Interview with Bishop Phonsie Cullinan - 28 June 2015 (Programme Excerpt) - a podcast by Come & See Inspirations team

Bishop Cullinan was born in Lahinch, County Clare in 1959 to Christy and Rita and has four sisters and five brothers.  He was a priest of the diocese of Limerick.  His family moved to Limerick city where he attended the Salesians for early education, John F Kennedy National School and the Crescent College Comprehensive (SJ) for his secondary education.  From 1978-1981 he attended Mary Immaculate College of Education Limerick and qualified as a primary teacher (B.Ed) in 1981, and taught for six years in Castleconnell, County Limerick. He worked part-time during that time for four years with the Bunratty Castle Entertainers before going to Spain where he taught English for two years in a school in Valladolid.  

Bishop Cullinan studied at Saint Patrick’s College Maynooth from 1989-95 where he completed an STL (Licentiate in Theology).  He was ordained by Bishop Jeremiah Newman in 1994 in Saint John’s Cathedral, Limerick, and appointed Curate in Saint Munchin’s Parish Limerick city 1995-1996.  Father Cullinan’s next appointment was as chaplain to the Regional Hospital in Limerick from 1996 until 2001.  He studied for his doctorate in moral theology in the Alfonsianum in Rome 2001-2004.  Appointed chaplain to the Limerick Institute of Technology 2004-2011.   He was appointed Parish Priest of Rathkeale , County Limerick in 2011.

On April 12th 2015, Bishop Cullinan was consecrated bishop of Waterford & Lismore. The Diocese of Waterford & Lismore includes County Waterford, and part of Counties Tipperary and Cork.  There are 45 parishes, 85 Churches and a Catholic population of 152,107.  The patrons of the Diocese are Saint Otteran, Saint Carthage and Saint Declan.

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