Statement of Archbishop Dermot Farrell on the Occasion of the Appointment of Father Niall Coll as Bishop of Ossory

I warmly welcome the appointment by Pope Francis of Father Niall Coll of the Diocese of Raphoe as Bishop of Ossory. I congratulate Bishop-elect Coll, and wish him every blessing as he commences his new ministry among the people, religious, and priests of Ossory.

Bishop-elect Coll brings with him a wealth of experience both in Diocese of Raphoe and in St Mary’s University College, Belfast, as he begins to serve the people of Ossory and those who minister among them. From first-hand experience, I am confident that he will be warmly welcomed in Ossory. My own time in Ossory was a time of great blessing, and I wish Father Coll even greater blessing and happiness as he prepares for his new ministry.

He undertakes his episcopal ministry in a time of rapid and profound cultural, social, and ecclesial change. I pray that he and all the people of Ossory may know power of the Holy Spirit and the reassurance of the Spirit’s gifts in their common seeking “to discern the Body of the Lord,” (1 Cor 11:29) to use St Paul’s expression about our responsibility to discern again and again where the Lord is leading his people (see Psalm 136:16, John 14:5–6), and how the Good Shepherd is feeding his sheep (see John 21:15–17).The announcement of your appointment as Bishop of Ossory is on the Feast of the Apostles Simon and Jude. The Lord called the apostles to be with him, to journey with him, and to be sent out to preach (see Mark 3:14). In the Apostles gathered around Jesus, God shows us how the Church is, and in their mission where the Church is called to go (Matt 28:19-20).

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Bishop Denis Nulty for his dedicated service as Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Ossory for the past twenty-one months. He bears witness to that fraternal ministry which embodies the reality which ensures that the Church is what we claim to be: brothers and sisters in the Lord (see 1Cor 1:2).

May the Good Shepherd watch over all his sheep.

May St Kieran and St Canice inspire and strengthen our faith.

May all God’s people walk together along the path of welcome, oneness, and enduring peace.

+Dermot Farrell
Archbishop of Dublin