Christian teacher Enoch Burke has been a central figurehead in Ireland’s culture wars for two and a half years after causing a storm when he refused to acknowledge a transgender pupil’s identity and ‘they/them’ pronouns.
But when Burke gained notoriety around the world after being sacked as a teacher and later jailed for contempt of court, many locals were unsurprised by his extreme views – as the disgraced teacher was born to one of the most controversial families in Ireland.
Burke, who has just been released from jail after more than 500 days in jail for repeatedly defying a court order which banned him from protesting outside Wilson’s Hospital School in County Westmeath when they sacked him, is one of 10 siblings; many of whom are well known in the community and nationally for their evangelical opinions.
The family is known to spout anti-LGBT beliefs and has campaigned against gay marriage and ‘transgenderism’ which they describe as ‘anti-Christian’. The siblings were previously accused of sharing flyers on a university campus which implicitly connected gay marriage to paedophilia and incest.
As Burke’s sentence ends, his father, Seán is set to begin a two month sentence for assaulting garda Victoria Fisher in a courtroom scuffle which left her with bruising after she was knocked over and fell on a radiator.
His sister Ammi, 33, was cleared of obstructing another police officer in the same incident which saw Burke family matriarch Martina escorted from the hearing for shouting at judges.
But Ammi is not the only sibling of the ex-teacher to have experienced a brush with the judicial system – with several of the 10 siblings subject to controversy over the years.
Here, FEMAIL delves into one of Ireland’s most notorious families as they continue to cause a storm…
Ammi Burke
While her father Seán is set for a jail term after assaulting a police officer in a courtroom scuffle, qualified solicitor Ammi Burke has been cleared of obstruction in the same incident.
Ammi, 33, was earlier fined €400 (£330) and convicted of obstructing a garda by putting her hand on him for a few seconds as he helped arrest her brother Simeon Burke, 25, who was brought ‘flailing’ from the courtroom in an incident in March 2023.
After being cleared, Ammi had to be escorted from the proceedings because she interrupted Judge Munro as he delivered his decision in her father’s case.
But Ammi, like many of her family members, is no stranger to controversy; and, like her brother Enoch, has also been dismissed from a job in recent years.
In 2019, she was sacked from law firm Arthur Cox; a decision she has challenged in court over the last two years. However, throughout several appeals, Ammi has been slammed over behaviour that has been described as ‘utterly appalling’ and ‘egregious’.
Claiming she was the victim of unfair dismissal (which Arthur Cox denied), Ammi initially took her case to the Workplace Relations Commission in April 2020. It was eventually dismissed due to persistent interruptions by Ammi and her family.
Despite this, the solicitor continued to appeal until her case reached Ireland’s Court of Appeal, where it was ruled that the High Court had been justified in dismissing her case against the WRC.
Mr Justice Seamus Noonan, who had listened to an audio clip of the Ammi’s High Court proceedings, concluded her behaviour had been ‘utterly appalling and egregious’.
Despite having a detailed knowledge of the legal system through her career, he added Ammi ‘repeatedly indulges in the most contemptuous conduct when before the court in a deliberate and premeditated manner’ – in what he described was a ‘calculated pattern of behaviour’.
He concluded that Ms Justice Bolger, the High Court judge who had thrown out the appeal over Ammi’s ‘blatant abuse of the court process’, was justified in doing so.
She was later ordered to pay the legal costs for the court battles with Arthur Cox.
Simeon Burke
Simeon is another Burke sibling who has chosen to undertake law as a career; but much like sister Ammi, his career thus far hasn’t been smooth sailing thanks to his conduct.
The 25-year-old was also involved in the courtroom scuffle for which his father Seán just been convicted.
The incident, which took place in March 2023 at the Court of Appeal during a hearing for his brother Enoch, saw Simeon convicted under Section 6 of Public Order, which states that the person had engaged in ‘threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour with intent to provoke a breach of the peace’.
The conviction was later overturned by Judge Martin, who said: ‘I have heard evidence that he strongly resisted [gardaí] and was obstructing them and was crying terms concerning transgenderism and that gardaí should deploy their resources to other parts of the city.
‘Does it reach the criminal standard? I am afraid it doesn’t and I am allowing the appeal.’
Meanwhile, Simeon’s application to the Irish Bar appears to be in trouble, as the Irish Times reports he has failed to get an established barrister to take him on as a pupil for the year.
In Ireland, newly qualified barristers are required to obtain a ‘master’ from a list of 150 barristers who are established in Ireland. The pupils are expected to work for their ‘masters’ unpaid for a year.
Broadcasting as the deadline approached, Simeon claimed he was likely to be excluded from practising law in Ireland due to his ‘religious beliefs’.
In the footage, which he shared on X/Twitter, Simeon said: ‘I believe I am being blocked from joining the Law Library and from proceeding to practise in the courts.’
He continued: ‘I am the brother of Enoch Burke… Enoch Burke does not agree with transgenderism and I would say, neither do I. It is not a Christian belief.
‘I am entitled to that view.’
Taking aim at the legal industry in a letter to the Bar Council, Simeon expressed concern that he was ‘receiving different treatment to that experienced by other applicants for membership of the Law Library’, the Irish Times reported.
Bar Council chairman Seán Guerin replied to inform him the council had been making inquiries about an ‘incident’ at its stand the National Ploughing Championships a week earlier – which reportedly involved members of his family confronting the Council’s stand over Simeon’s inability to secure a pupillage.
In 2021, Simeon ran for president of the student council at the University of Galway, for which his slogan read: ‘For the many, not the mob’.
As part of his manifesto, Simeon accused the students’ union of ‘attempting to undermine or remove students’ rights through Covid-19′, referring to fines issued to students who had breached guidelines during the pandemic. He also accused the union of attempting to stifle student protest.
Another manifesto pledge was to take action against cyber-bullying, of which he claimed to be a victim. He wrote: ‘As president, I will ensure that SU meetings are safe places where people can speak up without being afraid of intimidation.’
Elijah Burke
Elijah Burke made headlines in Ireland before he’d even reached university age; when the very grades that got him ono the University of Galway were called into question.
After completing his school studies in 2020 during the pandemic, Elijah was part of a cohort of students in the nation whose final grades at Leaving Cert level (equivalent to A Level) were predicted by the calculated grades process as they were unable to sit their exams.
This was determined by an algorithm and teachers’ estimates on what a pupil’s final grade would be, based on marks they had received for coursework.
However, as a home-schooled pupil who had been educated by his mother Martina, Elijah was excluded from the process, meaning his only option to receive a university place was to sit the Leaving Cert the following year.
In response, Elijah appealed to the High Court over the Minister for Education’s policy; and won.
A ruling in August 2020 by Justice Charles Meehan, as reported by the Irish Examiner, concluded the government’s position that Elijah’s teacher had a conflict of interest in providing estimated final grades was ‘irrational, unreasonable and unlawful’.
He added his decision was not based on Elijah’s previous academic achievements, nor those of his siblings and concluded the student, plus 10 or so others in the same position, were entitled to receive calculated grades.
Isaac Burke
Mathematician Dr Isaac Burke has previously joined his siblings in protesting outside and inside court against the decision to detain his brother Enoch in Mountjoy Prison for his repeated breach of a court order.
Isaac, who has a PhD in maths from the University of Galway, was banned from attending a High Court review of his brother’s case earlier this year, which was ordered by Justice Mark Sanfey.
The ruling stated they were not allowed to attend due to previous disruption they had caused included shouting during proceedings.
After the decision was made, Isaac attended the court to make submissions arguing against the decision; but this resulted in the professor being physically removed from the courtroom by a police officer when he argued with the judge in a heated interaction, RTÉ reports.
According to the broadcaster, Isaac became ‘animated’ over a disagreement with Justice Sanfey. He had previously blasted his exclusion as ‘outrageous’.
Last month, shortly before the Irish General Election, Isaac and his mother Martina picketed outside Fine Gael politician Alan Dillon’s constituency office, claiming the family had received ‘not a word of support or sympathy’ from Dillon nor another local politician, Lisa Chambers of Fianna Fáil, since Enoch was first jailed.
Josiah Burke
In a break from Burke family tradition, Josiah is a student at the London School of Economics, rather than choosing to follow many of his siblings to the University of Galway.
One of the youngest Burke siblings, Josiah uses his X/Twitter account to demand the release of his brother Enoch from jail.
Just four days ago he wrote: ‘Crime is out of control in Ireland. Tourists are being attacked. Streets are unsafe.
‘But the government’s priority is a pair of handcuffs and a jail cell for teacher Enoch Burke for not bowing to they/them pronouns and the new religion of transgenderism.’
Two days earlier he posted: ‘Tonight teacher Enoch Burke spends his 506th night in a prison cell.
‘His crime was to say No to affirming a child on the road to ‘transitioning’.
‘Puberty blockers. Medication. Surgery. Irreversible harm for life. Bitter and hopeless regret. He is right.’
In May, Josiah joined his mother Martina as they interrupted a Church of Ireland synod in Armagh demanding justice for Enoch.
Carrying a poster of his brother as he and his family disrupted proceedings, Josiah repeated ‘we need answers’ and asked ‘why is the Church of Ireland silent?’
The interruption resulted in chaos as the family claimed they were victims of ‘shocking violence’ after they were removed from the event.
Speaking afterwards, Josiah claimed he had had a ‘shocking and unprecedented experience’ and claimed he and his family had been subject to ‘assault’.
However, police determined no criminal offences had been determined after they had been called to ‘reports of a disturbance’ at the event, the Belfast Telegraph reported.
Josiah is extremely active on Facebook, YouTube and TikTok where he posts updates about his family’s activity in their campaign to free Enoch, as well as touting their deeply controversial views.
In the summer, he posted a clip of the family disrupting a Pride event in County Mayo, where they held up signs of their incarcerated sibling whom they claimed was ‘not a criminal’ – in a move that antagonised revellers who counter-protested against their presence.
Jemima Burke
A qualified journalist, Jemima Burke’s reporting has appeared in publications including the Connaught Telegraph and other regional newspapers.
However, despite her qualification, Jemima appears to work as a management consultant currently.
Like many of her siblings, Jemima is known for interrupting proceedings and caused disturbances at daily press conferences during the pandemic, held by the chief medical officer Tony Holohan.
The Irish Examiner reports Jemima’s microphone was eventually switched off during the conferences due to her repeated questioning of Holohan.
She also joined mother Martina and brother Josiah at the inquest of teenager Sally Maaz, who died of Covid at 17 years old.
The Burkes, including Jemima, repeatedly heckled the coroner, legal representatives and the gardaí during proceedings, after the coroner returned a verdict that Sally had died of natural causes.
A year later, Jemima interrupted another inquest into the death of a hospital patient who had died of sepsis.
The Irish Independent reported she was ‘running down the street’ recording witnesses at the inquest, after sitting in the public gallery during proceedings and taking notes.
She also reportedly interrupted a witness giving evidence to say she could not hear her, before coroner Pat O’Connor warned her not to do so again.
Jemima was charged and convicted with a public order offence, but is currently in the process of appealing the decision.
Kezia Burke
While Kezia Burke is one of the less controversial Burke siblings, she has certainly still made her voice heard.
In 2014, she and Isaac, Ammi and Enoch alleged they had been victims of religious discrimination after the University of Galway banned them from joining all college societies at the institution after they had given out leaflets containing highly egregious and unfounded claims about the LGBT community.
Following the ban, the siblings took the Workplace Relations Commission; however their complaint was rejected. The University maintained the ban had nothing to do with the Burke siblings’ religion, the Irish Times reports.
Appealing, the siblings took their case to the Circuit Court, where the student union at the University said the ban had been put in place because the siblings had distributed leaflets which were ‘misleading’ using the college logo (which was against the code of conduct), and had paid for the leaflets using college funds.
Among the leaflets distributed by the siblings were flyers arguing against gay marriage which were said to have ‘implicitly’ connected gay marriage to paedophilia and incest.
While Judge Groarke criticised the student union over their handling of the ban, he firmly rejected the notion that it had been put in place as a result of the Burkes’ religion; and added the siblings’ behaviour amounted to ‘serious aggravating circumstances’ in the case.
And the siblings who shun the limelight
While their brothers and sisters are now infamous in County Mayo and around Ireland, relatively little is known about Esther and Keren Burke.
Esther has followed her mother Martina into the teaching profession, and tends to only appear in reports when praising her students for their achievements.
In 2020, she spoke to the Connaught Telegraph after her pupils at Ballinrobe Community School won an award for debating.
She told the publication: ‘We are absolutely thrilled to retain our school title as Mayo debating champions.
‘It’s a huge accomplishment, not only for [the pupils], but for the school itself.’
While she keeps relatively quiet over her own religious and political beliefs, Esther appeared to follow social distancing guidelines as she and the winning pupils were photographed after winning the gong.
The Burkes have previously said of the pandemic, in a statement on Josiah’s Facebook page: ‘Those who were most in need were sealed off from the world and callously abandoned to die alone, denied their dignity and their rights.’
The final Burke sibling is Keren, about which little is known.
