PROFESSIONS: Br. Ronan Sharpley OFM and Br. Denis Aherne OFM, were professed at a special ceremony at the Friary on Saturday.

The Friary welcomed two brothers into the Franciscan Order on the occasion of their Solemn Profession.

Br. Denis Aherne OFM, a native of Listowel, and Br. Ronan Sharpley OFM from Ballinamore in County Leitrim were professed at a special ceremony at the Friary on Saturday.

Denis entered the order shortly after leaving secondary school and spent two years in the Postulancy in Killarney. From there he moved to do his novitiate year in Wisconsin in the United States.

After his first Profession in the USA he moved to the Franciscan Study Centre in Canterbury, England where he spent a year and on return to Ireland moved to the Friary, Athlone where he spent four years there doing various courses and completed his Formation as a Friar.

“Br Denis is a very talented artist and a writer of Icons,” Brother Pat Lynch told the Killarney Advertiser. “He made the two habits that both Ronan and he wore at their Solemn Profession.”

After competing a Civil Engineering degree at UCG Br Ronan went to El Salvador, Central America with Viatores Christi where he worked for four years on a couple of engineering projects in the Gotera area. It was there that he met an Irish Franciscan Friar, Alfred Loughran OFM from Limerick. He returned to Ireland and entered the Franciscan postulancy in the Friary, Killarney, this was followed by his novitiate year in the Friary, Ennis.

After making his first Profession he too moved to Canterbury, where he did a year of Franciscan Studies. On his return he was based in the Friary Athlone while studying in Maynooth.
“Ronan has just completed three years of theology studies at the Pontifical Gregorian University, in Rome and during his three years there he lived in St. Isidore’s College,” added Brother Lynch.

Both Denis and Ronan will take up their first assignments as Solemnly Professed Friars in a new Youth Initiative in the Franciscan Friary (The Abbey), Francis St, Galway.