Paul Dempsey (born 20 April 1971) is an Irish

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

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 ...

who has served as

auxiliary bishop An auxiliary bishop is a bishop assigned to assist the diocesan bishop in meeting the pastoral and administrative needs of the diocese. Auxiliary bishops can also be titular bishops of sees that no longer exist as territorial jurisdictions. ...

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

and

titular bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

Sita Sita (; ), also known as Siya, Jānaki and Maithili, is a Hindu goddess and the female protagonist of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. Sita is the consort of Rama, the avatar of god Vishnu, and is regarded as an avatar of goddess Lakshmi. She is t ...

since 2024.

Early life and education

Dempsey was born in

Carlow Carlow ( ; ) is the county town of County Carlow, in the south-east of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, from Dublin. At the 2022 census of Ireland, 2022 census, it had a population of 27,351, the List of urban areas in the Republic of Ireland, ...

on 20 April 1971, the youngest of four children to Tony and Berry Dempsey. He moved with his family to

Athy Athy ( ; ) is a market town at the meeting of the River Barrow and the Grand Canal in south-west County Kildare, Ireland, 72 kilometres southwest of Dublin. A population of 11,035 (as of the 2022 census) made it the sixth largest town in Kil ...

County Kildare County Kildare () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the Local gove ...

, in 1978, where he attended the local Christian Brothers primary school and secondary school at the local Christian Brothers secondary school, Scoil Eoin. Dempsey studied for the priesthood in Milltown Institute, St Patrick's, Carlow College and

All Hallows College All Hallows College was a college of higher education in Dublin. It was founded in 1842 and was run by the Vincentians from 1892 until 2016. On 23 May 2014, it was announced that it was closing because of declining student enrollment. The sale ...

. He was ordained a priest for the

Diocese of Kildare and Leighlin The Diocese of Kildare and Leighlin (; ; ) is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in eastern Ireland. It is one of three suffragan dioceses in the ecclesiastical province of Dublin and is subject to the Archdiocese of Dublin.

on 6 July 1997.

Presbyteral ministry

Following ordination, Dempsey's first pastoral appointment was as a

curate A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' () 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 who are as ...

Clane Clane (; ) is a town in County Kildare, Ireland, from Dublin. With a population of 8,152 in 2022, it is the ninth largest town in Kildare and the 66th largest in Ireland. The town is on the River Liffey. Clane gives its name to the associate ...

and

Rathcoffey Rathcoffey () is a village in County Kildare, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, around 30 km west of Dublin city centre. It had a population of 271 as of 2016 census. The village church, Rathcoffey Church, is part of the Clane & Rathcoffey Parish, ...

. Seven years later, he was appointed curate in

Kildare Kildare () is a town in County Kildare, Ireland. , its population was 10,302, making it the 7th largest town in County Kildare. It is home to Kildare Cathedral, historically the site of an important abbey said to have been founded by Saint ...

, and simultaneously as diocesan youth director and director of vocations. During his time as diocesan youth director, Dempsey organised two

World Youth Day World Youth Day (WYD) is an event for the youth organized by the Catholic Church that was initiated by Pope John Paul II in 1985. Its concept has been influenced by the Light-Life Movement that has existed in Poland since the 1960s, where dur ...

pilgrimages in

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

and

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

. It was during his curacy in Kildare that he also started writing a weekly article in the ''

Leinster Leader The ''Leinster Leader'' is a newspaper published in Naas, County Kildare, Ireland. Johnston Press bought the Leinster Leader Group in 2005. The Leinster Leader Group, as well as publishing the Naas-based ''Leinster Leader'' also published The ''D ...

'' and presenting ''Religion Matters'', a religious and social affairs program on Kfm. Dempsey returned to the Milltown Institute for further studies, completing a master's degree in theology in 2008. His thesis examined whether the Catholic Church in contemporary Ireland was a church in crisis or one in question. Dempsey was appointed to the parish cluster of

Naas Naas ( ; or ) is the county town of County Kildare in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In 2022, it had a population of 26,180, making it the largest town in County Kildare (ahead of Newbridge, County Kildare, Newbridge) and the List of urban ar ...

Sallins Sallins () is a town in County Kildare, Ireland, situated 3.5 km north of the town centre of Naas, from which it is separated by the M7 motorway. Sallins is the anglicised name of ''Na Solláin'' which means "the willows". In the Centra ...

and Two Mile House in 2009, before moving to Newbridge in August 2014, when he was also appointed

vicar forane A dean, in an ecclesiastical context, is a cleric holding certain positions of authority within a religious hierarchy. The title is used mainly in the Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion, and many Lutheran denominations. A dean's assistant i ...

for the North deanery. The following year, Dempsey was appointed parish priest in Newbridge and simultaneously

administrator Administrator or admin may refer to: Job roles Computing and internet * Database administrator, a person who is responsible for the environmental aspects of a database * Forum administrator, one who oversees discussions on an Internet forum * N ...

Caragh Caragh or Carragh () is a village in County Kildare, Ireland. It is located on the R409 regional road between the River Liffey and the Grand Canal and is located 6.1 km north-west of Naas. The village is also 7.9 km from Clane and ...

and Prosperous. In a December 2010 article for ''

The Furrow ''The Furrow'' is an Irish Catholic theological periodical published monthly by Maynooth College. History It was founded in 1950 by James G. McGarry, Professor of Sacred Eloquence and Pastoral Theology at St. Patrick's College, Maynooth. C ...

'' on being a priest in modern Ireland, Dempsey wrote that "the Church community needs to enter into a period of deep reflection", adding that it would be "refreshing to see some leadership around this 'reflection' culminating in some form of national Church gathering", and noting his awareness of major issues in the church, such as the role of women and the appointment of bishops.

Episcopal ministry

Bishop of Achonry

Dempsey was appointed Bishop-elect of Achonry by

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 ...

on 27 January 2020, the first Carlow-born bishop to be appointed since Michael Comerford as

coadjutor bishop A coadjutor bishop (or bishop coadjutor) ("co-assister" in Latin) is a bishop in the Latin Catholic, Anglican and (historically) Eastern Orthodox churches whose main role is to assist the diocesan bishop in administering the diocese. The coa ...

of Kildare and Leighlin in 1888. His episcopal ordination was initially scheduled to take place on 19 April, but was rescheduled on 17 June due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. Dempsey was eventually consecrated by the

Archbishop of Tuam The Archbishop of Tuam ( ; ) is an Episcopal polity, archbishop which takes its name after the town of Tuam in County Galway, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The title was used by the Church of Ireland until 1839, and is still in use by the Cathol ...

, Michael Neary, on 30 August in the Cathedral of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St Nathy,

Ballaghaderreen Ballaghaderreen () is a town in County Roscommon, Ireland. It was part of County Mayo prior to 1898. It is in the north-west of the county, near the borders with counties Mayo and Sligo, just off the N5 road. The population was 2,387 in the 2 ...

. In response to a document published by the

Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) is a department of the Roman Curia in charge of the religious discipline of the Catholic Church. The Dicastery is the oldest among the departments of the Roman Curia. Its seat is the Palace of t ...

in March 2021, Dempsey released a statement on 26 March 2021 in which he referred to language in the document banning blessings for same-sex couples as "hurtful". In his Lenten

pastoral letter A pastoral letter, often simply called a pastoral, is an open letter addressed by a bishop to the clergy or laity of a diocese or to both, containing general admonition, instruction or consolation, or directions for behaviour in particular circu ...

in 2023, he expressed his concerns about falling vocations to the priesthood, revealing that there hadn't been an ordination in the diocese since 2013, and no more than twelve priests would be serving in the Diocese of Achonry in ten years' time.

Auxiliary Bishop of Dublin

In response to a wider reorganisation of diocesan church leadership in the

ecclesiastical province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction in Christian churches, including those of both Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity, that have traditional hierarchical structures. An ecclesiastical province consist ...

Tuam Tuam (; , meaning 'mound' or 'burial-place') is a town in Ireland and the second-largest settlement in County Galway. It is west of the midland Region, Ireland, midlands of Ireland, about north of Galway city. The town is in a civil parishe ...

, Dempsey was appointed

and

by Pope Francis on 10 April 2024. The

Bishop of Elphin The Bishop of Elphin (; ) is an Episcopal polity, episcopal title which takes its name after the village of Elphin, County Roscommon, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the Catholic Church, Roman Catholic Church it remains a separate title, but ...

Kevin Doran Kevin Peter Doran (born 26 June 1953) is an Republic of Ireland, Irish Catholic Church, Roman Catholic prelate, Bioethics, bioethicist and theologian who has served as Bishop of Elphin since 2014 and Bishop of Achonry since 2025. Early life and ...

, was subsequently appointed as

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 ...

sede vacante In the Catholic Church, ''sede vacante'' is the state during which a diocese or archdiocese is without a prelate installed in office, with the prelate's office being the cathedral. The term is used frequently in reference to a papal interre ...

'' of the Diocese of Achonry.

References

External links

Bishop Paul Dempsey
on

Catholic-Hierarchy.org ''Catholic-Hierarchy.org'' is an online database of bishops and dioceses of the Latin Church and the 23 Eastern Catholic Churches that are in full communion with Rome. The website, not officially sanctioned by the Church, is run as a private pro ...

Bishop Paul Dempsey
on GCatholic {{DEFAULTSORT:Dempsey, Paul Christian clergy from County Carlow Living people 1971 births Alumni of Milltown Institute of Theology and Philosophy Alumni of All Hallows College, Dublin Alumni of Carlow College 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in Ireland Roman Catholic bishops of Achonry People from Athy Christian clergy from County Kildare Bishops appointed by Pope Francis Irish Roman Catholic titular bishops Auxiliary bishops of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dublin