John Kirby (born 29 October 1938) is a

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Minister (Christianity), Christian clergy who is an Ordinary (church officer), ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which me ...

of 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 ...

who was the

Bishop of Clonfert The Bishop of Clonfert () is an episcopal title which takes its name after the village of Clonfert in County Galway, Ireland. In the Roman Catholic Church it remains as a separate title; but in the Church of Ireland it has been united with oth ...

from 1988 to 2019. He was born in Baylough,

Athlone Athlone (; ) is a town on the border of County Roscommon and County Westmeath, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located on the River Shannon near the southern shore of Lough Ree. It is the second most populous town in the Midland Region, Ir ...

County Roscommon County Roscommon () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is part of the province of Connacht and the Northern and Western Region. It is the List of Irish counties by area, 11th largest Irish county by area and Li ...

, Ireland. He was educated at Garbally College, and then went to St. Patrick's College, Maynooth. He earned a BSs there in 1959 in mathematical physics and experimental physics, and then studied for the priesthood. He was ordained on 23 June 1963 for his home diocese. He returned to Garbally College to teach, and also coached the rugby team there, being the first to notice the skills of

Ciaran Fitzgerald Ciaran Fitzgerald is an Irish former rugby union player. He captained Ireland to the Triple Crown in 1982 and 1985, and the Five Nations Championship in 1983. Fitzgerald also captained the Lions on their 1983 tour. After the conclusion of h ...

, who would go on to captain the national team. Dr Kirby was later appointed to the Presidency of the college. On 18 February 1988 he was appointed Bishop. He was ordained a bishop on 9 April. The

Principal Consecrator A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churches, ...

was Archbishop Gaetano Alibrandi, the Apostolic Nuncio to Ireland; his Principal Co-Consecrators were two of his predecessors Archbishop Joseph Cassidy, and Bishop William Philbin. The role of Bishop of Clonfert "''ex-officio''" includes the roles of Parish Priest of

Ballinasloe Ballinasloe ( ; ) is a town in the easternmost part of County Galway, Ireland. Located at an ancient crossing point on the River Suck, evidence of ancient settlement in the area includes a number of Bronze Age sites. Built around a 12th-centur ...

and senior governor of Garbally College.

Pope Francis Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...

accepted his resignation on 16 July 2019.

References

1938 births Living people People from Athlone Roman Catholic bishops of Clonfert Christian clergy from County Roscommon 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Ireland Alumni of St Patrick's College, Maynooth People educated at Garbally College 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in Ireland {{Ireland-RC-bishop-stub