Following the completion of fr. Dermot Morrin’s second term as Superior of the Dominican Community at St Albert’s, the Prior Provincial, fr. Nicholas Crowe, has appointed fr. Benjamin Earl OP, as Superior of the Dominicans in Edinburgh.
Fr Benjamin joined the Order as a novice here in Edinburgh in 1997, after studying Mathematics and then Computation at St John’s College, Oxford.
Following his profession in the Order, he completed his philsophical and theological studies at Blackfriars in Oxford, before studying canon law at the Pontifical University of St Thomas, Rome, also known as the Angelicum.
On returning from Rome he taught canon law in Oxford where he also served as bursar of Blackfriars Hall and Studium, and then as Provincial Bursar of the English Province of the Order of Preachers.
In 2012, fr. Benjamin was appointed superior of the small Dominican community in Durham, Parish Priest at St Cuthbert’s, Durham, and Catholic Chaplain to Durham University.
In 2016, the Master of the Order called fr. Benjamin to the General Curia of the Order in Rome to serve as Procurator General of the Order, the Order’s representative for canonical business with the Holy See, and a member of the General Council of the Order.
After completing his service as Procurator General in January 2026, fr. Benjamin was a visiting professor for a semester in the Faculty of Canon Law at the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, Manila (Philippines), before joining the Dominican community in Edinburgh in June 2026.
His appointment as Superior of the Community in Edinburgh was made on 30 July 2026, and he takes office on Sunday 2 August. Please keep fr. Benjamin and the community in Edinburgh in your prayers!
The Catholic Chaplaincy serves the students and staff of the University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh Napier University and Queen Margaret University.
The Catholic Chaplaincy is also a parish of the Archdiocese of St Andrews and Edinburgh (the Parish of St Albert the Great) and all Catholic students and staff are automatically members of this parish.
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St Albert's Catholic Chaplaincy is part of the English Province of the Order of Preachers, a charity registered in England and Wales (231192) and in Scotland (SC039062).