Last year, a Dominican church in Drogheda made national news when one parishioner went on hunger strike over proposals to close the church down.

The battle over the future of St Magdelane's took another turn recently when all three Dominican friars based there said that they were going to ignore the instructions of their order and refuse to leave the church and priory when the time came.

There is a rationalisation of services within the order. They aim to have six priests or friars per house so they are closing down churches around the country to meet that target.

The decision has nothing to do with attendances at mass or to do with money - St Magdelane’s has no financial difficulties. However, there are just three domincans, fewer than the ideal number, so they’re shutting up shop.

Despite taking a vow of obedience to their order, they say they will defy instructions and refuse to leave.

Ultimately, that would mean they will be trespassing, which of course is a criminal offence. 

One of the three left is Fr James Dunleavy and he told me how he felt when he heard that the history of the Dominicans in Drogheda was possibly coming to an end: