A NEW BISHOP has been appointed to Kerry following the resignation of the previous bishop.
Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of Most Reverend William Murphy of Kerry and has appointed as his successor the Reverend Raymond A Browne, parish priest of Kilgefin Parish, Co Roscommon, Diocese of Elphin.
Cardinal Seán Brady, Archbishop of Armagh, welcomed the news, saying that he wished to acknowledge the contribution that Bishop Murphy has made to the work of the Bishops’ Conference and to the Diocese of Kerry.
I want to take this opportunity also to congratulate Father Raymond Browne, from Elphin Diocese, on his appointment by Pope Francis today as Bishop of Kerry.
I have known Father Browne for many years and I am quite confident that he will prove to be an excellent and gentle pastor, a faithful teacher of the faith and a trustworthy and generous leader. I wish him many blessings.
The news was also welcomed by Christopher Jones, Bishop of Elphinm, who said:
As a priest of the Diocese of Elphin, Father Browne’s ministry has been marked by his profound spirituality and his innate sense of pastoral outreach. Father Browne has always exhibited a particular strength and sensitivity when dealing with the vulnerable, marginalised and lonely in our community. He is a highly intelligent man and the most approachable of pastors.
Father Browne was born in 1957 in Chapel Street, Athlone, Co Westmeath, and was educated in Westmeath before going to University College Cork and then on to Saint Patrick’s College, Maynooth in 1981. In 1983 he went to the Gregorian University in Rome.
He was ordained on 4 July 1982 in Athlone, and went on to become spiritual director at Summerhill College from October 1983 – June 1986. He was parish curate in Roscommon Town from September 1986 – July 1988; a staff member at Galway Marriage Regional Tribunal from July 1988 – July 1995; judicial vicar from October 2002 – July 2008;and parish curate in Saint Mary’s (Cathedral Parish), Sligo from 1995 – 2002.
Bishop Browne was parish priest of Kilgefin Parish, Co Roscommon from August 2008 and is a diocesan designated person for safeguarding children since August 2008.
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