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Mourners at the funeral of one of the three family members who died in an alleged murder-suicide at their Cork home have heard that their future was supposed to be “full of possibilities.”
The funeral mass for Mark O’Sullivan, 26, was held at the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Kanturk this afternoon, following the decision to hold a separate funeral for his father Tadg and brother Diarmuid.
The funeral for Tadg, 59, and Diarmuid, 23, took place Friday afternoon at St Mary’s Church in Castlemagner, followed by their burial in St Bridget’s Cemetery.
The three men died Monday at their family home in Assolas, near Kanturk, in what is understood to be a tragedy caused by an inheritance dispute.
Father Toby Bluitt, parish priest of Kanturk, told mourners gathered at Immaculate Conception Church that pain is never an easy burden to bear, and never more so than when it is presented in such “untimely, shocking and tragic ways.
“We are meeting in such pain today, carrying a burden that not only appears to be, but is actually overwhelming,” he said.
“We come together to comfort and support each other in our common loss. We come together to make sense of nonsense. “
Father Bluitt told the congregation that he was reiterating many of the words he had spoken at the funerals of Mark’s brother and father on Friday because the “reality of this heartbreaking loss” had not changed.
He said the normally quiet local area that was usually covered at this time of year with a myriad of colorful autumn leaves had become a “hotbed of activity and the autumn light was, for a time, a very distant memory.”
“The shock, the numbness, the devastation was impossible to imagine and the news of the loss of three lives was incomprehensible,” he said.
The priest added: “Like all of you, I too am struggling to make sense of this life-changing tragedy.”
Mourners heard that Mark had attended school in Ballyhass and Kanturk like his younger brother Diarmuid and also socialized at Castlemagner.
“He studied law at the University of Limerick (UL) and graduated in 2017,” said Fr Bluitt.
“He was a trainee lawyer preparing to complete his final exams. UL honored him this week and underscored the shock felt within the UL community, where Mark was highly regarded. “
Tadg O’Sullivan and his sons Mark and Diarmuid were found dead Monday.
Father Bluitt also said that life was “full of possibilities” for Mark.
“You could also say that Mark touched the lives of many people along the way as he traveled through life,” he added.
“His life and death have changed them all and they will never be the same again.
“So today, gathered in our grief, we do not minimize the loss of these three lives by trying to provide easy answers.
“Because there are no answers.”
He said that what was known was that this was not a “wake-up call”, and it did not happen so that we can learn anything.
He asked mourners to keep Mark’s mother, Anne, and her extended family in their prayers as they “strive to navigate this path of unexpected loss and heartbreak.”
Mark O’Sullivan was discovered in the family home, while Diarmuid was found dead with his father Tadg, in a field 500 meters from the family home.
All three had suffered gunshot wounds.
A detailed 12-page note was found in Diarmuid’s body, which Gardaí is examining for further evidence.
Gardaí has indicated that they are not looking for anyone else in connection with the incident.
They were alerted to the incident around 6.30 a.m. Monday after Tadg’s wife and the two men’s mother, Anne, raised the alarm that guns may have been fired in their home.
In accordance with current Covid-19 public health restrictions, your funeral mass will be private and only a small number of mourners will be allowed.
The service will be broadcast live.
In a funeral notice, Mark was described as the beloved son of his heartbroken mother.
On Friday, Father Bluitt told mourners gathered for Tadg and Diarmuid’s funeral that the father and son had touched many lives.
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He added that the lives and deaths of Tadg and Diarmuid have changed everyone who knew them, adding that “they will never be the same again.”
Mourners heard that Tadg had worked in the auto trade locally for more than 40 years.
The priest said he had always found him “very accommodating, friendly and happy in the field he chose.”
They also heard that Diarmuid attended school in Ballyhass and Kanturk like his older brother Mark, and also socialized at Castlemagner.
He then went on to study accounting at the Cork Institute of Technology (CIT).
He had finished his studies last June and was due to have his conference online next week.
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