Claire Murphy
The names of 15 Irish Jesuits credibly accused of child abuse over the last 70 years have been published by the congregation.
It follows an investigation into the files of 37 deceased Jesuit priests or brothers who had been the subject of child sexual abuse complaints over those decades.
To date, in the region of 160 people have contacted the Jesuits directly with allegations of abuse by members of the congregation. The 15 named Jesuits are:
Fr Rupert Coyle (1896-1978)
Fr Shaun Curran 1924 – 1999)
Fr Brendan Kearney (1935 – 2014)
Fr John T Kelly (1906 – 1977)
Fr Patrick Kelly (1920 – 2012)
Fr Kevin Laheen (1919 – 2019)
Fr Henry (Harry) Lawlor (1911-1989)
Fr John A (Jack) Leonard (1912 – 1992)
Fr Finbarr Lynch (1933 – 2022)
Fr Michael McGrath (1910 – 1989)
Fr Oliver Joseph O’Brien (1920 – 1994)
Br Edward O’Sullivan (1920 – 1996)
Fr Diarmuid Ó Péicín (1916 – 2008)
Br Douglas A Pill (1918 – 2003)
Fr James Stephenson (1906 – 1979)
Wednesday’s decision by the Jesuits to publish these names follows on from their naming of Fr Joseph Marmion in 2021 as a Jesuit who abused children, and the similar naming in 2024 of Fr Paul Andrews and Fr Dermot Casey in connection with complaints of child sexual abuse also.