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December 16, 2019
Msgr. Michael (Ivor) Egan passed away at 9:50 am in Dublin, Ireland on Monday, 16 December 2019 in the presence of Bishop Paul Hinder at the palliative care clinic where Fr. Michael was being treated following his medical condition. The Bishop administered the last sacraments to him the previous day.
The Funeral mass will be on Wednesday, 18 December at 11:30 in The Annunciation Parish, Rathfarnham and the burial in the family tomb at Cruagh Cemetery.
There will be a concelebrated Requiem Mass for the departed soul of Msgr. Michael Egan at St. Therese Church in St. Joseph's Cathedral compound, Abu Dhabi on Friday, 20 December 2019 at 9:00 AM, presided over by Bishop Paul Hinder.
Ivor Michael Egan was born on 4 January 1927 in Dublin, Ireland. After graduating with a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from University College, Dublin in 1949, he worked briefly as a journalist and as an administrative clerk at Air Lingus. He then obtained a Flight Dispatcher License from the Institute of Science and Technology, Dublin, and worked as a Flight Dispatcher and finally as the Director of Airline Operations with several major carriers for almost 30 years in several parts of the world.
It was during the year 1981, at the age of 58, while working in Saudi Arabia for the aviation industry that he experienced the call to be a priest. Bishop Bernard Gremoli sent him to study at the Pontifical Beda College and was ordained a priest by Pope John Paul II on 2 June 1985 at St. Peter's Basilica.
Fr. Michael Egan was from the beginning incardinated in the Vicariate of Arabia and has served all his priestly years in the Gulf till his retirement in 2008. He spent five years in Rathfarnham, Ireland to take care of his ailing sister till her death in January 2012. During this period, he used to visit the Vicariate intermittently to serve for brief periods. From April 2012, Fr. Michael Egan lived in Bishop's House at St. Joseph’s Cathedral, Abu Dhabi and was a much sought-after confessor, counsellor and hospital chaplain.From 2015, at the age of 88, Fr. Michael moved again in retirement with the Community of White Fathers (Missionaries of Africa) in Dublin. He used to visit Abu Dhabi every year during Christmas and Easter to spend a few weeks with his beloved friends and the faithful of Abu Dhabi.
Fr. Michael carried on a wide correspondence with his many friends and the people whom he had ministered to, making himself available to listen to their problems and needs. He always had a word of encouragement and a smile for everyone who came to visit him. His last visit to the Vicariate was for Christmas 2018 and the visit of Pope Francis to Abu Dhabi in February 2019.
Updated: 17 December 2019