Hennessy, Patrick Jerome (1855–1938), Christian Brother, was born 6 October 1855 in Tralee, Co. Kerry, fourth son of David Michael Hennessy, Cork-born businessman, and Mary Hennessy (née Moran) of Dublin. There was one daughter. Patrick's father had been an early pupil of the Christian Brothers at Sullivan's Quay, Cork, and was involved in the Young Ireland movement whose 1848 rebellion led to imprisonment of its leaders. David Hennessy fled temporarily to America and returned to Tralee when the crisis had abated, espousing the middle-class catholic nationalism into which Patrick was born.
Patrick and his older brothers were educated at the Dominican Holy Cross seminary, Tralee. When the family moved to Clonmel, Co. Tipperary, the boys attended the Christian Brothers SS Peter and Paul's Schools, which influenced Patrick to join the order in 1869, aged 13. That September his father brought him to O'Connell's Schools, North Richmond St., Dublin, where some Brothers thought him too young for the religious life. In December 1869, however, he received his religious name, ‘Brother Jerome’, by which he was known thereafter. In 1871 he transferred to the rigid and short-lived second noviciate at Mount Sion Schools, Waterford, where he and his fellow students lived a Spartan existence, separate from the senior Brothers. In 1874 the Dublin noviciate at North Richmond St. relocated to Belvedere House (subsequently St Patrick's training college), Drumcondra, and the Mount Sion noviciate closed. Brother Jerome Hennessy joined the senior community there and taught at St John's (the Manor), Waterford, until moving to Cork in 1876. Aged 21 and a keen linguist, he joined Our Lady's Mount community, teaching Latin and English at Cork's North Monastery Schools until 1896, when he was appointed assistant superior-general to Brother Titus Moylan, head of the order.
While at ‘North Mon’ he greatly admired sub-director Brother James Dominic Burke (qv), the enlightened and inspiring science teacher whose experiments excited his pupils' sense of wonder. One such pupil was the renowned submarine pioneer John Philip Holland (qv). Burke's charismatic effect undoubtedly influenced Hennessy's later publishing initiative in response to innate youthful desire for constructive knowledge. He opposed corporal punishment and took a practical interest in the philosophy and politics of education, examining and commenting on legislation as it might affect access and opportunity in catholic education. From this perspective his trenchant article in the Christian Brothers Educational Record of 1893 praised the Intermediate Education (Ireland) Act, 1878, less for its poisoned chalice of ‘payment by results’ than for its liberal approach to denominational independence in schools. He rejected criticism by more prestigious catholic headmasters of Christian Brothers education as mediocre, insisting it was at least equal to that of solidly middle-class institutions.
Hennessy's views on progressive education for ambitious, less advantaged catholic families, usually expressed in the Educational Record, was noted by the viceregal administration in gauging reaction to its policy reforms. His calculated response made him a noteworthy source of opinion, which subsequently advanced his career, improved general acceptance of Christian Brothers education (a springboard to the public service in post-imperial Ireland), and brought him into formal contact with the authorities as an educational consultant. While advocating the improved scholastic education of poorer children, Hennessy simultaneously advocated Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction (DATI) courses in creating an educated and skilled working class. For years he petitioned the Vatican for specific recognition of Christian Brothers schools. He fought a long, ultimately successful battle against episcopal interference from Maynooth College, the standard bearer of superior catholic education, showing as early as 1892 in the Educational Record his formidable knowledge of church–state relations in education. From 1896 he served four consecutive six-year terms as assistant superior-general until in 1920 he achieved supreme office.
While assistant superior-general in Dublin he held an overwhelming administrative brief which included foundation of many new schools, the Marcantonio Colonna College in Rome and expansion of the Brothers abroad, particularly in North America. In 1906, two years after Burke's death, he was consulted by a royal commission on methodology in teaching in which he championed Burke's demonstrative approach over the ‘heuristic’ self-discovery that enjoyed wide support outside the Christian Brothers system. Hennessy, ever loyal to Burke's tradition, advocated scientific instruction by practical example. An American commission visited Ireland in 1907 to study Burke's methodology as espoused by Hennessy.
In 1914, announcing his plan in the Educational Record, Hennessy became founder-editor of Our Boys, a monthly youth magazine, Irish, catholic, and nationalist in opinion for worldwide circulation, mainly among Christian Brothers pupils and their families. Intended to replace British youth magazines circulating in Ireland, Hennessy envisaged a cornucopia of interesting and wholesome literature, religious content, history and national sentiment with science, world discovery, and humour, uplifting accounts of Christian Brothers student performance, and encouragement of collegiality among readers. Regular contributors would include prominent writers such as Shane Leslie (qv) and Francis Joseph Bigger (qv). The first issue appeared in September 1914 as world war displaced political conflict in Ireland. More restrained in religious sentiment than intended, but strong on literature and good educational articles, Our Boys became an immediate international success, for more than seven decades synonymous with Irish-Ireland, yet appealing in Hennessy's undogmatic way to a wider readership. The influence of James Dominic Burke continued both in format and function as Hennessy also continued his topical contributions to the Educational Record and in 1916 published A century of catholic education.
Hennessy was appointed successively by the viceregal government as a member of both the Irish registration committee 1914–22 (formalising teachers’ regulations) and the 1918 viceregal education committee, where he drew attention to inadequate financial provision for schools. As superior-general of the order (1920–30), Brother Hennessy travelled throughout the growing international congregation, completing much he had set out to achieve, particularly with church and state. He confirmed Vatican authority over episcopal authority by reviving the order's 1820 pontifical elevation to Brotherhood. In 1928 he received an honorary LLD from the senate of NUI, marking the centenary of O'Connell's Schools. Failing health forced him to retire in 1930 during his second term of office. Jerome Hennessy died 8 January 1938 at St Mary's, Marino, the order's north Dublin house, in whose grounds he is buried.