The Indo Daily: From paramilitary to the pulpit - how IRA gunman Mark Lenaghan became a man of the cloth

"At a young age, he and his family were forced out of their home by Protestant gangs, while he also witnessed the shooting of one of his schoolteachers. "There's many people [that] experienced a lot of pain and didn't choose to get involved in violence," he said in a 2012 interview. "I chose to get involved. I chose to fight back.""

"Following his arrest in 1982, Lenaghan was sent to the notorious Maze Prison where, to his own surprise, he found religion and turned his back on the IRA, eventually becoming a well-respected deacon in the Catholic Church. Lenaghan died earlier this month at the age of 65, and his funeral in Co Down last week attracted a large turnout and plenty of tributes, though his violent past came as a shock to some of his parishioners."

At a young age he and his family were forced from their home by Protestant gangs and he witnessed the shooting of a schoolteacher. He chose to join the IRA and spent 15 years, including service in an active-service unit tasked with seeking and killing policemen and British soldiers on Belfast streets. He approached operations professionally without emotion or hesitation. Arrested in 1982, he was sent to Maze Prison where he unexpectedly found religion and renounced the IRA. He became a well-respected Catholic deacon. He died aged 65; his funeral drew a large turnout and tributes, though his violent past shocked some parishioners.

Read at Irish Independent