Talk by ‘lay prophet’ rescued from oblivion

Health, Beauty and Lifestyle with Denise McNamara

A lost speech, delivered in Galway by a man described as a lay prophet and one of the most influential Catholic theologians in the last half century, has been discovered and remastered for a new generation. Dr Jack Dominian was a clinical psychiatrist who set up the Marriage Research Centre, now One-to-One, to investigate the cause of marriage breakdown and provide remedies.

The author of over 30 books, he challenged Catholic teaching on sex and marriage, opposing the ban contraception and arguing that the presence of a genuine love between two people — whether they were married, unmarried, gay or straight — validated sex.

His obituary in the Catholic publication, The Tablet, in 2014 stated: “It is difficult to think of anyone, lay or clergy, who has done more over the past 50 years to transform Catholics’ understanding and appreciation of the value of marriage”.

While working in Thermo King, Mervue native Sean Garvey undertook a two-year course in theology in 1983 led by the internationally renowned writer and former priest John O’Donohue. One of the first speakers was Jack Dominian.

“His talk made a deep impression on everyone including me and I believe I parked his insights and sentiments inside me for a long time in the future.”

In the last decade, Sean has documented the life stories of famous Galwegians Chick Gillen and Michael Lynskey in CD format. After 37 years, Sean wondered if Jack Dominian’s talk had survived the ravages of time. One of his first points of call was the Galway Diocesan Pastoral Centre in Newtownsmith.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

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