Terence O'Brien (bishop)

Terence Albert O'Brien (1600 – 30 October 1651) was an Irish Roman Catholic Bishop of Emly. He was beatified among the Seventeen Irish Martyrs by Pope John Paul II on 27 September 1992.

The Blessed

Terence Albert O Brien

Dominicans
Bishop of Emly
DioceseEmly
Appointed30 october 1651
Term ended1 (O.S.)/11 (N.S.) February 1612
PredecessorMaurice Hurley (bishop)
SuccessorSee vacant to William Burgat in 1657
Orders
Consecrationby Nicolas de Pellevé
Personal details
Bornc. 1600
Diedoctober 30 of 1651
Limerick
NationalityIrish
DenominationRoman Catholic
Sainthood
Feast day20 June
Venerated in6 July 1991
Beatified27 September 1992
Rome
by Pope John Paul II

Biography

O'Brien hailed from Cappamore, County Limerick. Both of his parents were from the noble family of O’Brien Arra. He joined the Dominicans in 1621 at Limerick, where his uncle, Maurice O'Brien, was then prior.[1] He took the name "Albert" after the Dominican scholar Albertus Magnus. In 1622 he went to study in Toledo, returning eight years later to become prior at St. Saviour's in Limerick.[2] In 1643 he was provincial of his order in Ireland. In 1647 he was consecrated Bishop of Emly by Giovanni Battista Rinuccini.[1]

During the Irish Confederate Wars, like most Irish Catholics, he sided with Confederate Ireland. His services to the Catholic Confederation were highly valued by the Supreme Council. The bishop would treat the wounded and support Confederate soldiers throughout the conflict. O'Brien was against a peace treaty that did not guarantee Catholic interests in Ireland and in 1648 signed the declaration against the Confederate's truce with the Earl of Inchiquin who had committed atrocities against Catholic clergy and civilians, and the declaration against the Protestant royalist leader the Duke of Ormonde in 1650 who, due to his failure to resist the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland was not deemed fit to command Catholic troops. He was one of the prelates, who, in August 1650 offered the Protectorate of Ireland to Charles IV, Duke of Lorraine.[3][4]

In 1651 Limerick was besieged and O'Brien urged a resistance that infuriated the Ormondists and Parliamentarians. Following surrender he was denied quarter and protection. Major General Purcell, Father Wolf and O'Brien were brought before a court martial and ordered for execution by General Henry Ireton.[1] O'Brien was hanged at Gallows Green.

Legacy

On 27 September 1992, O'Brien and sixteen other Irish Catholic Martyrs, including Dermot O'Hurley, were beatified by Pope John Paul II.[5] A large backlighted portrait of him is on display in St. Michael's Church, Cappamore, Co. Limerick, which depicts him during The Siege of Limerick.

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See also

References
  1. Terence Albert O'Brien. The Catholic Encyclopedia] Retrieved Sep. 28, 2007. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  2. "Terence Albert O'Brien, O.P., Bishop and martyr", Limerick Chronicle, August 11, 1992
  3. Webb, Alfred. "Bishop Terence Albert O'Brien", A Compendium of Iris Biography, Dublin. M.H. Gill and Son, 1878 This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  4. O Siochru, Michael. God's Executioner: Oliver Cromwell and the Conquest of Ireland, Faber & Faber Ltd, London, 2008, p. 162
  5. Fenning, Hugh. "The Last Speech and Prayer of Blessed Terence Albert O'Brien, Bishop of Emly, 1651", Collectanea Hibernica, no. 38, 1996, pp. 52–58. JSTOR

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Terence Albert O'Brien". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.


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