The bishop of Ossory, Dr Séamus Freeman, is contemplating moving house from his official residence, Sion House, to the centre of Kilkenny city. The diocese is reported to be negotiating with the Christian Brothers with a view to taking over a property close to St Mary’s Cathedral as a new residence for the bishop.
Dr Freeman’s predecessors have traditionally resided at Sion House, on the Carlow road on the outskirts of Kilkenny.
The Sion House complex also contains offices from where the diocese is administered along with a retreat centre.
But the bishop, who was appointed a year ago, is said to have a preference for living in the heart of the city.
This would allow Bishop Freeman to play a more visible role in the city community.
Before becoming bishop of Ossory, Dr Freeman was head of the Pallottine Order in Rome and subsequently chose to live as a parish priest in a working-class district of the city.
The Christian Brothers are due to depart shortly from their home in James's Street, Kilkenny, as part of the congregation’s ongoing rationalisation programme and their move has prompted the diocese to consider acquiring some of the property they will vacate as a bishop’s residence.
The official spokesman for the diocese of Ossory, Fr Dan Carroll, told The Kilkenny People last weekend that the development was in keeping with Bishop Freeman's wish to live in the heart of the community.
Fr Carroll said it would be some months before anything happened as the Christian Brothers have not yet left the house in James’s Street.
He added that moving closer to St Mary’s Cathedral would make it easier for the bishop from an administrative point of view.
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(Source: CIN)