Neil Farren (25 March 1893 – 7 May 1980),

Bishop of Derry The Bishop of Derry is an episcopal title which takes its name after the monastic settlement originally founded at Daire Calgach and later known as Daire Colm Cille, Anglicised as Derry. In the Catholic Church it remains a separate title, but in ...

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 ...

, was an Irish educator, activist, and Roman Catholic priest.

Early life and education

Neil Farren was born in

Buncrana Buncrana ( ; ) is a town in Inishowen in the north of County Donegal in Ulster, the northern Provinces of Ireland, province in Ireland. The town sits on the eastern shores of Lough Swilly, being northwest of Derry and north of Letterkenny. I ...

County Donegal, Ireland County Donegal ( ; ) is a county of the Republic of Ireland. It is in the province of Ulster and is the northernmost county of Ireland. The county mostly borders Northern Ireland, sharing only a small border with the rest of the Republic. It is ...

and received his secondary education at

St. Columb's College St Columb's College is a Roman Catholic boys' grammar school in Derry, Northern Ireland. Since 2008, it has been a specialist school in mathematics. It is named after Saint Columba, the missionary monk from County Donegal who founded a monast ...

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...

. He graduated from

University College, Dublin University College Dublin (), commonly referred to as UCD, is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 38,417 students, it is Ireland's largest ...

with first class honours BA in 1914. He received a

Bachelor of Divinity In Western universities, a Bachelor of Divinity or Baccalaureate in Divinity (BD, DB, or BDiv; ) is an academic degree awarded for a course taken in the study of divinity or related disciplines, such as theology or, rarely, religious studies. ...

and a

Doctor of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (DD or DDiv; ) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity (academic discipline), divinity (i.e., Christian theology and Christian ministry, ministry or other theologies. The term is more common in the Englis ...

from

Maynooth College St Patrick's Pontifical University, Maynooth (), is a pontifical Catholic university in the town of Maynooth near Dublin, Ireland. The college and national seminary on its grounds are often referred to as Maynooth College. The college was of ...

in 1916 and 1918, respectively. At the end of World War I in November 1918, he was ordained to the priesthood for service in the Derry Diocese. After ordination, he took on postgraduate studies at the

Pontifical Gregorian University Pontifical Gregorian University (; also known as the Gregorian or Gregoriana), is a private university, private pontifical university in Rome, Italy. The Gregorian originated as a part of the Roman College, founded in 1551 by Ignatius of Loyo ...

, and was awarded the degree of

Doctor of Canon Law Doctor of Canon Law (, JCD) is the doctoral-level terminal degree in the studies of canon law of the Roman Catholic Church. It can also be an honorary degree awarded by Anglican colleges. It may also be abbreviated ICD or dr.iur.can. (''Iuris Can ...

for his (later published) thesis 'Domicile and Quasi-Domicile'. As a priest, he taught in Derry and became President of

at the age of 35, and served in this post from 1928 until 1939 when he was appointed bishop. He was bishop when the building of the new

was begun. He was a brilliant mathematician and administrator who had an interest in design also, e.g. he designed the

crest and suggested to architect Liam McCormick, to base the design for a new St. Aengus church, Burt, County Donegal on the ancient

Grianan of Aileach The Grianán of Aileach ( ; ), sometimes anglicised as Greenan Ely or, locally, as Greenan Fort, is a hillfort atop the high Greenan Mountain at Inishowen in County Donegal, Ireland. The main structure is a 19th-century reconstruction of a st ...

ring fort that stands on a hill above what is today the architectural award-winning, circular, church building.

Episcopal ministry

Farren was Ireland's youngest bishop when appointed in 1939 and during the Second World War he was appointed "ordinary" of the American forces in Ireland, a service recognised by the award of the United States Medal of Freedom. He participated in the

Vatican Council Vatican Council may refer to: *First Vatican Council (1869–1870), the 20th ecumenical council recognized by Roman Catholicism *Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the or , was the 21st and ...

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

(1962–65). He was bishop during 'the Troubles' and during 'Bloody Sunday'. During his time as bishop he campaigned for a university in

. He took an active interest with his

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland (, ; , ) is a Christian church in Ireland, and an autonomy, autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the Christianity in Ireland, second-largest Christian church on the ...

counterpart,

Cuthbert Peacocke Cuthbert Irvine Peacocke TD (26 April 1903 – 6 April 1994) was the 8th Bishop of Derry and Raphoe, retiring in 1975. Peacocke was born at St Mary's Rectory, Dublin, son of Rt. Revd Joseph Irvine Peacocke, bishop of Derry and Raphoe 1916–1945. ...

, in seeking to restore peace among the communities in

, and he engaged with nationalist and civil rights activists

Eddie McAteer Edward Gerard McAteer (25 June 1914 – 25 March 1986) was an Irish nationalist politician from Northern Ireland. He was born in Coatbridge, Scotland, to Hugh McAteer and Brigid McAteer (née O'Doherty). McAteer's family moved to Derry in Nor ...

and

John Hume John Hume (18 January 19373 August 2020) was an Irish nationalist politician in Northern Ireland and a Nobel Peace Prize laureate. A founder and leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party, Hume served in the Parliament of Northern Irel ...

. A book about Dr. Farren has been written by Rev. Bernard Canning of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Paisley The Diocese of Paisley () is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church in Scotland. Erected on 25 May 1947 from the Archdiocese of Glasgow, the diocese covers the historic county of Renfrewshire (now the l ...

in Scotland. An obituary recalled that he became bishop at a time of rapid expansion and that he "opened 25 new schools, 23 new post-primary schools and many more primary schools." He served as

until his 80th birthday in 1973. and then as apostolic administrator until the appointment of Edward Daly as his successor in 1974. Farren died on 7 May 1980, aged 87, having spent his retirement in his native Buncrana. His remains are interred to the right of the main entrance of St Eugene's Cathedral, Derry. Next to his remains lie the remains of his successor, Dr. Edward Daly.St Eugene's Cathedral - The Exterior
accessed 28 January 2020.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Farren, Neil Alumni of University College Dublin Alumni of St Patrick's College, Maynooth 1893 births 1980 deaths 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Northern Ireland People of The Troubles (Northern Ireland) Roman Catholic bishops of Derry 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Ireland People from Buncrana Christian clergy from County Donegal People educated at St Columb's College

Early life and education

Episcopal ministry

See also

References