President to witness Primate's elevation to Cardinal

President Mary McAleese is to attend the Vatican ceremony where Catholic Primate Sean Brady is to be made a Cardinal on November 24, it emerged tonight.

The Government today approved a request from Mrs McAleese, who is currently in New Zealand, to travel to the consistory event.

Pope Benedict XVI will honour 23 other senior churchmen with the traditional red hat.

The Taoiseach’s spokesman said that Cabinet had not yet decided who will represent the Government at the event.

Earlier this month, the Archbishop of Armagh was congratulated on his appointment by the President, the Taoiseach, the North's First Minister Ian Paisley and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness.

Ireland will now have three cardinals for the first time in its history.

As the other two cardinals are aged more than 80, Archbishop Brady, 68, will be the only voice from Ireland with a vote in the college of cardinals.

Archbishop Brady was born in 1939 at Drumcalpin, near Laragh, in Co Cavan, and after an early education in the local school, he went to St Patrick’s College, Cavan, and on to the church’s St Patrick’s College, Maynooth, before attending the Irish College in Rome.

He was ordained in February 1964 and, after postgraduate studies in canon law at the Lateran University in Rome, he returned to teach at St Patrick’s, Cavan, in 1967.

In 1980, he was appointed vice rector of the Irish College in Rome – becoming rector in 1987. He remained there until 1993, when he was appointed parish priest of Castletara, Ballyhaise, Co Cavan.

In February 1995, he was ordained Coadjutor Archbishop of Armagh and, a year-and-a-half later on the retirement of Cardinal Daly, he became Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland in October 1996.