Patrick O'Loughran (''in Irish: Pádraig Ó Lochráin'') (died 1 February 1612) was a priest of the archdiocese of Armagh and an Irish Catholic Martyr. O'Loughran was born in

Donaghmore, County Tyrone Donaghmore (pronounced , Irish language, Irish: ''Domhnach Mór'' (great church)) is a village, townland and Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, about five kilometres (3 mi) north-west of Dunga ...

to an ''

Erenagh The medieval Irish office of erenagh (Old Irish: ''airchinnech'', Modern Irish: ''airchinneach'', Latin: '' princeps'') was responsible for receiving parish revenue from tithes and rents, building and maintaining church property and overseeing t ...

'' family. He left Ireland for

Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...

to pursue his education some time before the

Flight of the Earls On 14 September ld Style and New Style dates, O.S. 4 September1607, Irish earls Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone, and Rory O'Donnell, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell, permanently departed Rathmullan in Ireland for mainland Europe, accompanied by their fa ...

in September 1607. He administered the sacraments to exiled Irish noblemen who had fled to the

Spanish Netherlands The Spanish Netherlands (; ; ; ) (historically in Spanish: , the name "Flanders" was used as a '' pars pro toto'') was the Habsburg Netherlands ruled by the Spanish branch of the Habsburgs from 1556 to 1714. They were a collection of States of t ...

, and attended the

Irish College, Douai The Irish College was a seminary at Douai, France, for Irish Roman Catholics in exile on the continent of Europe to study for the priesthood, modelled on the English College there. Dedicated to St. Patrick, the college was sometimes referred to a ...

,Clavin, Terry. "O'Loughran, Patrick", ''Dictionary of Irish Biography'', 2009
/ref> where he met

Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone (; – 20 July 1616) was an Irish lord and key figure of the Nine Years' War. Known as the "Great Earl", he led the confederacy of Irish lords against the English Crown in resistance to the Tudor conquest of Ir ...

. He later became

spiritual director Spiritual direction is the practice of being with people as they attempt to deepen their relationship with the divinity, divine, or to learn and grow in their personal spirituality. The person seeking direction shares stories of their encounters ...

to the exiled Earl and

Catherine O'Neill, Countess of Tyrone Catherine O'Neill, Countess of Tyrone (née Magennis; before 1574 – 15 March 1619) was an Irish aristocrat. She was the fourth and final wife of Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone, a leading Gaelic Ireland, Gaelic lord in Ireland during the late Eli ...

, with both of whom he traveled to Rome. O'Loughran returned to Ireland in June 1611 and was arrested upon landing in

Cork City Cork ( ; from , meaning 'marsh') is the second-largest city in Republic of Ireland, Ireland, the county town of County Cork, the largest city in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the List of settlements on the island of Ireland ...

. Under interrogation, O'Loughran admitted that he had given sacraments to exiled members of the

Gaelic nobility of Ireland This article concerns the Gaelic nobility of Ireland from ancient to modern times. It only partly overlaps with Chiefs of the Name because it excludes Scotland and other discussion. It is one of three groups of Irish nobility, the others bei ...

, and that he had assisted the Irish bishop, Blessed Conor O'Devany. Upon his confession he was committed to a dungeon and in January 1612, he and Bishop O'Devany were condemned to death. Fr O'Loughran's closeness to The O'Neill Mór appears to have been the reason behind the government's decision to single him out. On 1 February 1612, they were brought from

Dublin Castle Dublin Castle () is a major Government of Ireland, Irish government complex, conference centre, and tourist attraction. It is located off Dame Street in central Dublin. It is a former motte-and-bailey castle and was chosen for its position at ...

to George's Hill. The bishop asked to die last so that he could provide Father O'Loughran moral support in his moments before death, but the request was refused."The martyrdom of Bishop O’Devaney", ''The Saint Martin Magazine'', 2001
/ref> Father O'Loughran replied: "Aid me by your prayers with God, by whose help I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor anything else, will separate me from the love of Christ or from my companionship with you." Bishop O'Devany knelt to pray for O'Loughran before they were both drawn and quartered. Their bravery and faith inspired the crowd to surge forward to acquire relics.

Legacy

The remains were buried on George's Hill but disinterred the following night and given honourable burial. They were buried ‘with other martyrs’ at St James Churchyard. O'Loughran and O'Devany were beatified by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

in September 1992 and 15 other

Irish Catholic Martyrs Irish Catholic Martyrs () were 24 Irish men and women who have been beatified or canonized for both a life of heroic virtue and for dying for their Catholic faith between the reign of King Henry VIII and Catholic Emancipation in 1829. The more ...

. Their feast day is on 20 June. The

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Armagh The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Armagh (; ) is a Latin ecclesiastical territory of the Catholic Church in Northern Ireland. The ordinary is the Archbishop of Armagh, who is also the metropolitan of the ecclesiastical province of Armagh a ...

marked the 400th Anniversary of the Death of Blessed Patrick O’Loughran with a Mass at Blessed Patrick O’Loughran Primary School, Castlecaulfield." 400th Anniversary of the Death of Blessed Patrick O’Loughran", Archdiocese of Armagh
/ref>

References

External links

O'Loughran, Patrick

Dictionary of Irish Biography The ''Dictionary of Irish Biography'' (DIB) is a biographical dictionary of notable Irish people and people not born in the country who had notable careers in Ireland, including both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. History The ...

Year of birth missing 1612 deaths People executed by Stuart Ireland Irish beatified people 17th-century Irish Roman Catholic priests Martyred Roman Catholic priests People from Donaghmore, County Tyrone People executed by Ireland by hanging, drawing and quartering People executed by the Kingdom of Ireland Executed people from County Tyrone 16th-century Irish Roman Catholic priests 17th-century Roman Catholic martyrs 17th-century venerated Christians People of Elizabethan Ireland Beatifications by Pope John Paul II 24 Irish Catholic Martyrs {{Ireland-RC-clergy-stub