Kevin Doran

KEVIN DORAN

Born: June 26, 1953
Deceased:

Bishop of Elphin, 2014-present

Official blazon
English	blazon wanted

Origin/meaning

In the right side of the shield we find represented the Coat of Arms of the Diocese of Elphin; two golden crossed croziers surmounting a lamb as the central symbol reflecting Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. The red color is the color of love, of blood; the infinite love of the Father who sent the Son to shed His blood for us, the ultimate act of love.

The personal arms of Bishop Kevin occupy the left side. This part of the shield is in silver. The anchor, symbol of hope, is taken from a Doran family motto, Spes Ancora Vitae (Hope is the Anchor of Life). The anchor is in green, the symbolic colour of hope.

The blackbird references the legend of St. Kevin and the Blackbird, which is so well captured in the poem by Seamus Heaney. It reminds Bishop Kevin of the importance of fidelity to prayer and the relationship between prayer, compassion and service. The blackbird carries in his beak a copper pot, symbol of St Asicus, patron saint of the diocese of Elphin. St. Asicus was a coppersmith.

Fr. Kevin spent some years as parish priest of Glendalough, Co. Wicklow (The Valley of the Two Lakes). As he ministered to parishioners and pilgrims around the lakeshore, he was often reminded of the ministry of Jesus, much of which took place around the lake (or sea) of Galilee. As he undertakes his new mission in the Diocese of Elphin, a diocese bounded on one end by the River Shannon and on the other by the Atlantic Ocean, he takes the ministry of Jesus as his model and inspiration. This is the symbolism of the wavelets in the lower part of the shield.

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