By Sean Moriarty

A Killarney priest has been ordained as an Auxiliary Bishop of Melbourne, Australia at a special ceremony at St Patrick’s Cathedral in the city on Saturday.

Fr Martin Ashe left for Australia shortly after his ordination  in Dublin in 1978.

He grew up on the Muckross Road, and went to school in the Mercy Convent and St Brendan’s College in Killarney.

He is the son of former Killarney Town Clerk, the late John and Eileen Ashe. 

After he was ordained at All Hollows Seminary in Dublin in June 1978, Fr Ashe left for Australia.

In May this year he received notification from Pope Francis and the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference that he was to become an Auxiliary Bishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne and his conferring ceremony took place on Saturday last.

During the ceremony Bishop Martin Ashe gave a special mention to his family in Killarney who were watching oline on Saturday night Irish time.

“I would like in a special way to acknowledge my family, my relatives and friends in Killarney and Kerry and other parts of Ireland, who are with us this morning, although for them, it is the middle of the night. I'm sure that they won't stop celebrating, just because it is the middle of the night. But you are very much in my thoughts today,” he said.