| Micheál P. Mac Gréil | |
| Birth Date: | 23 March 1931 |
| Birth Place: | Clonaslee, County Laois |
| Alma Mater: | Université catholique de Louvain, Kent State University, Milltown Park, University College Dublin |
| Discipline: | Sociology |
| Workplaces: | St. Patrick's College, Maynooth |
Fr Micheál P. Mac Gréil S.J. (23 March 1931 – 21 January 2023), was a Jesuit priest, sociologist, writer and activist from Ireland.[1]
Micheál Mac Gréil was born in Clonaslee, County Laois on 23 March 1931,[2] and grew up near Westport, County Mayo.[3] Fr. Mac Gréil was educated by the Christian Brothers in Rice College, Westport, and served in the Irish Army from 1950 until 1959 as a cadet and officer.[4]
Mac Greil studied at the Université catholique de Louvain, Kent State University, Milltown Park and University College Dublin from where he gained his doctorate in sociology in 1976. In 1971, he was appointed a lecturer in Sociology at Maynooth University where he remained until he retired in 1996. He also lectured for a time at University College Dublin.
An activist and an advocate on many issues such as Prison Reform, Irish Language, Irish Travellers, the decriminalisation of homosexuality and, more recently, the Western Rail Corridor.[5] Mac Greil’s lifelong dedication to social justice brought him into some extraordinary situations. For two consecutive Septembers in 1968 and 1969, he lived on the roadside as a Traveller in disguise to learn about the social, personal and cultural mores of Irish Travellers.[6] In 1996, he retired from his post at Maynooth University and was appointed to a parish in Westport, County Mayo.
In 1980, Dr. Mac Gréil revived the tradition of making a pilgrimage to Máméan.[7] In 1981, he chaired a special working party on the Jesuit Catholic Workers College, which was to evolve into the National College of Ireland.[8] He published many books, papers and reports on social issues and attitudes in Ireland.
In 1994, Mac Gréil served as president of AONTAS, the Irish national adult learning organisation.
Mac Gréil died on 21 January 2023, at the age of 91.[9]