Canonisation cause opens for two Belfast priests

A new case for the cause of canonisation of two Irish priests – who were shot dead in Belfast by the British Army – has been opened by the Diocese of Down and Connor.

A spokesman for the Diocese has told The Irish Catholic that the process for “the cause of the saints” has been started for Fr Hugh Mullan and Fr Noel Fitzpatrick. The two priests were shot dead in two separate incidents in the 1970s, while ministering the last rites to parishioners in Corpus Christi parish in Ballymurphy. 

“It is at the early stages,” he added, describing what he called “a long process”. The case was initiated by Bishop Alan McGuckian.

The initial stage involves writing a dossier and then, in liaison with Rome, appointing someone to investigate and promote the cause. It also involves interviewing those who knew the priests and how they lived out the theological virtues such as faith, hope, and love.

In 2022 another Irish priest, a Jesuit and army chaplain, Fr Willie Doyle, SJ was declared ‘a Servant of God’ – the first official stage in the path to sainthood.

A prayer card in honour of Fr Mullan and Fr Fitzpatrick was introduced in the diocese around 2019.

Fr Mullan (38) was the first Catholic priest shot in the Troubles. He was a curate at Corpus Christi Church in Ballymurphy when the British Army’s Paratroop Regiment shot him on August 9, 1971. The tragedy is known as the Ballymurphy Massacre, as it involved ten victims. An inquest in 2021 ruled that all ten victims that day were entirely innocent.

Fr Mullan was giving the last rites to parishioner Bobby Clarke and was waving a white flag to indicate his intentions when he was killed.

On July 9 1972, Fr Noel Fitzpatrick (42), also serving at Corpus Christi, was shot dead by a British Army sniper, along with four parishioners, three of them teenagers. Fr Fitzpatrick was killed as he went to give the last rites to Margaret Gargan, aged 13.

In April this year, an official inquest into the five deaths, known as the Springhill Massacre, ruled all the victims were innocent. It also concluded that the soldiers had “lost control,” and the British Army had used unreasonable force and was in violation of its own military rules. 

Bishop Alan McGuckian spoke at a special Mass in Corpus Christi in May, which was celebrated for the victims’ families. 

He paid tribute to their perseverance and resilience and said the conflict’s legacy continued to cast a long shadow across communities, families and institutions.

The bishop also told Corpus Christi parishioners that the verdict “restores dignity to the deceased, and it brings a measure of justice to those who grieve.”

The news comes as a new icon is being written in memory of the two priests. The icon, which depicts the priests with Jesus, the Good Shepherd, has been written by Fr Anthony Alexander and will be formally installed in St Peter’s Cathedral, Belfast, in the near future.

The Cathedral is marking 160 years since its opening on October 14, 1886. A recent insurance valuation indicated the cost of building the sandstone cathedral today would be around £49 million.