Pallottines in Ireland no longer regard Ryan as a member, but legal moves not yet enacted after 15 year absence.

Order plans to meet Fr Ryan to clarify status
by Matthew Keegan
THE clerical status of suspected IRA terrorist Patrick Ryan is to be clarified by his order in the near future, it was revealed this week. Fr William Hanly, Provincial of the Pallottine Fathers in Ireland, told the Catholic Herald that he plans to visit Ryan as soon as possible to discuss formal moves concerning the one-time missionary's de facto abandonment of his vocation 15 years ago.
Although Ryan has discharged himself from the exclusive Blackrock clinic in Dublin, his solicitor Elio Malocco has stated that the renegade priest is available for interview.
Fr Patrick Ryan was until 1973 an active member of the Pallottine Order. Ordained a priest in 1954 his first posting was in Tanzania. In 1966 he returned to work in the Pallottine missions on both sides of the Irish Channel.
In 1973 Fr Ryan asked Fr William Hanly, the Provincial of the Order, for a posting in Northern Ireland. The priest was very concerned for the families of the victims of the troubles and "felt that his conscience demanded his presence in the North," Fr Hanly said this week.
However the Provincial believed that there were others more suitable already carrying out work in the North and refused to send Ryan. Instead he was offered a position in England but Fr Ryan broke his links with the order and went about the activities that resulted in his recent detention by the Belgian authorities. Fr Hanly has had no contact with Ryan since 1973. However, despite being absent from his religious order for nearly 15 years, the Pallottine Order have to date made none of the necessary legal moves to expel him.
Fr Theodore Davey, a top canon lawyer at Heythrop College, confirmed that unless formal proceedings have been made to expel Fr Ryan then he is still legally a priest. The procedure that the Provincial of the Pallottines could have implemented would have involved using one of two canon laws (665 and 696). Both the laws state that a member of a religious house should not be absent without good reason or permission from the superior. Under Canon 696 a member who is absent for more than six months comes under threat of expulsion, with the Head of the order obliged to take action.
The procedure for expulsion requires the Provincial to notify the accused of his intentions, either verbally or by letter. Since Fr Ryan disappeared without notifying his superiors of an address this was not possible and so under church law he still remains priest. It is, however, unlikely that he would be given permission to publicly conduct any of the sacraments, as this requires giving proof to the local bishop that he is still in good standing with his order.
Fr Hanly declared that in practical terms he no longer looked upon Ryan as a member of the Pallottines, but he is keen to meet Fr Ryan so as to discuss his future and to ascertain "where he stands" regarding his membership of the Pallottine Fathers.
Commenting on the accusations that Fr Ryan is facing, Fr Hanly was convinced that justice would be done, and that the case would be treated fairly by the Irish Government. He held the opinion that before someone is extradited a clear case should be established. Fr Hanly ended by saying that "if there are not details of offences, if it's just merely a statement without being a statement of fact, I would expect our Government not to extradite him."