From
Oileán Chléire
to
Euxton
and
beyond!
The
celebration of the Diamond Jubilee of the Ordination of Father Dan Cadogan
Ordained
at St Mary’s Cathedral, Kilkenny on Pentecost Sunday, 9th June 1946
Thanksgiving
Mass at St Mary’s, Euxton on 16th June 2006
-----ooo000ooo-----
The inside story of
Fr Dan’s journey from Oileán Chléire (Cape Clear Island) to Euxton
The
Cadogan family have a seafaring background, and a long historic connection with
Cape Clear Island. History records that, following the destruction of the
Timoleague Friary in 1642, the sole surviving escaping friar was rescued from
the high seas by Cape Clear fishermen and nursed back to health in the Cadogan
household. He carried with him a box that he charged the Cadogan family to keep
unopened, awaiting his return. The box, its contents unknown, was kept safe in
an alcove above the fireplace in the Cadogan household for over 200 years until
it was opened in 1851 by the then Parish Priest – revealing vestments (which
crumbled) and the Timoleague Chalice (in perfect condition). The Chalice was
subsequently returned to the Timoleague parish and has stayed there since,
excepting very rare occasions such as that of Fr Dan’s Golden Jubilee when he
was granted permission to take the Timoleague treasure back to Cape Clear to
celebrate an open-air Mass – an exceptional distinction being given to a
member of the family known as “the Cadogan’s of the Chalice”.
Father
Dan Cadogan hails from Cape Clear Island, Co Cork. He was born in Cork City on
10th July 1922, the son of Dan and Catherine Cadogan and was baptised
at St Finbarr South, Cork on 12th July 1922 before returning to the
family home on Cape Clear Island. Fr Dan’s mother was a teacher, his father
was a master mariner and his grandfather (also named Dan) was an Ocean Pilot,
who probably established the Cadogan connection with Liverpool in the 19th
century by piloting the big transatlantic sailing ships from the open seas up to
the Mersey and into port! Fr Dan is
one of four children, his brother Patrick and his sisters Maura and Breeda have
sadly passed away.
Fr
Dan had a very happy early childhood on Cape Clear Island, and it can easily be
imagined what freedom and excitement was experienced by a young boy in that
environment – an island six miles off-shore in the Western Approaches, close
to the Fastnet Rock. The Island had a primary school only and following his
attendance there he spent five very happy and fruitful years as a boarder at St
Colman’s College, Fermoy and six years preparing for the Priesthood at St
Kieran’s Seminary, Kilkenny. At that time there were 6 seminaries in Ireland
preparing Priests for the English-speaking world along with 2 for the African
mission and 1 for China – producing in excess of 200 priests per year! It was
against this background that Fr Dan prepared for the Priesthood. Fr Dan secured
the adoption required of a candidate for Holy Orders at the end of his fourth
year of preparation. His assignment in the Lord’s Vineyard was to be the
Archdiocese of Liverpool and he was duly ordained “a priest forever” along
with 16 other young men on Pentecost Sunday, June 9th 1946 in St
Mary’s Cathedral, Kilkenny. As the hymn says:
“Thine
was the task they took in hand
Thine
their good news for every land
They
went O Master far and wide”:
four to Australia, one to Mexico, one
to the USA, one to South Africa and the remainder to Great Britain. At Pentecost
2006, eleven of them “have gone home bearing their sheaves”. Three of the
seventeen came to Liverpool and along with two others ordained in Waterford,
they joined the fourteen raised to priesthood on the home front.
In
a situation which is a far cry from today’s experience, the Archdiocesan
Directory for 1946 listed 513 diocesan clergy, 36 of whom were serving as
Chaplains to H.M. Forces and were returning to Parish duty after demobilisation.
Consequently there was “no room at the inn” for Fr Dan and the other four
priests from Ireland and they were instructed to find a two-year temporary
mission for themselves. This was a task that they had to undertake for
themselves and it seems hard to credit today that Fr Dan spent the summer
seeking a Diocesan placement, making enquiries to Cardiff, Edinburgh, Southwark,
Clifton, Rochester and Argyll & the Isles (Fr Dan is a fluent
Gaelic-speaker!). It was September and Fr Dan was at home at Cape Clear Island
before he received the call to arms! Fr Dan and the other four Irish priests
were captured in one fell swoop by Bishop William Lee of Clifton in the West
Country who was in the midst of a major expansion programme involving the
creation of 40 new Parishes.
So,
Fr Dan’s priestly ministry commenced in September 1946 in the rolling Downs
and Cotswolds, and has seen him minister to the faithful of nine Parishes over
52 years of “active service”:
Sacred
Heart, Tisbury 1946 –
1948
Holy
Rood, Swindon 1948 –
1949
St
Sylvester’s, Scotland Road, Liverpool
1949 - 1954
St
Thomas of Canterbury, Windleshaw, St Helens
1954 – 1958
St
Francis de Sales, Walton 1958
– 1966
St
Joseph’s / St Jude’s, Wigan
1966 – 1969
St
Aidan’s, Winstanley 1969
– 1972
St
Stephen’s, Orford, Warrington
1972 – 1977
St
Mary’s, Euxton 1977
– 1997
Following
his first three years in the green and pleasant land of Clifton Diocese, Fr Dan
was recalled to Liverpool on Armistice Day 1949 and arrived at Lime Street
station in a “pea-souper” fog and he couldn’t see a lot of his new Parish
of St Sylvester’s – but he couldn’t miss the industrial smells, which in
the cold light of the following day turned out to be Tate & Lyle’s
refinery and an animal-skin curing plant - it must have been quite a change from
Clifton! Fr Dan was one of three Curates at St Sylvester’s and his duties
evoke memories of a different age, involving Outdoor Collections around homes on
Friday evening and around the local pubs on Saturday evening – Fr Dan
accompanied the Parish Priest (Mgr James Barrow) on the Saturday collections and
his particular responsibility was to know all the details of the afternoon’s
Liverpool and Everton matches to ensure that the locals received the appropriate
sympathy or encouragement! This interest in soccer didn’t come easily to a
young man whose sporting prowess was largely confined to Gaelic Football and
Hurling, but he was a quick learner! He was also Chaplain to the parish’s
Catholic Young Men’s Society and Youth Club. As Chaplain (and whatever else!)
he had the great joy of seeing the Under-18 team compete in two cup finals on
the same day in 1952, one at Goodison Park in the afternoon, which they won, and
the second in the evening at Anfield Stadium which they drew. The latter final
was for the prestigious L.B.A. Trophy. It was very gratifying for Fr Dan to
return to the Parish recently to preside at a Requiem Mass, and despite the
sadness of the occasion, to see so many of the young boys he used to work with
– now grandfathers and still keeping the Faith 50 years on! Fr Dan worked
tirelessly during his four years at St Sylvester’s and forged great bonds with
the Parishioners, to the extent that they have “insisted” on Fr Dan
celebrating his Diamond Jubilee with them over 50 years after he left the
Parish!
Now
to a bit more meandering on the ebb and flow of the Jubilarian’s life.
From
St Sylvester’s Fr Dan moved on from the inner city to the slightly leafier
lanes of Windleshaw at St Thomas of Canterbury. He kept in contact with the St
Sylvester curates, particularly at their weekly round of golf (a game that Fr
Dan picked up in Clifton Diocese), and they were most impressed with the
apparent generosity of the Windleshaw parishioners when Fr Dan turned up for the
game one week in a shiny Morris Oxford at a time when curates travelled
everywhere on the bus – unfortunately the car belonged to the Parish Priest
who had loaned it to Fr Dan, but they were impressed nonetheless that he had
managed to borrow it!
Fr Dan took on the challenge of a
green-field situation at St Aidan’s, Winstanley in setting-up a new Parish
from scratch – it was late-1969 and Winstanley was a rapidly-growing area, but
there was no church, no school and no social centre. Fr Dan met this enormous
challenge head-on and set about the task, first carrying out a “census” to
establish the size of the catholic community in the area. He concentrated at
first on the primary school, there being no primary school of any sort in the
area, holding a hectic series of home meetings with his prospective new
parishioners (meeting 150 families in a 2-week period) to explain the plans for
the new school – at one of these, where he was talking to a group of ladies,
the meeting was interrupted by a non-Catholic lady who was surprised at the
gathering and asked what was going on. Fr Dan informed her that he was
conducting a séance, at which point she announced that she would like to make
contact with the other side and joined the circle. It’s not known if she was
converted, but the primary school, church and social centre were all built
during Fr Dan’s time at the helm.
From
St Aidan’s, Fr Dan was asked to go to St Stephen’s in Orford to continue the
work of building a new parish started by another parish priest, and the road
from Orford led to Euxton!
Fr Dan spent the longest stint of his
active priesthood at St Mary’s, Euxton, and it would be impractical to recount
his time here in any level of detail – suffice to say that, in his 20 years at
St Mary’s, he provided tremendous spiritual leadership and inspiration; he
worked tirelessly in the Pastoral life of the Parish; he planned and oversaw the
first major re-ordering of the Church since its construction in 1865; and he
conducted 470 Baptisms, 167 Marriages and 296 Burial services – playing a key
role in the lives of a great many Euxton folk!
On
his retirement from active Parish life, Fr Dan moved to live at St Joseph’s,
Upholland and is now Chaplain to the Religious Community at Ince Blundell Hall
and he has remained in active Priesthood throughout his “retirement”.
Throughout
his life Fr Dan has kept Cape Clear and its people close to his heart and has
returned there many times – to visit friends and relatives, to celebrate major
milestones in his priestly life (such as his Golden Jubilee), to officiate at
religious ceremonies, and to provide blessings and support for significant
events on the Island. His strong feelings of love and affection for his homeland
and its people have not been dimmed by the passage of time!
Fr
Dan’s ministry has taken him to most corners of the Archdiocese, from
inner-city Liverpool to the leafy lanes of Euxton; from long-established to
newly-created Parishes (and the challenges of each!); and throughout he has
ministered faithfully and modestly to his flock and has won friendship, respect
and love from parishioners everywhere. At his Golden Jubilee Fr Dan stated that
he done nothing very much to write home about, and that he had just been
plodding away trying “to bring men to God and God to men” – many people
will believe that he has done much more than that!
DOMHNALL
Ó
CÉADAGÁIN
Faoi shuaimhneas go maire tú agus tu
ag siúl bealach Ciarán Naofa.
And, finally……….
a message from Cape Clear Island
On behalf of
Cape Clear Island Museum and Archive, Cape Clear, County Cork, I extend our
heartfelt congratulations to Fr. Donal Cadogan on the occasion of his
Diamond Jubilee. We are indebted to Fr. Donal and his beloved late sister Breeda
for the enthusiastic encouragement and support they gave to our island museum
from its beginnings nearly thirty years ago.
Fr. Cadogan is a
great carrier of the Irish language, lore and traditions of the small island
where he was born. Both he and Breeda shared their knowledge of the history and
genealogy of their place with a new generation. They both, long ago, realized
the importance of handing on what had been handed down to them. They did more in
that they, in their time, enriched that that had been passed to them and the
island community of today is all the richer for their having done so. They have
touched the lives of many in so many different ways.
Fr.
Donal Cadogan, the 'pilgrim islander' like fellow islander St. Ciarán born on
Cape Clear in 352 AD ministered away from their native home out in the Atlantic.
Like Ciarán, who left the island to minister throughout the south of Ireland
before Patrick came to Ireland in 432 AD, Fr. Donal was to spend his life as a
priest serving people in Britain. Ciarán had spread Christianity in Ireland,
France and Cornwall where he is known to this day as St. Piran. The name of St
Ciarán is honoured and respected in Cape Clear, as is that of Fr. Donal who has
been a 'faithful servant' and Christian example in his ministry of sixty years.
The Cape Clear island community and his legion of friends respect him and are
proud of him.
We
are delighted to be associated with Fr. Donal Cadogan and celebrate his Diamond
Jubilee with him
God
grant him many more years in his ministry.
I
ndoirn Dé go raibh tú a Athair Dónal.
Dr.
Éamon Lankford
Director
Cape Clear Museum & Archive
------ooo000ooo-----
Fr
Dan’s “Spot the Ball” Competition!
The
students of St Kieran’s, Kilkenny ordained on Pentecost Sunday, June 9th
1946, and the Dioceses of their adoption.
Eamonn
Troy
Maitland
Michael
Holden
San Antonio
Kevin
Scott
Southwark
Jeremiah
O’Brien
Clifton
James
Hughes
Maitland
Michael
O’Byrne
Perth
Dominic
Carey
Hexham & Newcastle
Kevin
Brennan
Liverpool
Richard
Downey
Hexham & Newcastle
Seamus
Sheeran
Port Elizabeth
Joseph
Lennon
Hexham & Newcastle
Joseph
Rae
Portsmouth
Richard
Colbert
Liverpool
Donal
Cadogan
Liverpool
Richard
Lillis
Glasgow
John
Horan
Seattle
Eamonn
Barrett
Sydney
Joined
on the photograph by the President, Senior Dean and Junior Dean
of St Kieran’s and the Most Rev Patrick Collier, Bishop of Ossory, the
Ordaining Prelate.
------ooo000ooo-----
“The long
and winding road……………”
St Finbarr South, Cork
Fr Dan pictured at South Harbour,
Cape Clear Island
Primary School
St Ciaran’s, Cape Clear Island
Cape Clear Island, with his
childhood home in the
background
A Cadogan schooner named “Isallt”, replete with comely figure-head!
The Timoleague Chalice at South Harbour, Cape Clear Island
St Colman’s College, Fermoy
St Kieran’s College, Kilkenny
St Mary’s
Cathedral, Kilkenny
Sacred Heart, Tisbury
Holy Rood, Swindon
St Sylvester’s, Liverpool
St Thomas of Canterbury, Windleshaw
St Francis De Sales, Walton
St Joseph’s, Wigan
St
Jude’s, Wigan
St
Aidan’s, Winstanley
St Stephen’s, Orford
St Mary’s, Euxton
St Joseph’s, Upholland
Ince Blundell Hall
