Fr. Michael J. Kelly (19 May 1929 – 15 January 2021) was an Irish Jesuit

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

and

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are ...

. He is known for his education work around the

HIV-AIDS pandemic The global epidemic of HIV/AIDS (human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) began in 1981, and is an ongoing worldwide public health issue. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), as of 2021, HIV/AI ...

Early life

Michael J. Kelly was born in

Tullamore Tullamore (; ) is the county town of County Offaly in Ireland. It is on the Grand Canal, in the middle of the county, and is the fourth most populous town in the midlands region with 14,607 inhabitants at the 2016 census. The town retained ...

into a family of seven, three of whom (Michael, Joseph and Robert (Bob)), became Jesuit priests. While training as a Jesuit priest, he studied at

University College Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland ...

gaining first-class honours BA in maths and mathematical physics in 1951 and an MA in 1952, continuing his formation he gained licentiate in philosophy in 1955.

Religious life

In 1955 Kelly was sent to

Northern Rhodesia Northern Rhodesia was a British protectorate in south central Africa, now the independent country of Zambia. It was formed in 1911 by amalgamating the two earlier protectorates of Barotziland-North-Western Rhodesia and North-Eastern Rhodes ...

as a

. He taught mathematics at the Canisius School. He was ordained in 1961, and later became principal of the school. Then, he received a doctorate in education from the

University of Birmingham The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a Public university, public research university located in Edgbaston, Birmingham, United Kingdom. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Queen's College, Birmingha ...

. In the mid-60s, he became a citizen of the new Republic of Zambia. Fr. Kelly then established centres for education, veterinary science and agriculture in

Lusaka Lusaka (; ) is the capital and largest city of Zambia. It is one of the fastest-developing cities in southern Africa. Lusaka is in the southern part of the central plateau at an elevation of about . , the city's population was about 3.3 milli ...

. He was then elected Dean of Education at the

University of Zambia The University of Zambia (UNZA) is a public university located in Lusaka, Zambia. It is Zambia's largest and oldest learning institution. The university was established in 1965 and officially opened to the public on 12 July 1966. The language of ...

and, subsequently, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Professor of Education. Fr. Kelly was intimately involved in planning for health education during the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Zambia.

Honours

In 2006 Fr. Kelly received an

honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad ho ...

Doctor of Laws A Doctor of Law is a degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country and includes degrees such as the Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D. or S.J.D), Juris Doctor (J.D.), Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), and Legum Doctor ( ...

from UCD. In 2012, he received an honorary degree from the

Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) is a medical professional and educational institution, which is also known as RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ireland's first private university. It was established in 1784 ...

. In 2012 Prof. Kelly was awarded one of the first ''Presidential Awards for Irish Abroad'' for his contributions to Peace, Reconciliation and Development, from the Irish Government. In 2018 Professor Kelly received the Order of Distinguished Service from

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...

Edgar Lungu Edgar Chagwa Lungu (born 11 November 1956) is a Zambian politician who served as the sixth president of Zambia from 25 January 2015 to 24 August 2021. Under President Michael Sata, Lungu served as Minister of Justice and Minister of Defence. Fo ...

. In 2020 he appeared on an Irish postage stamp, as part of series honouring "The Irish Abroad."

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kelly, Michael J 1929 births 2021 deaths 20th-century Irish Jesuits 21st-century Irish Jesuits Jesuit missionaries Roman Catholic missionaries in Zambia Irish Roman Catholic missionaries People from Tullamore, County Offaly HIV/AIDS activists Alumni of University College Dublin Christian clergy from County Offaly

Early life

Religious life

Honours

See also

References

External links