Michael Gerard Duignan (born 15 July 1970) is an Irish

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...

who has served as Bishop of Clonfert since 2019 and additionally as

Bishop of Galway and Kilmacduagh The Roman Catholic Diocese of Galway, Kilmacduagh and Kilfenora ( ga, Deoise na Gaillimhe, Chill Mhic Duaich agus Chill Fhionnúrach) is a Roman Catholic diocese in the west of Ireland. It is in the ecclesiastical province of Tuam and is sub ...

since 2022.

Early life

Duignan was born in Athlone, County Roscommon, on 15 July 1970, the eldest of six children. He attended Cloonakilla National School in Bealnamulla and St. Aloysius College in Athlone, before studying for the priesthood at St. Patrick's Society for the Foreign Missions in Kiltegan, County Wicklow, and the Pontifical Gregorian University in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. Duignan was ordained as a priest for the Diocese of Elphin on 17 July 1994.

Presbyteral ministry

After completing a licentiate in dogmatic theology in 1995, Duignan's first pastoral assignments were as a

curate A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...

in the cathedral parish in

Sligo Sligo ( ; ga, Sligeach , meaning 'abounding in shells') is a coastal seaport and the county town of County Sligo, Ireland, within the western province of Connacht. With a population of approximately 20,000 in 2016, it is the List of urban areas ...

and chaplain to the local Institute of Technology, before returning to Rome to complete doctoral studies in contemporary trinitarian theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University. Duignan returned to Ireland in 2001, serving as a curate in the parish of Cliffoney and teaching theology, philosophy and religious education at St Angela's College, before being appointed full-time lecturer in religious education and chaplain at St Angela's College in 2005, and subsequently its director of religious education, theology and chaplaincy programmes. In the same year, he was also appointed assistant diocesan secretary for the Diocese of Elphin. Duignan was appointed diocesan director of the permanent diaconate in 2008, and subsequently national director in 2014. In the same year, he was also appointed

chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

, diocesan secretary and episcopal vicar for education and formation for the Diocese of Elphin, and subsequently as financial administrator in 2018.

Episcopal ministry

Bishop of Clonfert

Duignan was appointed Bishop-elect of Clonfert by

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

on 16 July 2019. He received episcopal ordination from his predecessor, John Kirby, on 13 October in St Brendan's Cathedral, Loughrea.

Bishop of Clonfert and Galway and Kilmacduagh

Following the announcement by Pope Francis on 16 November 2021 that the Dioceses of Clonfert and Galway, Kilmacduagh and Kilfenora would be united '' in persona episcopi'', the first-ever union of its kind in Ireland, Duignan was appointed

and

Apostolic Administrator An Apostolic administration in the Catholic Church is administrated by a prelate appointed by the pope to serve as the ordinary for a specific area. Either the area is not yet a diocese (a stable 'pre-diocesan', usually missionary apostolic admi ...

of Kilfenora in addition to his appointment as Bishop of Clonfert on 11 February 2022. He was installed on 1 May in the Cathedral of Our Lady Assumed into Heaven and St Nicholas,

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a city in the West of Ireland, in the province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay, and is the sixth most populous city ...

Notes

References

External links

Bishop Michael Gerard Duignan
on Catholic-Hierarchy.org
Bishop Michael Duignan
on GCatholic 1970 births Living people 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in Ireland Alumni of St Patrick's College, Maynooth Pontifical Gregorian University alumni People from Athlone Roman Catholic bishops of Clonfert {{Ireland-RC-bishop-stub