Seán Brady (cardinal)
Template:Infobox cardinalbiog Seán Baptist Brady (Irish: Seán Ó Brádaigh; born 16 August 1939) is the current Roman Catholic Cardinal Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland. Comprising 61 parishes, 147 churches serving 210,000 Catholics, the Archdiocese of Armagh stretches from Magherafelt in the north to Drogheda in the south and includes most of counties Armagh and Louth and parts of counties Tyrone, Londonderry (referred to as County Derry by the Catholic church) and Meath. Cardinal Brady was installed as Primate of All Ireland and Archbishop of Armagh on 3 November 1996.
Archbishop Brady was elevated to the cardinalate in the consistory at St. Peter's Basilica on 24 November 2007.[1]
Early career
Cardinal Brady, a native of Drumcalpin, Laragh, County Cavan attended the local primary school, Caulfield National School. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Ancient Classics at St. Patrick's College, Maynooth in 1960. He then earned a Licentiate in Sacred Theology at the Pontifical Lateran University, Rome in 1964. He was ordained in February 1964. He received a Doctorate in Canon Law at the Pontifical Lateran University in 1967.
His first appointment was as professor at his alma mater, St. Patrick's College, Cavan (1967 - 1980). He spent 13 years in the college, teaching a variety of subjects including Latin, Commerce, French, Classics and RE. A keen follower of Gaelic Football, he trained college teams at all age levels.
In 1980 he was appointed Vice-Rector of the Irish College, Rome, and in 1987 became Rector of the College, a post he held until 1993 when he returned to Ireland to become Parish Priest of Castletara, Ballyhaise, County Cavan.
Archbishop of Armagh
On 19 February 1995 he was ordained Coadjutor Archbishop of Armagh, and on the retirement of Cahal Daly, succeeded as Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland on the 1 October 1996. He was installed as Archbishop of Armagh on 3 November 1996.
On 24 November 2007 in a consistory Brady was created Cardinal-Priest of Santi Quirico e Giulitta as a symbol of the new cardinal's role in helping the pontiff to minister to the diocese of Rome. Following his elevation to the cardinalate he joined Cahal Daly and Desmond Connell as one of three living Irish cardinals, a record in Irish history. Senior Vatican figures suggested that the Archbishop's positive contribution to the Northern Ireland peace process will have weighed heavily in Pope Benedict's decision to make him a Cardinal.
Cardinal Brady, as Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland, was elected President of the Irish Episcopal Conference.
On 12 June 2008 in addition to his main duties he was appointed by Benedict as a member of congregations in the Roman Curia[2]. These are: the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity and the Pontifical Council for Culture.
| Styles of Sean Brady | |
|---|---|
.svg) | |
| Reference style | His Eminence |
| Spoken style | Your Eminence |
| Informal style | Cardinal |
| See | Armagh |
His Profile
Cardinal Brady has kept a somewhat lower profile than the recent Archbishops of Armagh, Cahal Daly and Tomás Ó Fiaich, both of whom developed their reputations during the difficult days of the Troubles and the Hunger Strikes.
In 2001, Pope John Paul II chose to make the then Archbishop of Dublin and Primate of Ireland, Desmond Connell a cardinal, even though Connell was technically number two in church ranking behind Brady. It was the first time in a century that the red hat was given to the Archbishop of Dublin rather than the Archbishop of Armagh. This was balanced in 2007, when Brady was elevated to the cardinalate. In 1984, the then Archbishop of Dublin, Dermot Ryan, was nominated a cardinal by John Paul II and transferred to a position in Rome, the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples. However, Archbishop Ryan died before the consistory that would have elevated him to the cardinalate.
On 4 November 2008, Cardinal Brady stated in reference to the Government's plan allowing for the recgonition of cohabiting and same-sex couples as "perhaps the greatest revolution in the history of the Irish family"[3].
External links
- Archdiocese of Armagh
- The Ferns Report
- Catholic Communications Office, Ireland
- bio at catholic-pages.com
References
- ^ "Annuncio di Concistorio per la Creazione di nuovi Cardinali" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 2007-10-17. Retrieved 2007-10-17.
- ^ http://212.77.1.245/news_services/bulletin/news/22278.php?index=22278&lang=en
- ^ http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/frontpage/2008/1105/1225523373241.html