our inner senses. Infused with silence and solitude, they bring out the mystery of inner landscape." :- ''Anam Cara'', p. 17 "Part of understanding the notion of Justice is to recognize the disproportions among which we live...it takes an awful lot of living with the powerless to really understand what it is like to be powerless, to have your voice, thoughts, ideas and concerns count for very little. We, who have been given much, whose voices can be heard, have a great duty and responsibility to make our voices heard with absolute integrity for those who are powerless." * "Music is what language would love to be if it could."From a radio interview American journalist Krista Tippett had with him, "On Being," rebroadcast on WITF-FM (NPR), Sunday morning, 3 September 2017.


Works

*''Anam Cara'' (1996) *''Eternal Echoes'' (1998) *''Conamara Blues: Poems'' (2000) *''Divine Beauty: The Invisible Embrace'' (2003) :Published in the US as ''Beauty: The Invisible Embrace'' (2003) *''Benedictus: A Book of Blessings'' (2007) :Published in the US as ''To Bless the Space Between Us'' (2008) *''The Four Elements: Reflections on Nature'' (2010) *''Echoes of Memory'' (1994; reprinted 1997 and 2011) *''Walking on the Pastures of Wonder'' (2015) :Published in the US as ''Walking in Wonder'' (2018)


References


External links

* * ;Talks & interviews
''The Inner Landscape of Beauty''
from American Public Media "Speaking of Faith", the last interview (Fall 2007) with O'Donohue before his death. *

* ttps://www.cbc.ca/radio/tapestry/tapestry-at-25-john-o-donohue-and-mavis-staples-1.5309014/tapestry-at-25-irish-poet-john-o-donohue-1.5309033 ''Tapestry at 25: Irish poet John O'Donohue''CBC Radio interview November 2004 {{DEFAULTSORT:Odonohue, John Irish poets Alumni of St Patrick's College, Maynooth 1956 births 2008 deaths University of Tübingen alumni 20th-century Irish Roman Catholic priests Hegelian philosophers 20th-century Christian mystics Irish spiritual writers Irish environmentalists Roman Catholic mystics Activists from County Clare