Fr Patrick Byrne, 1948-2022
January 23rd, 2022
With great sadness, we regret to announce that Fr Patrick (Pat) Byrne (1976 class) died suddenly on Sunday night January 23rd at his family home in Blessington, Co Wicklow, Ireland. He was due to return to Malawi today, Monday.
Our sincere sympathy to the Byrne family.
May Pat’s gentle soul rest in peace.
Funeral arrangements for Fr Patrick Byrne are as follows:
Reposing at Clarke’s Funeral Home, Blessington (Eircode W91 YN79) on Thursday, January 27th from 3pm to 7pm. Removal to the Church of Our Lady, Blessington, for Requiem Mass on Friday, January 28th, at 12 noon followed by burial in the Society Cemetery, St Patrick’s, Kiltegan.
The Mass will be live-streamed on https://blessingtonparish.ie/about/parish-webcam/.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam uasal.
Fr Patrick Byrne (1948-2022)
Patrick (Pat/Paddy) Camillus Byrne was born on the 27th of February 1948 to John Byrne and his wife Mary (née Quinn) of Burgage, Blessington, Co Wicklow. He was the youngest of a family of 9 girls and 5 boys. He attended St Mary’s National School, Blessington, for his primary education and proceeded to Baltinglass Vocational School for the first part of his secondary education. He left Baltinglass Vocational School in 1964 after completing the Group Certificate. He went to work as an apprentice fitter and attended night classes in Bolton Street School of Technology. He then took up a post as a Junior Draughtsman at Irish Food Machines Ltd, Pearse St, Dublin. Pat drew up designs for kitchens and travelled to places like Lydons in Shop Street, Galway. Thoughts of the priesthood were never far from his mind and he was an avid reader of the Africa magazine. In September 1967 he went to St Patrick’s College, Buchlyvie, Scotland, to continue his secondary education. After two years of intense study he had sufficient O Levels to begin his training for the priesthood. He joined St Patrick’s Missionary Society in September 1969. On completing the Spiritual Year in June 1970 he proceeded to St Patrick’s College, Douglas, Cork, for studies in philosophy. He returned to St Patrick’s, Kiltegan, in September 1972 for a four year course in theology and was ordained priest on the 12th of June 1976 in St Mary’s Church, Killamoat. The ordaining prelate was Most Rev Dominic Conway DD, Bishop of Elphin.
After ordination Pat was appointed to the Diocese of Chikwawa, Malawi, where he ministered for the following fourteen years. He was stationed at Misomali, Chikwawa Town and Ngabu. He served as Vocations Director for the Diocese for some years and was also Vicar General to Bishop Felix Mkhori from 1988 to 1990. In 1990 Pat was appointed Assistant Regional Superior for Central Africa. This meant a move to the Society house in Lilongwe where he also took on the role of parish priest of St Kizito’s Parish, Chigoneka. When he completed his term as Assistant Regional Superior for Central Africa, Pat took a sabbatical year. He returned to Malawi in 1998 and after a few months in St Kizito’s Parish, Chigoneka, he moved to St Augustine’s Parish, Mtengowanthenga, a one hour drive from Lilongwe. In 2002 Pat found himself once again in Society leadership as he was appointed Assistant Regional Superior for Central and Southern Africa and had to move to Johannesburg, South Africa. After completing his term as Assistant Regional Superior for Central and Southern Africa in January 2009, Pat returned to Malawi and once again was appointed parish priest of Mtengowanthenga. He also served as the Vocations Director for the Society in Malawi for a number of years.
Pat came to Ireland on leave in November 2021 and stayed at the family home at Burgage, Blessington, where he grew up. He visited St Patrick’s, Kiltegan, on Sunday, the 23rd of January, to return a car he had leased for the holiday period. He went back to Burgage and spent a very enjoyable evening in the company of his family who had gathered to say goodbye to him. Later he went to his room to finish packing his cases for his return journey to Malawi the following day. It was at that moment he died suddenly. He was a missionary right up to the end of his life.
Pat was an extremely dedicated and hard-working missionary who spent his entire priestly life in Africa. He was a very joyful, fun-loving and obliging person who invariably had a twinkle in his eye and enjoyed a practical joke at times. He was a very versatile missionary who generously shared his many gifts and talents with his fellow Society members and with the people whom he was called to serve. Pat remained very close to his family throughout his life and he liked nothing better than spending time at the family home in Burgage where he loved to help out on the farm. He was very highly regarded by his fellow Society priests who elected him Assistant Regional Superior for two terms. He was a very gracious and generous host who loved to make people welcome and who took great delight in serving up a delicious meal. Hospitality was one of his special gifts. Pat was a man of deep feelings and he was not afraid to show those feelings. He readily empathised with those who suffered or who had been bereaved. He was a pastor in the mould of Pope Francis who had “the smell of his sheep”.
Pat was predeceased by his sister Kathy (Tyrrell), by his brothers Jimmy, John, Tom and Dick, by his sisters-in-law Joan and Monica, by his brothers-in-law Odie Tyrrell, Sean Fitzsimons, Bill Murphy and John Geoghegan. He is sadly missed by his sisters Nan Fitzsimons, Sr Greta (Bethlehem), Maura Brennan, Betty Byrne, Phyllis Murphy, Bridie O’Hanrahan, Bernie Kearns, Teresa Geoghegan, his sisters-in-law Annie and Joan, his brothers-in-law Billy Brennan, Brendan Byrne, Jimmy O’Hanrahan and Michael Kearns, nieces, nephews, grandnieces, grandnephews, relatives and friends, Archbishop George Desmond Tambala of Lilongwe and his Society family.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam uasal.