Margaret MacCurtain, OP – Sr Margaret, or ‘Sister Ben’ to many who knew her – died earlier this week in Santa Sabina House at the great age of 91. But she was never old. She was always, as we would now say, ahead of the curve: a passionate social reformer, a great scholar, and a courageous advocate for the protection of children and the advancement of women.
Sister Ben never lost her radical instincts, but it was the warmth of her infectious personality and her generous sometimes mischievous spirit that won over a great many to her lifelong causes. More than any one she ensured that corporal punishment was banished from Irish schools, and more than any other professional historian she brought to light the hidden role of women in Irish history. She will be fondly remembered by the thousands who knew her in the Dominican Order, in UCD, and in Irish public life at large.
Deepest sympathies to her family and to the Dominican community who have lost such a wonderful friend.
– D.D.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a hanam dílis