James Alexander Hamilton Irwin (1876–1954) was an Irish

Presbyterian minister Presbyterian (or presbyteral) polity is a method of church governance ("ecclesiastical polity") typified by the rule of assemblies of presbyters, or elders. Each local church is governed by a body of elected elders usually called the session or ...

and a supporter of Irish unity and independence.

Life

Born in

Feeny Feeny () is a village and townland in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is between Dungiven and Claudy. In the 2011 Census it had a population of 690. Feeny lies just inside the boundary of the Sperrins Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty ...

County Londonderry County Londonderry (Ulster-Scots: ''Coontie Lunnonderrie''), also known as County Derry ( ga, Contae Dhoire), is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the thirty two counties of Ireland and one of the nine counties of Ulste ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, Irwin was educated at the local national school in Rallagh, and then at

Magee College The Ulster University Magee campus is one of the four campuses of Ulster University. It is located in Derry, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland and opened in 1865 as a Presbyterian Christian arts and Seminary, theological college. Since 1953, i ...

. In 1900 he went to the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

studying arts, and pursuing his clerical studies in New College. Irwin was ordained a

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their na ...

minister in November 1903 in

Killead Killead () is a hamlet and civil parish in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is near Aldergrove and Antrim and is accessed from the A26 Tully Road. It had a population of 81 people (32 households) in the 2011 Census. (2001 Census: 78 people) ...

Church,

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population o ...

, where he ministered until 1926. He was a Home Ruler who converted to the republican cause post-1916. He toured America with

Éamon de Valera Éamon de Valera (, ; first registered as George de Valero; changed some time before 1901 to Edward de Valera; 14 October 1882 – 29 August 1975) was a prominent Irish statesman and political leader. He served several terms as head of governm ...

in the 1920s, who became a lifelong friend. In October 1926 Irwin left

, and ministered in St Michael's Parish Church, Edinburgh. In 1928 he moved to St Thomas' Church,

Leith Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by ''Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world. The earliest ...

, returning to Ireland in 1935. He lived and ministered in

Lucan Marcus Annaeus Lucanus (3 November 39 AD – 30 April 65 AD), better known in English as Lucan (), was a Roman poet, born in Corduba (modern-day Córdoba), in Hispania Baetica. He is regarded as one of the outstanding figures of the Imperial ...

County Dublin "Action to match our speech" , image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Dublin.svg , map_alt = map showing County Dublin as a small area of darker green on the east coast within the lighter green background of ...

. In 1937 Irwin was consulted by De Valera about the composition of the new

Constitution of Ireland The Constitution of Ireland ( ga, Bunreacht na hÉireann, ) is the fundamental law of Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. The constitution, based on a system of representative democracy, is broadly within the traditio ...

.Northern presbyterian minister friend of De Valera
/ref> Appointed to the

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil (, ; meaning 'Soldiers of Destiny' or 'Warriors of Fál'), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party ( ga, audio=ga-Fianna Fáil.ogg, Fianna Fáil – An Páirtí Poblachtánach), is a conservative and Christian ...

-led government's Commission on Vocational Organisation from 1939–43 and later joined the party and served on the Fianna Fáil national executive from 1945 until his death in 1954. He was offered the opportunity by Fianna Fáil to stand for the Presidency of

but declined to do so. In 1948 Irwin, despite dissenting from its unionist-majority sentiment, represented the Presbyterian Church in Ireland at the

World Council of Churches The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, most ju ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

and, until his death in 1954, on the

British Council of Churches Churches Together in Britain and Ireland (CTBI) is an ecumenical Ecumenism (), also spelled oecumenism, is the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relati ...

. He died at The Manse, Lucan, 27 July 1954.

References

1876 births 1954 deaths Irish Presbyterian ministers Protestant Irish nationalists Alumni of the University of Edinburgh
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