Edward J. Cahill, S.J. (18 February 1868–16 July 1941) was an Irish

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

priest and academic, born in Ballyvocogue, Cappagh, County Limerick. He was educated in Theology at

Maynooth Maynooth (; ) is a university town in north County Kildare, Ireland. It is home to Maynooth University (part of the National University of Ireland and also known as the National University of Ireland, Maynooth) and St Patrick's College, Maynoo ...

, and ordained a priest in 1897. He served on the staff of

Mungret College Mungret College was a Jesuit apostolic school and a lay secondary school near Limerick, Ireland. Located on the western outskirts of the modern-day suburban town of Raheen, it was operational from 1882 until 1974 when it closed as a school fo ...

and in the years before the

Easter Rising The Easter Rising (), also known as the Easter Rebellion, was an armed insurrection in Ireland during Easter Week in April 1916. The Rising was launched by Irish republicans against British rule in Ireland with the aim of establishing an ind ...

he was known for facilitating

Irish Volunteers The Irish Volunteers (), also known as the Irish Volunteer Force or the Irish Volunteer Army, was a paramilitary organisation established in 1913 by nationalists and republicans in Ireland. It was ostensibly formed in response to the format ...

in their training in Mungret. In 1924, he joined the staff of the Jesuit Milltown Park Institute in Dublin as Professor of Church History, Lecturer in

Sociology Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociol ...

, and later, Spiritual Father. In October 1926, on the occasion of the first celebration of the Feast of Christ the King, he founded "

An Ríoghacht An Ríoghacht (, Irish for "The Kingdom"), also called the League of the Kingship of Christ, was a conservative Catholic group in Ireland, founded in 1926 by Fr Edward Cahill, Professor of Church History and Lecturer in Sociology at the Milltown ...

", the League of the Kingship of Christ. The object of this society was to ensure the use of Catholic Social Teaching in the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State (6 December 192229 December 1937), also known by its Irish-language, Irish name ( , ), was a State (polity), state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-ye ...

. "An Ríoghacht", under Fr. Cahill's guidance, organised public meetings three or four times a year, published pamphlets on current topics and even attempted to produce a weekly paper to further its ideals. This organisation would go on to form the basis of Fr. Denis Fahey's Maria Duce. Cahill's anti-mason message, delivered in the 1920s and 1930s, also served as an analysis and apologetic against Talmudic Judaism. In his works he cites papal teaching which describes the Masons as enemies of the Catholic Church, and gives evidence that these same Masons are influenced and given guidance by Jews: He was a regular contributor the ''

Irish Ecclesiastical Record ''Irish Ecclesiastical Record'' was an Irish Roman Catholic monthly journal founded by Archbishop later Cardinal Paul Cullen in 1864. ''The Record'' contained articles on theology, liturgy, domestic and international church affairs, catholic so ...

'' and the '' Irish Monthly''. His works often stressed the link between

Catholicism 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 ...

and

nationalism Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation, Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Theory, I ...

. He died on 16 July 1941, aged 73, after a long illness.

Bibliography

;Books *''The Abbot of Mungret'', a play in 4 acts. (1925); *
Freemasonry and the anti-Christian Movement
' Dublin: M.H. Gill & Son, 1929, 1930 2nd ed., rev. and enl. *''The Framework of the Christian State'' (1932) reprinted
available online in pdf format
;Pamphlets *''The Truth about

Freemasonry Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

'' (Australian C.T.S.) *''The Catholic Social Movement'' (Irish Messenger Office) *''Rural Secondary Schools'' (I.M.O.) *''Ireland and the Kingship of Christ'' (I.M.O.) *''The Oldest Nation in Europe'' (I.M.O.) *''Ireland as a Catholic Nation'' (I.M.O.) *''Ireland's Peril'' (Messrs. Gill) *''Capitalism and its Alternatives'' (I.C.T.S.).

References

External links

The Ireland of Edward Cahill (1868–1941): a liberal or a Christian state?
at

History Ireland ''History Ireland'' is a magazine with a focus on the history of Ireland. The first issue of the magazine appeared in Spring 1993. It went full-colour in 2004 and since 2005 it is published bi-monthly. It features articles by a range of writers ...

The Problem of Capitalism in Irish Catholic Social Thought, 1922-19501
by Aidan Beatty {{DEFAULTSORT:Cahill, Edward 1868 births 1941 deaths 20th-century Irish Jesuits Alumni of St Patrick's College, Maynooth Antisemitism in Ireland 19th-century Irish Jesuits Christian clergy from County Limerick