The Crotty Schism took place in the early 19th century, when Father Michael Crotty and his cousin, Father William Crotty, broke away from the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

to form their own church in Birr,

County Offaly County Offaly (; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is named after the Ancient Ireland, ancient Kingdom of Uí ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. The two fathers began preaching under a divergent doctrine after Michael Crotty was forced from the church where he had been a temporary curate. Michael was able to convince some parishioners who had followed him to construct a new church, which is now used as a store. The

schism A schism ( , , or, less commonly, ) is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization, movement, or religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a split in what had previously been a single religious body, suc ...

created was mostly exhausted by 1842. William Crotty eventually joined the

Presbyterian Church Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Christianity, Reformed Protestantism, Protestant tradition named for its form of ecclesiastical polity, church government by representative assemblies of Presbyterian polity#Elder, elders, known as ...

. The old church still stands in Castle Street. Known infamously as the site of a 20th-century beerhouse, the prestige of the church has decreased significantly over the years. While certain faithful still attend services occasionally held, most Catholics tend to avoid the historical site.

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More information about the Crotty schism
19th century in Ireland History of County Offaly History of Catholicism in Ireland Religion in Birr, County Offaly Schisms from the Catholic Church 19th-century Catholicism {{RC-hist-stub