Recommendations from New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan are believed to have played a part in the transfer of three priests from the Irish College in Rome.
Cardinal Dolan was part of an apostolic visitation last year which also took in St Patrick’s College in Maynooth and the Milltown Institute and All Hallows College in Dublin.
The Irish Times reports that the transfer of the priests back to Ireland from Rome was based on a summary of all seven visitation reports published last March.
The report called for ‘a more systematic preparation’ for priestly life in the seminaries.
The Irish Times says it also suggested measures ‘to ensure that seminary buildings be exclusively used for seminarians of the local church and those preparing them for the priesthood, to ensure a well-founded priestly identity.
Now, three of the four priest staff members at the Irish College in Rome who deal with the formation of seminarians are to return to their dioceses in Ireland, according to the paper.
It states that the Catholic Communication Office has said in a statement that the rector of the Irish College, Dublin priest Fr Ciaran O’Carroll, has announced the moves.
Vice-rector Fr Albert McDonnell, director of formation Fr Billy Swan, and college spiritual director Fr Chris Hayden are to return to their respective dioceses at the conclusion of this academic year.
The paper reports that Fr McDonnell will return to Killaloe diocese, Fr Swan and Fr Hayden to Ferns diocese.
The four Irish archbishops, who are trustees of the Irish College, will announce new appointments to each post after they meet later this month.
Rector Fr O’Carroll said: “I wish to acknowledge the contribution that Fr McDonnell, Fr Swan and Fr Hayden have made to the life of the college during their time of service here.
“I wish them every blessing and success in their new appointments and for the future.”
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.Collette2 | Mar 28, 2013, 02:33 AM EDT
What else should anyone expect!
Collette2 | May 13, 2012, 09:22 PM EDT
HE preempts! "Experience teaches us to be most on our guard, to protect liberty when the churches purposes are beneficient", (now where did I read that?), something to do with the audacity of power. Maybe there should be a vote on it.
ciaradexy | May 12, 2012, 06:28 PM EDT
4 priests ordained in Ireland last year!!! Good bye roman catholicism in Ireland!!
hermitTalker | May 12, 2012, 11:58 AM EDT
Tim Dolan as a former rector of the US seminary in Rome did the visitation of the Irish seminaries. There is therefore no reason to write raimeas (Irish for camel-dung) about Sean O'Malley of Boston. Speculating about the transfers from the Irish College in Rome could better be served by guessing the Lottery numbers for tonight. Stick with playing rogby there player. Good for your brute force since your brain has been disconnected it appears.
Bythebay | May 12, 2012, 09:54 AM EDT
Dolan's supporters of course are trying to give him extra authority even though no such authority can be proven. They're still smarting because it was Boston's Cardinal O'Malley who the Pope chose to come to Ireland to straighten out Brady, Martin, et al re: stopping clergy abuse. That New York/Boston rivalry rears its head again!
IrelandNorth | May 12, 2012, 06:20 AM EDT
Believing isn't knowing! A fundamental problem of Orthodox Christianity. A nominal research board in All Hallows College (AHC) operated for many years with virtually no PhDs getting through until being replaced in controversial circumstances in 2008, wasting peoples time. Hence Dublin City Universitys (DCUs) recent acknowledgement of improvement in the situation. Postgrads were enrolled only to be ignored subsequently on the pretext of independent research, wasting public funding. Discrimination in favour of religious students was clearly in evidence. They even advised one Canadian cleric to transfer to Trinity in 2007 due to lack of expertise while continuing to enroll Irish candidates? I trust the new Irish-American man will do better, even if he's still a Vincentian.
rugbyplayer | May 11, 2012, 05:44 PM EDT
Whenever Timothy Dolan is involved I smell treachery.
PhlutiePhan | May 11, 2012, 04:48 PM EDT
Maewyn Succat dropped the baton at his death and it has been layin' (Obama dropped g) in the peat bog until Dolan found it and lifted it high.
Bythebay | May 11, 2012, 02:23 PM EDT
Intercessor, this author said it's believed, not proven. Believed doesn't mean that's what happened.
Intercessor | May 11, 2012, 12:31 PM EDT
Bythebay: To answer your question, the above article stated, "Cardinal Dolan was part of an apostolic visitation last year which also took in St Patrick’s College in Maynooth and the Milltown Institute and All Hallows College in Dublin." I guess that you just need to trust the author of this article with its accuracy, which by the way, I believe.
Bythebay | May 11, 2012, 11:58 AM EDT
He's believed to have been responsible? Where's the proof?