Patrick Delany

Patrick Delany (1685/6 – 6 May 1768) was an Irish clergyman and theologian. Educated at Trinity College Dublin, he became a Senior Fellow before leaving the college after conflicts with its provost, Richard Baldwin. He later held clerical office in Dublin and was appointed Dean of Down in 1744.

Delany published mainly theological works, including The Doctrine of Abstinence from Blood Defended (1734), a defence of Christian vegetarianism. He was associated with Dublin literary society through Delville House in Glasnevin, where Jonathan Swift was among his visitors. He was married first to Margaret Tenison and later to Mary Pendarves Delany, whose correspondence recorded their life at Delville.

Biography

Early life and education Delany was born around 1685 in Rathcrea, Queen's County, Ireland.

Clerical career Delany became known as a preacher at Saint Werburgh's, Dublin, where he attracted the attention of Lord Carteret, then Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. His Toryism brought him into conflict with Richard Baldwin, the provost of Trinity College Dublin, who eventually forced him to resign from the college. Delany exchanged his Fellowship for the office of Chancellor of Christ Church, Dublin, a move that left him in reduced circumstances in the late 1720s.

In May 1744, Delany was made Dean of Down. His writings include The Doctrine of Abstinence from Blood Defended (1734), a defence of Christian vegetarianism. The work answered the pamphlets The Question About Eating Blood Stated and Examined and The Prohibition of Blood a Temporary Precept, the latter by William Burscough, Bishop of Limerick. In it, Delany discussed the biblical grants to Adam and Noah, the meaning of human dominion over animals, the use of animals in sacrifice, the Lord's Supper, and the Apostolic Decree. Akiko Aoyagi and William Shurtleff describe the book as the earliest English-language document then identified that used "abstinence" in relation to a vegetarian diet.

Death Delany spent his last years in poor health and depression. Webb wrote that his circumstances had also been reduced by his generosity and hospitality. He died in Dublin on 6 May 1768, aged about 82, and was buried in Glasnevin Cemetery.