Born: 10 July 1812, Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 23 September 1829, Avignon, France (GALL)
Ordained: 24 September 1836, Stonyhurst, Lancashire, England
Died: 14 February1874, St Stanislaus, Tullabeg, County Offaly

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
Older brother of Charles Lynch - RIP 1906. Uncle of Edmund Lynch - RIP 1890

Early education was at Clongowes.

He was a most distinguished man, remarkable for his keen intellect during studies in Philosophy at Rome and Theology at Stonyhurst, where he was Ordained by Dr Briggs 24/09/1836.
He spent 23 years as a Teacher at Clongowes, Belvedere and Tullabeg. he had also been a Prefect and Prefect of Studies for a time at Clongowes, whilst teaching Logic.
1862-1863 He was at Milltown Park giving Retreats.
He was a very able Preacher. His sermons were models of style and content.
He suffered for a long time with a delicate constitution. His death came very quickly, and he had only been confined to his bed for a couple of days. Provincial Nicholas Walshe anointed him before he died 14 February 1874 at Tullabeg. His funeral was attended by a large number of secular Priests. He is buried in the old Rahan Cemetery, the last Jesuit to be so.

Born: 18 December 1852, Roebuck House, Mount Nugent, County Cavan
Entered: 07 September 1871, Milltown Park, Dublin
Ordained: 1882, Clongowes Wood College SJ
Final Vows 02 February 1891, Milltown Park, Dublin
Died: 01 January 1897, Mungret College SJ, Limerick

Older brother of Henry M Lynch - RIP 1913

Early education at Carlow College

by 1874 at Roehampton London (ANG) studying
by 1889 at Leuven Belgium (BELG) studying
by 1890 at Drongen Belgium (BELG) making Tertianship

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
He came from a titled family of strong Catholics. Older brother of Henry M Lynch - RIP 1913. He was sent to Carlow Lay College aged 13. Five years later he entered the Ecclesiastical College there, and a year later had decided to join the Jesuits.

He made his Noviceship under the kindly eye of Aloysius Sturzo.
After First Vows he was sent to Roehampton for Rhetoric, and then for three years to Louvain for Philosophy.
1877 He was sent for Regency to Clongowes for three years as Prefect of Morals. he was greatly appreciated as one who had their real interests at heart.
1880 He was sent back to Louvain for Theology. The intensity of work there proved too much for him, so he was sent back to Clongowes, and he was Ordained there by Dr Woodlock in 1882.
1882-1889 He left Clongowes immediately after Ordination and was sent to Tullabeg, later to Clongowes again and then to Belvedere, where he was Minister.
1890 He was sent to Milltown as Minister and took his Final Vows there 02 February 1891.
1892 He was sent to Mungret as Minister
1893-1895 He was sent to Galway as Minister. Many of the men there were on the Mission giving Retreats, so much of the responsibility for their care and the care of the house devolved onto him. Meanwhile he had a duty in the Confessional himself. The whole task became too much for him and he became seriously ill. He rallied sufficiently to be able to go to Dublin in the Summer of 1895, but here he had another severe haemorrhage.
1896 He was sent to Mungret again in the Summer, in the hope that the fresh air would help him. He continued to suffer there and died 01 January 1897. His last letter, written on Christmas Day 1896 was to his brother Henry M Lynch. He wished him a “Happy Newe Year” and then added “Before this letter reaches you I shall have left this world”. It was all too true.
His upbringing was thought to be a refined and happy home, which might explain that delicacy of feeling and thoughtfulness for others which distinguished him in later life. Naturally shy and quiet, he could truly be said to have been a man after St Ignatius’ heart. He was a man of great personal control and had sublimated many of his personal characteristics and became all things to all men.
A good deal of his Ministry involved caring for and about others or the Residences, often as a Minister in one of our houses. It revealed something of the truth about his nature - an utterly unselfish and self-sacrificing man, who spared no pain in looking after the material needs of the Community and ensuring that others were made feel comfortable. Indeed perhaps his own focus on others’ welfare may have been in part what led to his own death.

◆ The Mungret Annual, 1897

Obituary

Father James Lynch SJ

As the fairest flowers oft times bloom, blossom, wither and die in some quiet dell unseen by mortal eye, yet rendering the world sweeter and fairer by their fragrance and their presence, so in the spiritual life how oft do we not discover that there has been one in the midst of us whose quiet unohstrusive pre sence scarcely made itself felt, and yet who has made us and the world better by his influence?

Such a one was the subject of this brief sketch.

James Lynch, the sixth son of Joseph Lynch, JP, and of Belinda, his wife, was born at his parents residence, Roebuck, Mount Nugent, Co. Cavan, in the month of December, 1852. The family was an old and highly respected one in the county, and had clung loyally to and faithfully treasured the ancient faith through the dark ages of persecution.

His mother was daughter of J Breen, MD, Dublin. From both parents he inherited, not alone the rank which the world prizes, but something far more precious than gentle birth, a truly Catholic spirit. Up to his thirteenth year James enjoyed all the reining influence of a happy home, and to this may be traced in a great measure that delicacy of feeling and thoughtfulness for others which distinguished him in after life.

Believing his character to be now sufficiently formed to battle successfully in the little world of a public school, he was sent in 1865 to Carlow Lay College. Whatever hopes his parents may have fornied, the boy himself had not at ibis time any settled determination to become a priest, and it was only sone five years later that he entered The Ecclesiastical College. It was during the ensuing year that, the Holy Spirit speaking more intimately to his heart; he decided to consecrate himself entirely to God, and to become crucified to the world, its honours, and dignities by entering the Novitiate of the Society of Jesus.

This he did in the year 1871, when he began his religious life under the watchful guidance of that most kindly and zealous master of novices - Fr Sturzo. Now, indeed, and to the end of his days, might it be truly said of James Lynch that his life was hidden with Christ in God. Naturally shy and modest, under the influence of grace Fr Lynch became a man after St Ignatius' heart, a man in whom the superficial observer could behold nothing remarkable, but who, to the truly observant, was all the more remarkable on this account. The greatest victory is to overcome oneself, and he who has thoroughly suc. ceeded in doing this is enabled to keep under perfect control all peculiar personal characterists, and with St Paul become all things to all men.

This was ever Fr Lynch's great object, to attain which he ever devoted himself with untiring zeal and devotion to the duties entrusted to him, and by the faithful per formance of them he was ever building, stone by stone, that temple, not made by hands nor seen by men, which was destined to adorn the Holy City of God throughout all eternity.

On the completion of the two years' novitiate, the young religious was sent to Roehampton to study Rhetoric for twelve months, and from this he went directly to Louvain, devoting himself for three years to Philosophy. Returning to Ireland, on the completion of his philosophical course in 1877, we next find him in Clongowes Wood College, where for three years he fulfilled the arduous duties of Prefect of Morals. In this position he was in direct and constant contact with the boys, attending to their discipline, regulating their games, and directing and participating in their recreations. Boys are quick to recognise and appreciate one who is truly devoted to their interests, and they appreciated fully Fr J Lynch.

In 1880 Fr. Lynch commenced his theological studies, spending two years in Louvain, where the climate and work proved too severe for his delicate constitution, and he was obliged to return once more to Clongowes, where he was ordained in the year 1882 by the late Right Rev Dr. Woodlock. He left Clongowes Wood immediately after his ordination, and the next seven years of his life were devoted to prefecting or teaching in Tullabeg, Clongowes, and Belvedere.

It was on the 2nd February, 1890, he took his last vows. At that time he was minister at Miltown Park, and in July of the same year he was appointed minister of Mungret College; and in the following year we find him filling the same post in Galway, where he was stationed for the next four years.

The nature of the duties in which Fr Lynch was employed during those years brought out in strong relief another beautiful trait of his character, or, rather it was still the same shown in a different light. Utterly unselfish and self-sacrificing in looking after the material needs of the Community, be spared no pains to make others comfortable and to provide for all their wants; - it may even be said with truth that it was this forgetfulness of self that led eventually, to his death. During the summer of 1895, many of the fathers at Galway were away giving retreats, and this caused a great deal of extra work to devolve upon him. The care of the house and the duties of the confessional were beyond his strength, and he fell seriously ill. He rallied sufficiently to be able to go to Dublin in the month of September, but here his life was again endangered by a severe attack of hemorrhage. When he had recovered sufficiently to travel he expressed a wish to come to Mungret in the hope that the pure, fresh air might restore him again to health. He came to Mungret in July, 1896. It was too late, however, and despite all the efforts of medical skill, and all the delicate attention that religious charity could suggest, his strength gradually declined. It is difficult to speak at all of the last few months of Fr Lynch's lite. Whilst on the one hand each day was but a repetition of its predecessor, on the other hand, it is hard to say anything without appear ing to exaggerate his truly heroic patience.

At first, fr. James instinctively wishing to avoid giving trouble used to come to the refectory and to recreation, but his strength slowly but surely declining day by day, he was at last compelled to keep. entirely to his roon. What is to be said of these weary monthis which he spent either seated in his arm-chair, or, as was most usual, lying on the bed weak and prostrate, almost too weak to move without assistance? Who shall count the acts of patience, love and resignation practised by the sufferer, unseen, unnoticed and unknown, save by One who sees all and abundantly rewards? From the beginning to the end ot his illness not one murmur, not one word or expression of inpatience crossed the lips of Fr Lynch; nay more, his delicacy of feeling and thoughtfulness for others were every day more clearly brought out, God was cer tainly perfecting a beautiful work in the soul of Fr Lynch duriog the last few months of his life.

Once only did Fr James manifest the slightest trace of irritation during his illness. One who had known him long and intimately, was beginning to speak of the many kindnesses he had received at the hands of Fr Lynch, when he was interrupted, almost sharply, with the words, “Now that will do; enough of that”. He could not bear to hear himself praised. On Christmas day, 1890, he wrote the last letter of his life. It was addressed to his brother, Fr Henry Lynch SJ, who had gone to Australia in the autumn of that same year. In this letter, after wishing Fr Henry a “Happy New Year”, the writer adds most touchingly, “Before this reaches you I shall have left this world”. It was too true. With the close of the year came the end. On the morning of the Feast of the Circumcision he himself said confidently that he would die that day. Had our Blessed Lord made known to him the glad tidings of great joy? Was it but the expression of the joy of his heart to go to his Saviour On a day so dear to the Society of Jesus? Who shall say? This much is certain : Fr Lynch knew his release was at hand, and even the very hour.

Rev. Fr. Rector, who had anointed Fr Lynch some days before, and to whom he was wont to make his confession, gave him Holy Communion early in that morning, and at half-past eleven Fr James said to him: “You must have much to do; I will send for you when the end is coming”. To please Fr Lynch he did as requested, and went to his own room, which was nearly adjoining. About half-past one o'clock, Fr James quietly said to the brother infirmarian who was with him, “Ask Fr. Rector to come now”. The summons was immediately obeyed. Fr Rector saw the end was indeed at hand. Tle had full time to read tbe usual prayers from the Ritual, and to give the blessing in articulo mortis. He then suggested various aspirations, which the dying man, in the most child-like way, repeated word for word. Then, thoughtful of others to the last, he whispered to Fr. Rector, “Sit down”. Fr Rector sat for some moments, then, kneeling at the bedside, the aspirations were continued. Thus, with the holy names of Jesus and Mary on his lips, Fr James quietly sank to rest in the bosom of his God, like a child in its mother's arms.

With the old year the old life for him had ceased. His exile was ended; he had reached the eternal shores bright in the dawn of eternal day. The Society of Jesus had lost another child upon earth, but had gained a powerful advocate in heaven. RIP

Born: 02 July 1920, John Street, Kilkenny City, County Kilkenny
Entered: 07 September 1938, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Ordained: 31 July 1952, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1955, Clongowes Wood College SJ
Died: 29 September 2012, Cherryfield Lodge, Dublin

Part of the Coláiste Iognáid, Galway community at the time of death.

Father was a Civil Servant and family moved to reside at Lansdowne Terrace, Ballsbridge, Dublin.

Second of six boys.

Early education was at St John’s NS and the Christian Brothers in Kilkenny. When the family moved to Dublin in 1929 he went to Belvedere College SJ (1929-1938).

◆ Interfuse

Interfuse No 150 : Winter 2012

Obituary

Fr James (Jim) Lynch (1920-2012)

2 July 1920: Bom in Kilkenny.
Early education at The Lake National School, CBS Kilkenny and Belvedere College
7 September 1938: Entered Society at Emo
8 September 1940: First Vows at Emo
1940-1943: Rathfarnham - Studied Arts at UCD
1943-1946: Studied philosophy in Tullabeg
1946-1949: Clongowes - 3rd Line Prefect; Teacher, Certificate in Education
1949-1953: Milltown Park - Studied Theology
31 July 1952: Ordained at Milltown Park, Dublin
1953-1954: Tertianship at Rathfarnham
1954-1963: Clongowes
1954-1959: Clongowes – LowerLine Prefect; Teacher
2 February 1955: Final Vows
1959-1962: Clongowes - Higher Line Prefect; Teacher
1962-1963: Clongowes - Minister; Prefect
1963-1985: Belvedere – Teacher; Assistant Gamesmaster; Chaplain to Youth Club (63-64)
1985-2012: Galway - Assisted in the church
2008-2012: Cherryfield Lodge - Prayed for the sick and the Society

Fr Jim Lynch SJ was admitted to Cherryfield Lodge from St. Ignatius, Galway in November 2008. He was very happy in the Jesuit Nursing home and he recently celebrated his 60th years in the Priesthood. He died peacefully in Cherryfield Lodge on 29th September 2012
May he rest in the Peace of Christ

Jim never hid the fact that he was born in Kilkenny on July 2nd, 1920. His first nine years were spent in Kilkenny. However, he was also very proud to be a Belvederian having received most of his education there when his family moved to Dublin in 1929 and to their new house near Landsdowne Road, or the Aviva Stadium as it is now. In fact this was the beginning of a long association of the Lynch family with Belvedere and Old Belvedere Rugby Club, especially for his brother Frank who became President of the Rugby Club. Jim was quite an athlete when young. He played rugby for Belvedere and gained a Leinster schools' Cup medal in 1938. He was also a member of the Belvedere team that lost a cup match due to a controversial decision by the referee. Having awarded a try to Belvedere, the referee cancelled the try when he noticed that the touch judge had kept his flag up to signal an earlier 'foot in touch'. It was the story of the try that wasn't a try and Jim kept the paper cuttings of the incident. Jim also represented Belvedere in rowing and swimming.

Two words come to mind when mention is made of Jim's name, namely, faithfulness and reliability. Jim was totally faithful to the Jesuit way of life. He retired to bed early and rose early to attend to his religious duties. His faithfulness to Ted Booth both in Clongowes and Belvedere was remarkable. He showed similar care for the elderly during his years in Galway, acting as “infirmarian”, checking on his brother Jesuits that they were alive and well and that they had taken their tablets,

Jim was totally reliable in whatever he was asked to do as a Jesuit. He taught in Clongowes for a total of twelve years, both as a scholastic and as a priest. He was also 3rd Line Prefect for three years and Lower Line Prefect for eight years. He was Minister for one year, the hardest year in his life, he always said. He left Clongowes for Belvedere in 1963 and taught there for the next twenty-two years until his retirement, aged sixty-five. The next twenty-three years of his life were spent in Galway ministering in the Church. For many years he travelled to Wales to spend the summer supplying in a parish.

I don't think Jim found any of the ministries he was asked to undertake easy. Teaching did not come easy to him nor did preaching, Yet, Jim did what he was asked to do and no complaining. His attachment to Belvedere was deep having been there as a boy and man. It wasn't easy for him to cross the Shannon and leave Belvedere for Galway where he served for twenty-three years. But he did it and came to like Galway and its people. And the people hold fond memories of him.

Jim spent the last four years of his life in Cherryfield, praying for the Church and the Society. That must not have been easy either, yet perhaps Jim had now become an even more pliable instrument in the Lord's hands. The Staff in Cherryfield bore this out in his last years. When Rachel, the nurse Manager, asked Jim about having to do this or that he would reply, “Whatever you say: you are in charge”. He was a delight to visit in Cherryfield. When you asked how he was he would always reply, “Not too bad for an old fellow”. There was no self-pity or drawing attention to himself, just to the nurses and their kindness to him.

Jim's life was like that of most of us, it was ordinary and he sought to serve God in the ordinary. He did the ordinary course of studies' as in was in those days, three years in Rathfarnham at UCD, three years philosophy in Tullabeg, three years regency in Clongowes, four years theology in Milltown Park and a return to Rathfarnham for a year of Tertianship. Then it was on to the Colleges and finally, in retirement from teaching, to serve in one of our Churches. However, what is not ordinary is the faithfulness with which Jim did the ordinary and that for seventy-four years as a Jesuit. In death it will be Jim's tum to experience the utter reliability and faithfulness of the God on whom he modelled his life.

When I think of Jim now, some lines of the 17th century poet George Herbert come to mind:

Love bade me welcome; yet my soul drew back,
Guilty of dust and sin.
But quick-eyed Love, observing me grow slack
From my first entrance in,
Drew nearer to me, sweetly questioning
If I lacked anything

“A guest”, I answered, “worthy to be here”.
Love said, “You shall be he”.
“I, the unkind, ungrateful? Ah, my dear,
I cannot look on thee”.
Love took my hand, and smiling did reply,
“Who made the eyes but I?”

“Truth, Lord, but I have marred them; let my shame
Go where it doth deserve”.
“And know you not”, says Love, “who bore the blame?”
“My dear, then I will serve”,
“You must sit down”, says Love and taste my meat”.
So I did sit and eat.

John Humphreys

Born: 10 October 1796, Dublin City County Dublin
Entered: 03 October 1821, Montrouge, Paris, France - Angliae Province (ANG) / St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 20/05/1826, St Patrick's College, Maynooth, County Kildare
Final Vows: 08 September 1841
Died: 26 November 1867, St Francis Xavier, Gardiner St, Dublin

Ordained at St Patrick’s College Maynooth, within an octave of Pentecost 1826, having studied Theology at Clongowes. (Given as “James” Lynch, but in previous lists at St Patrick’s he is called “John”

by 1829 in Clongowes
by 1839 doing Tertianship in Amiens France (FRA)
by 1851 at St Joseph’s Church Philadelphia, PA

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
He had studied some years at Maynooth before Entry.

His Novitiate was spent partly at Montrouge and partly at Tullabeg.
After Ordination 20 May 1826 at Clongowes, where he spent many years as a Prefect and Teacher, he was sent for Tertianship in France.
Before 1850 he was sent to the Maryland Mission, returning to Ireland in 1854. he sent many novices from Ireland and France to the Maryland Mission.
The final years of his life were spent at the Dublin Residence, Gardiner St. He suffered from a most painful cancer of the stomach, and enduring this with patience and fortitude, he died 27 November 1867.
He was a man of great piety, observing the rules, active, zealous and charitable. He was a good mathematician, and had a keen interest in architecture. He had planned many houses in both Ireland and the US. he also translated many books from Italian and French into English. he was a very zealous promoter of the Apostleship of Prayer. He was distinguished for his great constancy in faith in God.

Born: 09 April 1841, Rutland Squarre, Dublin, County Dublin
Entered: 03 May 1873, Milltown Park, Dublin at Clongowes Wood College SJ

Left Society of Jesus: 1875

Early education at Carlow College and then UCD

◆ Fr Francis Finegan : Admissions 1859-1948 - Ent 23 November 1870; LEFT to complete his Noviceship in America in 1871. Came back to Ireland 1872, and returning to America was not received. He began his Noviceship for this Province 05 May 1873. LEFT 1873

◆ Fr Francis Finegan : Admissions 1859-1948 - 2nd Entry : Went to Clongowes to be a Prefect 16 September 1873. Sent back to Novitiate and told to learn “character”, which he did with much regret

Born: 27 September 1894, Bandon, County Cork
Entered: 07 September 1911, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly

Left Society of Jesus: 1915

Father in Excise duty work. Mother died in 1907

Second eldest of seven boys, with five sisters (2 deceased). Eldest brother has emigrated to America.

Education was at a National School in Bandon and then at thirteen went to Clongowes Wood College SJ. He finished at PBC Cork.

1911-1913: St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
1913-1915: Rathfarnham Castle, Dublin, Rhetoric

◆ Fr Francis Finegan : Admissions 1859-1948 - LEFT Society after going to Rathfarnham in 1913 before Vows. Was killed in France during the WWI in 1918

Born: 30 November 1883, Rutland Street/Wellesley Place, Limerick City, County Limerick
Entered: 23 September 1901, Tullabeg
Ordained: 31 July 1916, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1924, Clongowes Wood College SJ
Died: 11 April 1933, St Ignatius College, Manresa, Norwood, Adelaide, Australia - Australiae Province (ASL)

Transcribed HIB to ASL : 05 April 1931

Parents publicans and shopkeepers

Youngest of three sons (2nd is deceased) and three sisters (2 deceased)

Educated at a convent school i Limerick and then Crescent College SJ

Uncle of : Francis Hayes - LEFT 1932; John Hayes - RIP 1945 Burma

by 1905 at St Aloysius Jersey Channel Islands (FRA) studying
Came to Australia for Regency 1909

◆ David Strong SJ “The Australian Dictionary of Jesuit Biography 1848-2015”, 2nd Edition, Halstead Press, Ultimo NSW, Australia, 2017 - ISBN : 9781925043280
Francis Lyons entered the Society at Tullabeg, Ireland, 23 September 1901, and after his juniorate there, studied philosophy at Jersey, 1904-07, and taught at Galway for a year He was sent to Australia in 1908, and taught at Riverview, 1908-13, also being involved with the boarders. He returned to Ireland and Milltown Park for theology, 1913-17, taught at Galway, 1917-20, and completed tertianship at Tullabeg, 1920-21.
Lyons taught at Clongowes, 1922-29, and returned to Australia and the parish of Norwood 1929-33. His health declined during this time.

◆ Irish Province News
Irish Province News 8th Year No 3 1933
Obituary :
Father Frank Lyons
Father Frank Lyons died at Adelaide, Australia, on Wednesday, 12th April, 1933.

His life in the Society was on the quiet, hidden side. Not that he did not do full work. He did, and did it well. But it was done in such a peaceful, unobtrusive way that it attracted small attention even from those with whom he lived. He was as faithful as the very best to his prayers and to the charge entrusted to him, and the influence he unconsciously exerted had such a pleasing, soothing effect that he deservedly won the sincere esteem and affection of his companions. Indeed, those that knew him most intimately say that the two leading characteristics of his life were his talent for making friends and his cheerful resignation in much suffering. He certainly needed the latter. Frail and delicate as a boy in the Crescent, he never knew what good health was, much less robust health, in the Society. No epidemic spared him. To a weak constitution was allied a very sensitive mind. None but his intimate friends knew how greatly he was disheartened by criticism, how greatly inspired by a word of appreciation. Yet there was no murmuring, no complaint, And that continued on to the very end. In his last illness he was visited by two nun friends, and this is what one of them writes : “Some time ago he went to Calvary Hospital for observation. The result was pronounced to be a malignant growth. We visited him at the hospital. He was so bright and cheerful that I did not for a moment think he knew the result of the examination. But he knew more about it than we did. He is greatly missed by all with whom he came in contact, his gentle and unassuming manner winning all hearts”.
But a letter written to his mother during his last illness will show us best of all what kind of a man, and what kind of a religious Father Frank was : I am terribly sorry for your sake, far more than for my own, to have to tell you that I am not at all well, and have been in hospital for some time. I have made many friends, and they have been extremely good to me........ Well now, when all is said and done, there remains the Holy Will of God for us all. We must obey it, and it is best for us. We must all go sooner or later, and I have tried to be ready for it all my life. It is a great joy to be surrounded with all the consolations of religious life. The world and its ties and interests have no hold on one who gave up everything long ago
This is one of the times we are rewarded for the sacrifices we have made.”
Father Frank Lyons was born in Limerick, 30th November 1883, educated at the Crescent (S.J.), where he won an exhibition in each of the four Grades, and began his noviceship at Tullabeg 23rd September, 1901. After a year's Juniorate in same place he went to Jersey for Philosophy, when it was over he spent a year in Galway teaching, and then sailed for Australia in 1908. He resided for five years at Riverview and returned to Ireland for Theology at Milltown in 1913. Theology over he worked in Galway until he began Tertianship at Tullabeg, 1920. At the beginning of the following year he was “ad dispos. R. P. Provincialis”. From 1922 to 1928 he did excellent work in Clongowes, where he was a favourite confessor with the boys. Then, after a year in Belvedere, he went back to Australia, where as already stated, he died, 12th April, 1933. R.I.P.

◆ SHC - Sacred Heart College Limerick 1933

Obituary

Father Francis Lyons

Fr. Francis Lyons, S.J., died at Adelaide on Tuesday, April 11, 1933, after a long illness.

Looking through the College lists of 1899 we find Frank Lyons mentioned as an Exhibitioner in 1897 and also in 1898. He was one of the band of seventeen exhibitioners who had made the previous year a record one in the history of the school. His name also figures in the theatrical programmes of these years. When he left the Sacred Heart College to enter the Jesuit Novitiate in 1901, his direct connection with the school ended, though he was always a most loyal Old Boy.

We take the following from an Adelaide paper to hand as we go to press :

“Through the death of the Rev Francis Lyons SJ, on Tuesday, the Jesuit Fathers of Norwood lost a highly-esteemed member of their community, and the parishioners of Tranmere, Burnside, and Kensington a devoted priest. Father Lyons was born in Limerick in 1883, and educated at the Jesuit College there. In 1901 he entered the Jesuit Novitiate. He had a keen intellect, and from his earliest days in the order showed a taste for metaphysics. He was sent to study philosophy with Jesuits of the Paris Province, and did brilliantly, but his already frail health became still more enfeebled. Hoping that a change of climate would do much to restore his strength his Superiors sent him to Australia. For six years he taught in Riverview College, Sydney. There much of his energy was restored, and it was thought that he would be strong enough to return to Europe for his higher theological course. However, the climate did not suit him, and his studies were, to a large extent, hampered by weak health. After ordination to the priesthood he was for some years classical and modern language master in Jesuit colleges, and conducted many retreats in religious communities.

About four years ago his health failed badly, and the Superiors had once again to send him to Australia, and this time he remained in Norwood. For months after arrival he remained weak, but suddenly regained his health. In fact, he grew so strong that his collapse four months ago came as a complete surprise. The spirit that helped him to overlook his own physical weakness in his attention to the wants of parishioners, was with him to the end”.

His Grace the Most Rev. Dr. Spence, Archbishop of Adelaide, the Right Rev Dr Killian, Bishop of Port Augusta and a large gathering of priests attended his funeral.

To his nephews John, Frank and Michael Hayes and to his other relatives we tender our sympathy. R.I.P.

Born: 26 September 1903, Lowertown Street, Mitchelstown, County Cork
Entered: 25 September 1924, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 31 July 1935, Milltown Park, Dublin
Died: 30 July 1936, St Vincent’s Hospital, Dublin

Part of the Milltown Park, Dublin community at the time of death

Parents have a hardware shop at family home.

One older sister and one younger brothers.

Early education at Christian Brothers Scool, Mitchelstown and then three years at St Colman's College, Fermoy. He then went to St Patrick’s College Maynooth as a candidate for the Cloyne Diocese, was there for three years and got BA 1st Class Honours and 2 years Philosophy.

by 1927 at Berchmanskolleg, Pullach, Germany (GER S) studying
by 1930 third wave Hong Kong Missioners - Regency

◆ Fr Francis Finegan : Admissions 1859-1948 - Ordained 31 July 1935, finished Theology and died of cancer 30 July 1936

◆ Irish Province News

Irish Province News 11th Year No 4 1936
Obituary :
Father William Lyons
Father C. Daly has most kindly sent us the following appreciation. He was with Father Lyons both in China, and, for theology, at Milltown Park.

The death of Father Lyons at the early age of thirty-three came as a great shock to all who had known him and come to appreciate the sterling qualities of his character. After a brief illness, which became acute only in its last stage, he died on Thursday evening July 30th, on the eve of the first anniversary of his ordination.
Born at Mitchelstown, Co. Cork, he received his early education at St. Colman's College, Fermoy. He went later to Maynooth where he did his degree in Celtic Studies, and then entered the novitiate at Tullabeg in September, 1924. After his noviceship he went to Pullach where he studied Philosophy for three years. In 1929 he was sent to China, where in addition to acquiring a very high proficiency in the language he taught at the Sacred Heart College, Canton, and later lectured in Philosophy at the Serminario S. José, Macao. Returning to Ireland in 1932 he had just, completed his theological studies when the end came.
Those who lived with Father Lyons could not have failed to have been struck by the fact that he possessed outstanding qualities both in the natural and supernatural order, qualities that pointed to assured success in the work for which he had already been set aside. During his magisterium in China and before that at Pullach he proved his aptitude as a linguist. His command of German was so good that on his way out to China an officer on the German boat was convinced that he was a German until near the end of the voyage. He tackled the formidable problem of Chinese with characteristic energy and thoroughness and in a short time acquired a fluency and correctness of tone quite above the average. He taught his classes with painstaking devotion, and later on at the Seminary in Macao was rewarded by the affection and esteem of the Seminarians.
There was always in him something above the ordinary, a greater spirit of self-sacrifice and unselfishness, a more exact devotion to rule and a greater severity towards himself all pointing to a deep interior life. This spirit brought him through a period of stress and anxiety during his first months at Canton when his endurance was tested and he had to do things very trying to his particular temperament. His life even in China, where many causes tend to drain one's energy, was most intense, and it was a marvel how persistently he followed out his daily routine and remained loyal to all his duties. Many do not find it difficult to take things quietly and be at rest, but that, I think, was what he found most difficult.
As a theologian at Milltown Park he was solid, painstaking, a slow worker, yet tenaciously holding what he had mastered. His public appearances at circles and disputations were not marked by any brilliant flights, but by a clear and lucid grasp of his subject in exposition and defence. He was ever ready to be of assistance to others and would gladly put aside his own work to come to the rescue of one who not infrequently got into difficulties in theological waters.
His spiritual life we can only gauge by exterior indications . At Milltown Park he spent his days as did the rest of us, and yet here too as in China there was a difference. There were little things on the surface that showed the swiftness of the current beneath, his anxiety, for example, to be with and to help those from other provinces. If we are right in judging of a man's interior life by his spirit of self-sacrifice, charity and general observance of rule, then Father Lyons led a life here amongst us very close to God indeed.
His last illness was comparatively short and the end came quickly. A few weeks after his Ad Gradum examination he became unwell complaining of rheumatic pains in his body. He was removed to a private hospital where he remained for some weeks. He was treated for an abscess under the teeth and seemed to be suffering from a general break-down. Then trouble developed in the kidneys and he was removed to St. Vincent's Hospital for X-Ray treatment On Tuesday, July 28th, he was found to be very seriously affected with cancer, and from that on sank with startling rapidity. He was quite resigned and although he knew there was no hope of recovery he put up a tremendous fight to the last. One of his last requests was to congratulate those who were to be ordained on the following day. He himself was not to see that day and he knew it. He was not suffering any very severe pain, but it was quite obvious that he would not last the night. At about 8,30 p m. on Thursday July 30th, after a severe struggle he quietly passed away.
His death was a great loss to our young Mission, a second sacrifice demanded of us. The first was made with resignation and has brought abundant blessings , the second will be equally abundant. We can confidently face the future with the thought that three of our number are of even greater assistance to us now than if they were with us in the flesh.

Born: 23 March 1931, Brittas, Clonaslee, County Laois
Raised: Loughloon and Drummindoo, Westport, County Mayo
Entered: 07 September 1959, St Mary’s, Emo, County Laois
Ordained: 31 July 1969, St Mary’s, Westport, Co Mayo
Final Vows: 11 June 1980, Gonzaga College SJ, Dublin
Died: 23 January 2023, Mayo University Hospital, Castlebar, County Mayo

Part of the St Francis Xavier, Gardiner Street Community at the time of death

Parents (father Austin) were farmers and lived at Drumindoo, County Mayo

Second in a family of six - five boys (one is an Oblate priest) and one girl (in the Order of St Louis).

Family first moved to Portumna, County Galway, where he attended a Convent school until 1936. The family then moved to Loughloon, Westport, County Mayo, and he attended Brackloon NS. In 1940 he went to the Christian Brothers school in Westport for nine years.

In 1950 he was sent to Dublin to study the motor business (stores management) in Joseph Lucas Ltd and McCairns Motors Ltd, also in Dublin. He then returned to Westport to work at Tim Hastings Limited. In October 1950 he took the Cadetship exam for the Irish Army, and joined it in November 1950 at the Curragh Camp. In 1952 he was commissioned (24/11/1952) with the rank of second Lieutenant, and was sent to Connolly Barracks with the 3rd Curragh Battalion. Two years later he was promoted to Lieutenant.

In 1959 he voluntarily retired from the army. During his time there he served as Platoon Commander; Assistant Battalion Quartermaster; Officer for Battalion educational training and Irish language training; Catering Officer; Defending Officer in Courts Martial.

FSS
Born : 23rd March 1931 Clonaslee, Co Laois
Raised : Loughloon and Drummindoo, Westport, Co Mayo
Early Education at Portumna NS, County Galway; Brackloon NS, Westport,County Mayo; CBS NS Westport, County Mayo; CBS Secondary School, Westport, County Mayo; Cadet School, Curragh, County Kildare; Commissioned officer in Defence Forces, 3rd Curragh Batallion
7th September 1959 Entered Society at St Mary’s, Emo, County Laois
8th September 1961 First Vows at St Mary’s, Emo, County Laois
1961-1962 Tullabeg - Studying Philosophy
1962-1965 Leuven, Belgium - Studying Philosophy at Heverlee
1964 Leuven, Belgium - Studying Social & Political Science at Katholieke Universiteit
1965-1966 Kent, OH, USA - Studying Sociology at Newman Centre, Kent State University
1966-1970 Milltown Park - Studying Theology; Lecturing in Sociology at Milltown Institute and CIR;
National Chaplain to Pax Christi
31st July 1969 Ordained at St Mary’s, Westport, Co Mayo
1970-1998 Sandford Lodge, CIR - Lecturing at UCD; Consult in Research & Development at CCI
1971 Lecturer in Sociology at St Patrick’s College (NUI), Maynooth; Visiting Lecturer at UCD, Milltown Park, & CIR
1974 Research Fellow Ford Foundation: University of Michigan and UCD
1978 Tertianship in Tullabeg
1979 Guardian Máméan Pilgrim Shrine; Secretary Inter County Railway Committee
11th June 1980 Final Vows at Gonzaga College SJ, Dublin
1988 Editing ‘Memoirs of Monsignor Horan (1911-1986) published in 1992
1992 Chair Pioneer Total Abstinence Association Board
1994 President of Aontas
1996 Pastoral Research in Archdiocese of Tuam (‘Quo Vadimus’ Report; Academic Associate NUI Maynooth
1998-2023 Gardiner St - Pastoral research Diocese of Meath (Report ‘Our Living Church’ 2005) – Residing partly at Loughloon, Westport, Co Mayo
2007 Director of National Survey of Intergroup Attitudes (NUI Maynooth)
2010 Research for Memoir “The Ongoing Project”
2012 Survey of Attitudes and Practices in relation to Tourism in Westport
2014 Guardian of Máméan Pilgrimage Shrine; Survey Research Director NUI Maynooth College; Pastoral Supply work
2015 Research for PTAA Book “Abstaining for Love”
2016 Researching own publications and sermons
2017 Guardian Máméan Pilgrim Shrine; Survey Research NUI; Pastoral Supply Work
2018 + Séiplínach do Ghaelscoil, Cill Dara
2021 + Pastoral Assistant in Aughagower & Cushlough Parish, Tuam Diocese

Jesuit whose influential research spanned decades of social change
“There is only one race, the human race” was one of the many memorable apho- risms of Micheál Mac Gréil: Jesuit priest, long time lecturer in sociology at NUI Maynooth (now Maynooth University), pacifist, defender of prisoners’ rights, friend of Irish Travellers and promoter of the Irish language.

Born in Co Laois but reared in Co Mayo, Mac Gréil – who has died at the age of 91 – is best known for his ground-breaking sociological research, which led to three books – Prejudice and Tolerance in Ireland (1977), Prejudice in Ireland Revisited (1996) and Pluralism and Diversity in Ireland (2011).
His research, based on interviews spanning four decades, recorded the transforma- tion of Ireland from a deeply religious socially conservative community-focused society to a more inclusive yet more individualistic and materialistic country.

In his memoir and social critique of Irish and world affairs, The Ongoing Present (2014), Mac Gréil commented on the impact of his early research. “It made Irish people aware of their prejudices and encouraged them to be more tolerant. This self-awareness would, I believed, do much to undermine some of our more destruc- tive prejudices and result in a better life for our minorities.” But, he added, “we should not be under any illusion with regard to the persistence of racism, sexism, homophobia, ethnocentrism, anti-Semitism, class or religious prejudice.”

Mac Gréil was involved in many causes throughout his long life. He was a member and national chaplain for Pax Christi Ireland – the Irish branch of the international Catholic peace movement. He was chairman of the Pioneer Total Abstinence Asso- ciation, whose members abstain from drinking alcohol. He was also a long time campaigner for the reinstatement of the Western Rail Corridor from Limerick to Sli- go and a passionate advocate for the restoration of the Mám Éan (Maumeen) shrine in the Maamturk mountains in Co Galway.

Award
Following the publication of his first book in 1977, Mac Gréil was invited to the British-Irish conference at the University of Oxford. Later that year, he was the joint awardee of the first Christopher Ewart-Biggs Memorial Peace Prize (British ambassador Ewart-Biggs had been assassinated on his way to work at the embassy in Dublin on July 6th, 1976). In his memoir, he writes about how following that award, he was asked to give up his membership of the Irish language and culture organisation Conradh na Gaeilge. And while this request was later rescinded, Mac Gréil bemoaned the extreme politicisation of that organisation following the out- break of violence in Northern Ireland.

Micheál, born in a log cabin in a forest in Clonaslee, Co Laois, was second of six children of Austin McGreal from Loughloon, Co Mayo, and Máire Ní Chadhain from An Cabhar, An Mám, Co Galway. His father was a forester working for a Scottish timber company and his mother was a nurse who had worked in St Ultan’s Children’s Hospital in Dublin before marriage. Although brought up in a republican household, he later said that his family was never strongly anti-British nor anti- Protestant.

When his father was given responsibility to manage woods throughout Munster, parts of Leinster and Connacht, the family moved first to Portumna, Co Galway for four years and then to his father’s family home in Loughloon, Westport, Co Mayo.

Following his secondary school education with the Christian Brothers in Westport, Micheál trained as a shop manager in Dublin and returned to work in Hastings Garage in Westport. In 1950 he joined his older brother Sean as a cadet in the De- fence Forces. He served as an officer in the Third Battalion at the Curragh Camp from 1952-1959, after which he resigned to become a priest.

Mac Gréil joined the Jesuit Noviceship in Emo Park, Co Laois, and was sent to Tul- labeg (Rahen) outside Tullamore, Co Offaly, to study philosophy. In 1962 he was sent to the Jesuit Philosophate at Heverlee, Leuven, in Belgium to continue his studies (through Flemish) to licentiate level.

He went on to study social and political science at the Catholic University of Leuven, where he met Prof Larry Kaplan, professor of American political history at Kent State University in Ohio. Prof Kaplan invited him to that university, where he completed his master’s in sociology and began his study of intergroup relations (that is, social prejudice and tolerance).
Back in Dublin, he completed a four-year course in theology at Milltown Park, during which time he lectured at the Jesuit-run College of Industrial Relations (CIR, later the National College of Ireland) and at the Holy Ghost Fathers missionary college in Kimmage Manor. He was ordained a priest in St Mary’s Church, Westport, in 1969. The following year he started his PhD in sociology at University College Dublin, the thesis for which would later be published as his first book, Prejudice and Tolerance in Ireland.

In 1971, Mac Gréil began working as a junior lecturer in sociology at St Patrick’s College, Maynooth, while continuing to lecture part time at UCD, the Milltown In- stitute and the CIR for the next 10 years. In his memoir, The Ongoing Present, he writes at length about the academic struggles within NUI Maynooth and his own personal tussles with authority during his 25-year career up to his retirement as a senior lecturer there in 1996. A strong advocate of workers’ rights, he was shop steward for the University Teachers Union for nine years during that time.

Mac Gréil’s lifelong dedication to social justice brought him into some ex- traordinary situations. For two consecutive Septembers in 1968 and 1969, he lived on the roadside as a Traveller in disguise to learn about the social, personal and cultural mores of Irish Travellers.

March
Following the Bloody Sunday shooting and killing of civil rights marchers in Derry in January 1972, Mac Gréil joined the Dublin march organised by Irish trade unions that ended up in the burning of the British embassy on Merrion Square, Dublin. In his memoir, he recalls saying, “we came to protest but not to burn”.

As a member of the prisoner’s group in Pax Cristi, he was invited to visit the notori- ous republican prisoner Dominic McGlinchy in Long Kesh prison. He later worked with the Prisoners’ Rights Organisation alongside academics, politicians and barris- ters including Mary McAleese, Michael D Higgins, Gemma Hussey, Una Higgins- O’Malley and Paddy McEntee.
In 1983, Mac Gréil was called as a witness in Senator David Norris’s constitutional case against the criminalisation of homosexuality, given that his research in 1972- 1973 had found that 45 per cent of people in Dublin would favour decriminalisa- tion. He denounced homophobia as one of the most invidious prejudices and be- lieved the Catholic Church should review its pastoral relationship with gay people.

From 1970 to 1998, Mac Gréil lived in the CIR residence in Ranelagh and then moved to the Jesuit community on Upper Gardiner Street, Dublin 1. After his retire- ment he divided his time between academic research in Dublin and pastoral work in Westport.

In his latter years, he spent more time in Mayo, serving as a priest in the Aughagower and Cush Lough parishes in Westport and bringing pilgrims to his beloved Maumeen shrine in north Connemara. In 2021 he published a book, Westport: When Visitors Feel at Home, based on the views of visitors to the town.

At the launch of that book, he called for the democratisation of tourism and the right to annual leave for all, including the unemployed, the poorly paid, people with a disability and those under the poverty line. “In a truly democratic society,” he said, “social tourism, funded by the state primarily, should be the norm.”

Micheál Mac Gréil is survived by his brother Austin, (Fr) Owen and Padraig and members of the Jesuit Community. He was predeceased by his brother Sean and his sister Mary.

Activist was ‘colossus in mind, body and spirit’

Tom Shiel

Well-known Jesuit, sociologist, and social justice activist Micheál Mac Gréil, who died on Saturday at Mayo University Hospital aged 92, was laid to rest yesterday at Aughavale Cemetery in Co Mayo.

Large crowds attended the earlier Requiem Mass in St Mary’s Church, Westport. One of Fr Mac Gréil’s brothers, Fr Owen Mac Gréil was the main celebrant.
Dr Michael Neary, former Archbishop of Tuam, a colleague of Fr Mac Gréil at Maynooth College, delivered the sermon. Journalist and publisher Liamy McNally gave a eulogy.
In his sermon, Dr Neary recalled Fr Mac Gréil’s life as a university lecturer, trade unionist, campaigner for various causes including the revival of the Irish language, the rights of minorities, promotion of the Irish language and the reopening of closed railway lines.

“But he was always primarily a priest,” Dr Neary noted.

Dr Neary went on to describe his late friend’s life as “radical yet profoundly traditional”.

It was radical, he maintained, in the true sense of the word, a life of forging back to the roots of where we came from, back to St Ignatius Loyola, St Patrick and Jesus Christ.
Delivering the funeral eulogy, Liamy McNally described his late friend as “a colos- sus in mind, body and spirit”.

Mission of justice
He continued: “Regardless of opposition, church or State, justice was his mission. He was central to the legal case seeking the decriminalisation of homosexuality.”
“Fr Micheál was ahead of his time”, he remarked.

Mr McNally went on to describe his late friend as a great ecumenist and supporter of women in the church, always wanting women to have more responsibility rather than “little jobeens”.
Éamon Ó Cuív TD delivered the first reading while the second reading was given by Geraldine Delaney, a former student at Maynooth College.

The final prayers were recited by the present Archbishop of Tuam, Dr Francis Duffy.

President Michael D Higgins was represented at the funeral by aide de camp Col Stephen Howard.

https://jesuit.ie/blog/guest-blogger/my-year-with-micheal-mac-greil-sj/

My year with Micheál Mac Gréil SJ

Eoin Garrett

I first met Micheál Mac Gréil SJ (1931-2023) when I was a pupil at Gonzaga College and he was a student of theology in neighbouring Milltown Park. An early sign of his energy and capacity for organizing major projects was evident when he was asked to assist Fr Michael Hurley in promoting Milltown Park’s series of weekly public lectures. The outcome was an overflow of attendances every week! I attended Mícheál’s ordination in Westport in 1969 (by which time I was a Jesuit novice) – “a most memorable event” to quote his own description in his memoir The Ongoing Present (2014).

The main focus of this brief essay, however, is the year I spent working full-time as Micheál’s assistant (1972/73). How this came about need not detain us here. Suffice to say that the year was a more valuable education than the studies I was mismanaging both before and after it. In that year, Micheál was doing the work of several people. He remarks in his memoir that around this time a friend “detected the makings of a ‘workaholic’ in me. So be it. It did not worry me … I used to work night and day with great satisfaction”.

That academic year, he was acting head of the Department of Social Studies in St Patrick’s College, Maynooth (having joined the Department just a year previously). He was also directing research for the Survey of Intergroup Attitudes, the results of which would be the material for his Ph.D. thesis, and would eventually be published as Prejudice and Tolerance in Ireland in 1977.

My role in this was to be an “administrative assistant”, a suitably vague title, which involved among other tasks, driving some of the fourteen interviewers to their interviewees in outlying areas (e.g., Tallaght, where the first new residents had recently arrived), helping to code the information from completed questionnaires, and eventually proof-reading the thesis and the book (I was also to proof-read the follow-up publication, Prejudice in Ireland Revisited, 1996). Micheál was also acting as editor of the Social Studies journal that year, several issues of which I also proof-read.

Some years later, after I left the Jesuits, I was being interviewed for a position in a national institution. A member of the interview board spotted Micheál’s name on my CV and asked what had struck me most about his research findings. I said something about the clear signs of latent racial prejudice, at which another member of the board angrily denied there was any such prejudice in Ireland. The question had little relevance to the job I was seeking. My interview was unsuccessful!

My close contact with Micheál and with his research broadened my mind considerably. His sharp observations in our many conversations, and his clear exposition in his writings of the nature of prejudice have, I hope, helped me to be tolerant of difference and open to listen to opinions I disagree with without dismissing those who hold such opinions.

Once he asked me why my parents had sent me to Gonzaga College. This was a loaded question, as I well knew his views on Jesuits running private fee-paying schools. Fortunately my answer was the only one he could not object to: “it was the local school”!

An unintended consequence of the amount of proof-reading I did that year and subsequently is that I cannot read anything since then without seeing misspellings and typos!

Micheál was National Chaplain of Pax Christi. 1972 was Ireland’s turn to host the annual Pax Christi International Route. This involved groups of young adults of many nationalities and their leaders walking from various starting points for a week and converging on Kilkenny. Each evening they would be hosted by families in the various towns and villages in which they stopped.

Micheál organized this hospitality with military thoroughness, as befitted his pre-Jesuit career as an army officer. We sent letters to each parish priest in the stopover places. Based in the Capuchin Friary in Kilkenny, I then followed up, visiting the parish priests, travelling by-roads within a hundred-mile radius of Kilkenny on my motor-bike. I got to see many parts of the country for the first time, and to meet some great characters among the clergy. The whole operation was, of course, a great success.

These were the main activities I was involved with that year. Micheál himself had countless other commitments, lecturing in UCD and the College of Industrial Relations as well as in Maynooth, involvement in various civic campaigns, and fulfilling frequent speaking engagements. He showed great trust in me to do whatever he asked, mostly without supervision. He was an inspiration to work with and any person who reads his memoir, The Ongoing Present, can only be similarly inspired.

https://www.maynoothuniversity.ie/sociology/news/eulogy-fr-miche-l-mac-gr-il-sj-funeral-mass-26-jan-2023-liamy-mac-nally

Eulogy at Fr Micheál Mac Gréil, SJ, Funeral Mass on 26 Jan 2023 by Liamy Mac Nally

Thursday, February 9, 2023 - 13:30
Fr Micheál Mac Gréil, SJ, Funeral Mass Thursday 26 Jan 2023

Tá mé fíor-bhuíoch do chlann Micheál Mac Gréil don cuireadh anseo inniu chun cúpla focail á rá faoi Micheál. Go raibh míle maith agaibh.

(He’d love this…liturgical spectacle, etc.)

For Westport people, driving in over Sheeaune we catch a glimpse of Croagh Patrick, Clare Island and Clew Bay, it’s then we know we’re close to home. When we’d meet Micheál Mac Gréil, we’d know we were at home. He was like a pulse of our town. This was his áit dúchais.

Many people know Micheál Mac Gréil as an academic. That he was, and a great one at that, of national and international renown. He blazed a trail with his book Prejudice and Tolerance in Ireland in 1977, after he lived with the Travelling community. It won the Ewart Biggs Prize and he got into trouble with some of his Conradh na Gaeilge colleagues because he accepted the prize associated with ‘na Sasanaigh’; Prejudice in Ireland Revisited was published in 1996; Pluralism and Diversity in Ireland in 2011, and his wonderful memoir, The Ongoing Present in 2014. And of course there were several national, diocesan and local tourism surveys, covering issues of church and state.

He studied in Ireland, Louvain and Kent State University, Ohio. He had a brilliant mind, and was a noted national and international sociologist, teaching in Maynooth College, UCD, National College of Industrial Relations and Milltown Institute.

I visited Micheál every Tuesday in his cottage in Loughloon, the McGreal ancestral home. He asked me to sort out his papers. Roughly translated it meant diving into cobwebbed boxes that contained letters, notes, bills, receipts, lectures, press cuttings, press releases, articles, photos, invitations, various publications, out of date cheques and all things in between. He kept everything, or at least seemed to. I’d return home drenched in an aftershave of turf smoke! Cologne de Loughloon! He burned turf and timber daily and made no apologies for it to anyone!

Among the many recent finds excavated from the depths of dust and time was a nursing certificate presented to his mother who worked in St Ultan’s Hospital in Dublin. The cert was actually signed by the hospital co-founder Dr Kathleen Lynn, a noted Irish revolutionary, born in Mullafarry near Killala.

Micheál’s mother was Máire Ní Chadhain from An Cabhar, Mám, Conamara. His father was Austin McGreal from Loughloon, Westport. Mícheál was born on 23 March 1931 – he would have been 92 in a couple of months, the second eldest of six. There were five boys and one girl, Séan, Micheál, Austin, Owen, Mary and Pádraig.

Austin, Fr Owen and Pádraig are with us today while Seán, Micheál and Sr Mary have gone to God with his beloved parents and join us around the Eucharistic table, where heaven and earth are united.

Micheál was born in Laois where his father worked as a forester before they moved back to Westport, via Portumna in Galway. They lived in Loughloon and later Drumindoo, in the ancestral home of General Joe Ring, who died in the Civil War.

After finishing school Micheál worked in Hastings Garage, Westport before he followed his brother Seán into the Irish Army as a cadet in 1950. Fr Mícheál left the army in 1959, after his brother Owenie was ordained. Micheál then joined the Jesuits to become a soldier of Christ. Ordained in 1969, he celebrated his first Mass in Westport. He then headed off to Kilkenny to celebrate Mass for Travellers.

Over the years he was honoured by church and state, the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice, and the Mayo Hall of Fame, which stated: “For services to his native county and his country, first as a soldier, and later in his work for the underprivileged such as Travellers and prisoners, for the decriminalisation of homosexuality, for the pilgrimage to Mám Éan, for tolerance as against prejudice, for the Pioneers, for his active and pro-active concern for the Irish language, and for the economic development of the West through Knock Airport and the Western Rail Corridor.”

Plus of course Pax Christi, a founding member of Feachtas, the preservation of Cullenswood House in Ranelagh, once home to Pádraig Pearse’s Scoil Éinne. He also wrote a biography on another ‘old man in a hurry’, Mons James Horan from Knock.

To some, Micheál was a bit of a maverick, he saw himself as a ‘structural functionalist’, that’s his ‘school’ of sociology. I’d tell him to get a life with such a term. “What would Bina McLoughlin, the Queen of Conamara, or Dev Óg think of that term?” And he’d laugh! He had a great sense of humour and could laugh at himself.

He was a colossus in every way – body, mind and spirit. He was a big man, never worried about girth control as he settled into a cuppa with apple tart and cream in Christy’s Harvest! The real dessert consisted of him holding court, seeking debate and dialogue with whoever was present. He wanted people to be critical thinkers.

His white hair agus feasóg bán made him most distinguished looking. He was loved in Westport, a regular at Uri Kohen’s annual Westport Folk and Bluegrass Festival and so many local events, especially in Westport Town Hall, not forgetting his support for Mayo football! Someday….

His mind centred around one word, JUSTICE. It was his middle name. Regardless of opposition, church or state, justice was his mission. He was central to the legal case seeking the decriminalisation of homosexuality. “What is the Church teaching on the issue?” a legal eagle asked him at the time. “This is a court of law not a church liturgy. This is a justice issue,” he replied. Only yesterday, Pope Francis called for the worldwide decriminalisation of homosexuality. Fr Micheál was ahead of his time.

He had COURAGE, he was BRAVE, he was HONOURABLE, and a little impatient – ask his lovely niece Justine or neighbours Eddie and Helen Heraty and Breege Sammon and his friends in Loughloon and Brackloon!

Most of all Micheál Mac Gréil was a man of faith – he was all that’s good about priesthood. He was faithful, a man of truth. He loved the Eucharist, breviary, rosary and Mám Éan pilgrimages. And he prayed for everyone, a true intercessor and shepherd.

He retired from lecturing but never from priesthood, as we, the people of Westport, Aughagower and Cushlough know so well. He loved the people of Aughagower and Cushlough, and Fr Britus.

A great ecumenist and supporter of women in the church, always wanting women to have more responsibility rather than ‘little jobíns’.

Micheál also encouraged those of us who are married priests, around seven in this parish alone, to “Offer your services. They need you all.”

He called those of us in the ACP – Association of Catholic Priests – ‘Presbyterians’. “As a Jesuit,” he’d say, “we have a fourth vow, to the Pope. We are hierarchical unlike your presbyterate brotherhood.” He enjoyed that Pope Francis was ordained a Jesuit priest the same day as he was, albeit thousands of miles apart.

My last conversation with him was about a manuscript I am collating of his selected public talks and lectures. “There’s 800 pages so far,” I said to him the week before he died. “You’ll need to start chopping!”
“Hold it! My two theses have to be included. That should bring it up to 1,000 pages.” An old man in a hurry!

Looking at his coffin I’m reminded of the comfort he gave many families. At the graveyard, calling on the ancestors and praying as Gaeilge, rippling into our collective conscious. Everyone is only a death away.

He assured those grieving that, in death, their loved ones enter into the fullness of maturity, knowledge and love.

And he would point to the coffin, and let me paraphrase…
“Micheál Mac Gréil is not dead. He is not there! He is more alive than anyone here today. He is alive with the Lord. What’s here are his remains, the monument to his soul, a mosaic of goodness and kindness knitted throughout his life. He will live forever with God and in our hearts.”

In essence, he was a national treasure yet he was every inch a Westport man, a Covie. We’ll all miss him because we all love him. For once, the Irish expression is true: ‘Ní bheidh a leithead arís ann’ – His like won’t be here again.

We salute you Micheál for your kindness, generosity, honesty and love, and thank you in death, for all you did for each one of us, for our community, county, province and country. You were, as Scripture’s Ben Sirach said, a faithful friend, a rare treasure.

It was all such a joy and an honour!

May your memory be a blessing!

‘S go ndéana Dia trócaire ar d’anam dílis.

https://arcoireland.com/fr-micheal-mac-greil-sj-rip/

Fr Mícheál Mac Gréil SJ RIP

Posted on January 23, 2023 by William Campbell

Association of Retired Commissioned Officers

ARCO regrets to inform its members of the death, on Saturday, 21st January 2023, of Father Mícheál Mac Gréil SJ of Loughloon, Westport and Upper Gardiner Street, Dublin, peacefully in his 92nd year at Mayo University Hospital. Predeceased by his parents Austin & Molly, brother Lieutanant-Colonel Jack (23 Cadet Class) and sister Mary. Deeply regretted by his loving brothers Austin, Fr. Owen, Commandant Pat (36 Cadet Class), sister-in-law Margie, nieces, nephews, grandnieces, grandnephews, cousins, relatives, Saint Francis Xavier Jesuit Community and The Irish Jesuit Province, former students and colleagues of Maynooth University, neighbours, Defence Forces colleagues and his many friends.

Ar dheis Dé dá anam

Mícheál Mac Gréil was born in Clonaslee, County Laois in 1931 and grew up in Westport. He enlisted in the Defence Forces as a member of 25 Cadet Class, was commissioned on 24 November 1952 into the Infantry Corps, and was posted to A Company, 3 Infantry Battalion in the Curragh. Fr Mícheál retired from the Defence Forces in 1959 with the rank of Lieutenant and joined the Jesuits but maintained his connection with the Army by spending time as a chaplain in the Curragh after he was ordained. He was an active member of the 3 Battalion Retired Officers Association for many years and regularly celebrated the annual Mass for deceased members. He studied in Ireland, in Leuven in Belgium, and then in Kent State University, Ohio and was ordained in 1969. He lectured in sociology in NUI Maynooth from 1971 to 1996 where he completed three surveys on prejudice and tolerance in Ireland. His initial study won the Ewart-Biggs prize jointly with ATQ Stewart. In 1992 he wrote a biography of Monsignor James Horan, the colourful parish priest of Knock who founded Knock International Airport. On retirement from academic life in 1996, Fr Mícheál was based at Saint Mary’s Parish in Wesport where he took particular interest in campaigning for the opening of the Western Rail Corridor as well as the Irish language. He published The Irish Language and the Irish People, a report on attitudes towards the Irish language in Ireland from 2007 to 2008. A passionate supporter of minorities, he gave particular attention to the treatment of Travellers in Ireland publishing The Emancipation of the Travelling People in 2010. Reverting to earlier studies, in 2012 Fr Mícheál published Pluralism and Diversity in Ireland: Prejudice and Related Issues in Early 21st century Ireland. Fr Micheál was the recipient of the papal honour, Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice, and the Mayo Hall of Fame: ‘for services to his native county and his country, first as a soldier, and later in his work for the underprivileged’.

https://www.con-telegraph.ie/2023/01/26/president-higgins-pays-tribute-to-mayo-priest-teacher-and-campaigner-fr-micheal-mac-greil/

Connaught Telegraph, Thu 26 Jan 2023

President Higgins pays tribute to Mayo priest, teacher and campaigner Fr. Micheál Mac Gréil

President Michael D. Higgins has paid a warm tribute to Mayo priest Fr. Micheál Mac Gréil on his passing.

He stated: “It is with great sadness that his colleagues in Social Studies, of which he was one of the founders in Ireland, those campaigning for equality and for respect for our Famine heritage, and people across Mayo and beyond, will have heard of the death of Fr. Micheál Mac Gréil, SJ.

"Micheál Mac Gréil as a university teacher, campaigner and priest made a deep impact on so many lives.

"Throughout all of his work, Micheál Mac Gréil brought a sense of the urgency of recognising justice issues of compassion.

"His was an early and constant call for the importance of overcoming social prejudice.

"This was reflected in the broad range of causes he supported, such as fighting for the rights of Travellers, for the Irish language, for prison reform, for the decriminalisation of homosexuality, and in support of the Irish language and the development of the western region.

"Across his many publications, Micheál emphasised the need for economic arrangements to serve as a means of strengthening community, family, volunteerism and cultural values, rather than at their expense.

"He was a man who truly gave authenticity to the importance of linking life and values, something which he taught to so many. He will be greatly missed by all of us who knew him.

"May I express my deepest sympathies to his fellow Jesuits, to his family and to all his many friends.

"The Irish language has lost a great and enthusiastic campaigner.

"Ar dheis Dé go raibh a h'anam dílis.”

HOMILY

Large crowds attended Requiem Mass in St. Mary’s Church, Westport, for the repose of the soul of Fr. Mac Gréil.

One of Fr. Gréil’s brothers, Fr. Owen Fr. Mac Gréil, was the main celebrant.

Dr. Michael Neary, Archbishop Emeritus of Tuam, a colleague of Fr. Mac Gréil at Maynooth College, delivered the homily.

He stated: "As the Church was about to celebrate the weekend of the Word of God which had been instituted by Pope Francis, An tAthair Micheál was called home by God.

"There was something appropriate in this because his whole life was determined by God’s Word.

"Born in 1931 and educated by the Christian Brothers in Westport.

"He carried with him in a very manly and courageous way his army training from 1950-1959 as a Cadet and Officer.

"He entered the Jesuits in 1959 and was ordained in 1969.

"Having studied in Louvain, in Kent University, Milltown Park and UCD, he lectured in sociology in Saint Patrick’s College, Maynooth.

"Micheál wore his learning very lightly and it never became a hindrance in his relationship with the people of the West.

"Micheál was primarily a priest and while he initiated and espoused various causes he always did so as a priest whether it was prison reform, the Irish language or the Western Rail Corridor.

"Although he retired from his position as lecturer the word retirement was not in his vocabulary.

"There was always a ruthless honesty about Micheál.

"When Pope Francis was elected Pope, Micheál acknowledged that Pope Francis had studied in Milltown Park while Micheál was there but he said that he couldn't remember him.

"It has been established since however that the Pope remembers Micheál!

"Running through his long list of publications there is a common thread which is all about liberation, improvement and the dignity of the human person whether he was writing in respect of prejudice, about community, the Irish language, emigration, tolerance, re-opening of railway lines – West-on-Track, Memoirs, the travelling people, promotion of the faith ecumenism, the pioneers, the rights of minorities.

"Bhí grá speisialta aige don té a raibh thíos, tréith Chríostúil agus dúshlánach.

"His extraordinary ability to move from the micro village to the macro world was mind boggling.

"Family, community, national and international events happening, his experience at home and abroad as a university lecturer, trade unionist, priest, researcher, campaigner, pioneer and peace leader, this has been his life.

"Michéal’s life has been radical – yet profoundly traditional. Radical in the true sense of the word.

"A life of going back to the roots of where he came from and where the Church came from as a true follower of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, of Saint Patrick and Jesus Christ.

"Here in the Archdiocese we are indebted to Micheál for the way in which he enabled us to articulate our priorities for Church as rapid changes were engulfing Irish society.

"With his sociological expertise he enabled us to articulate our response to those changes in terms of Quo Vadimus in 1998, Ar Aghaidh Linn, The Challenge of Indifference: A Need for Religious Revival in Ireland.

"Micheál had the facility for relating to and influencing areas from which the Church has been largely absent.

"One of those areas was the trade unions and as shop steward when he was lecturing in Maynooth he always brought integrity, justice and balance to the causes which he espoused.

"To his eternal credit I have to say that he was always one who focused on the issue. He never allowed personalities to distract from the central issue.

"His integrity and openness did so much to influence people of different faiths and no faith.

"As a former colleague in Maynooth I knew how much an tAthair Micheál enjoyed the cut and thrust of robust debate. You could disagree with him but he never became disagreeable – a hugely attractive trait in any person.

"In Maynooth he always had a great rapport with students from the Archdiocese of Tuam.

"He was very encouraging and challenged them in their studies. He convened a meeting and a meal for them in his family home in Lochloon each year, the menu was always bacon and cabbage!

"He had been so helpful in his generous availability to do supply in Westport and the surrounding area and particularly in Aughagower and Cushlough.

"The work Michéal has done in reviving the traditional Patrician pilgrimage in Máméan has been a huge and important part of his multi-faceted life.

"We thank his family for the love and friendship that they have provided for him, his Jesuit Confreres for their encouragement and support and to Fr. Charlie McDonnell (Adm., Westport), who has been a constant and loyal friend.

"Joining with Archbishop Francis Duffy, Fr. Charlie, priests, religious and people of the Archdiocese, we offer our sincere sympathy and the support of our prayers to his brothers, Austin, Father Owen, Padraic and the extended family, to Father Leonard Maloney the Provincial of the Jesuits, and Father Richard O’Dwyer, Superior in Gardiner Street, Dublin, and the Jesuit Community.

"Slán agus beannacht, Micheál a chara. Solas na bhflaitheas go bhfeice tú agus glóire na nAingeal go gcloise tú."

Journalist and publisher, Liamy McNally, gave a eulogy.

He described his late friend as “a colossus in mind, body and spirit."

He continued: “Regardless of opposition, church or state, justice was his mission. He was central to the legal case seeking the decriminalisation of homosexuality.”

“Fr. Micheál was ahead of his time”, he remarked.

Mr. McNally went on to describe his late friend as a great ecumenist and supporter of women in the church, always wanting women to have more responsibility rather than ‘little jobeens’.

He also encouraged priests who afterwards married to “offer your services. They need you all."

Deputy Eamon O’Cuiv, a former Minister, delivered the first reading while the second reading was given by Geraldine Delaney, a former student at Maynooth College.

The final prayers were recited by the present Archbishop of Tuam, Dr. Francis Duffy.

President Michael D. Higgins was represented at the funeral by his aide de camp, Colonel Stephen Howard.

Fr. MacGréil has been laid to rest at Aughavale Cemetery, Westport.

https://www.mayonews.ie/news/comment---opinion/1441076/opinion-westport-castlebar-and-maynooth-celebrate-feile-mac-greil-this-week.html

OPINION: Westport, Castlebar and Maynooth celebrate Féile Mac Gréil this week

Two words could sum up the life of the late Fr Micheál Mac Gréil, SJ. They are prejudice and tolerance. One he constantly challenged, the other he constantly advocated. Later this week, from Thursday, March 7 to Saturday, March 9, his life will be celebrated in Maynooth, Castlebar and Westport under the auspices of the inaugural Féile Mac Gréil.

We know that he’d love the ‘idea’ of the féile but also that he would rejoice that his work is being taken seriously enough to espouse it further. There were a lot of sides to Fr Micheál Mac Gréil other than priest and sociologist. His prejudice and tolerance wings forced him to fly alongside many causes, from his native tongue and national issues to local initiatives and parochial/diocesan interests.

Féile started when Eoghan Murphy and Mark Garavan mused over the idea of acknowledging Fr Micheál on the ATU Mayo Campus in Castlebar. A suggestion to involve Maynooth University confirmed Prof Mary Corcoran’s intention to include a ‘nod to Micheál’ during Social Justice Week. Fr Micheál’s niece, Justine McGreal Hafferty, and yours truly weighed in with the Westport wing. It left us with Maynooth University on Thursday, ATU Castlebar on Friday and Westport on Saturday. Féile Mac Gréil was instituted.

While celebratory, the féile is not merely that, it is also a challenge to us all to implement action in matters of prejudice and tolerance. We don’t need to look too far to experience issues of intolerance and prejudice. In a world that is ever-changing and more challenging, it is becoming increasingly difficult to ‘do the right thing’ without stepping on the toes of vested interests.

‘Prejudice and Tolerance in Ireland’ is the title of Maynooth University’s Social Justice Week section on Fr Micheál Mac Gréil on Thursday at 10am. It will feature Prof Jane Gray, Prof Emeritus Tony Fahey, Martin Collins (Pavee Point) and Niamh McDonald (Hope and Courage Collective).

The ATU Mayo Campus in Castlebar hosts Friday’s event at 10am. ‘Remembering Micheál: Colleague, Academic and Social Justice Activist’ with Prof Mary Corcoran MU, Dr Mark Garavan ATU, Eoghan Murphy ATU, Prof Emeritus Paddy Duffy MU and Dr Deirdre Garvey ATU. This day will be a special day to honour Fr Micheál Mac Gréil on ‘home turf’. Fair play to Mark Garavan and Eoghan Murphy for ensuring that the Mayo academic is acknowledged on the Mayo Campus.

In Westport this Saturday, we move from the head to the heart! ‘Ag Ceiliúradh, Celebrating Micheál Mac Gréil with Prayer, Words and Music’ starts with Mass in St Mary’s Church at 10am. Celebrants include Fr John Kenny, Fr Britus and Fr Terry Howard, SJ. Onwards to Westport Town Hall at 11am sharp, where Éamon Ó Cuív TD will speak about working with Fr Micheál (whose mother was Coyne from Conamara). Reflections will be forthcoming from Catherine O’Grady Powers, on preparing a Westport Tourism Organisation Survey; Colmán Ó Raghallaigh of the West-on-Track campaign (this year’s Mayo Association Meitheal Award winners); Michael Smyth of FÓRSA trade union; and Neil Sheridan of Mayo County Council, a former student of Fr Micheál.

Charlie Keating will conclude events by singing Fr Micheál’s composition ‘The Ballad of Bina McLoughlin’, while Ger Reidy will recite a new poem honouring the Westport priest.

Following a cuppa and light refreshments, all will proceed to partake in a tree-planting ceremony at Fr Micheál’s cottage in Loughloon on the outskirts of Westport. It will not be a great big oak for planting but a blackthorn bush or fairy tree, which has a special resonance in Irish folklore. It is also in keeping with the flora of the surrounding countryside in the foothills of Croagh Patrick.

The celebrations will conclude with the laying of flowers on Fr Micheál’s grave in Aughavale Cemetery by his niece Justine, followed by a prayer and a song.

Thanks to Fr John Kenny, St Mary’s Parish and Westport Town Hall for supporting Féile Mac Gréil. All events are free and open to everybody, though the university events require registration. People are encouraged to support the event and honour a man who was proud of his áit dúchais and was never afraid to stand up for fair play, justice and tolerance.

Born: 11 June 1930, Main Street, Dundrum, Dublin City
Entered: 07 September 1948, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Ordained: 31 July 1962, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1965, Sacred Heart College SJ, Limerick
Died: 28 August 2007, Clover Well, Edgworthstown, County Longford

Left Society of Jesus: 14 August 1995

Parents were Charles and Josephine (Dillon)

Family lived at Cadogan Road, Fairview, Dublin, County Dublin. Fifth of eight boys.

Early education was at a North William Street Convent school and then at Scoil Iósep na mBratháir in Marino for nine years. He won a University scholarship

Baptised at Holy Cross Church, Dundrum, Dublin, 15/06/1930
Conformed at St Vincent de Paul, Marino, Dublin, 01/10/1940

1948-1950: St Mary's, Emo, , Novitiate
1950-1953: Rathfarnham Castle, Juniorate, UCD (BA)
1953-1956: St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, Philosophy
1956-1959: Coláiste Iognáid SJ, Galway,Regency
1959-1963: Milltown Park, Theology
1963-1964: Rathfarnham Castle, Tertianship
1964-1966: Crescent College, Limerick, Teaching
1966-1969: Coláiste Iognáid SJ, Galway, Teaching
1969-1973: St Francis Xavier’s, Gardiner Street, working
1973-1974: Rome, Italy (DIR) sabbatical at Il Centro Internazionale Pio XII a Rocca di Papa
1974-1979: St Ignatius, Leeson Street, National Promoter CLC
1979-1982: Gonzaga College SJ, National Promoter CLC
1982-1983: St Ignatius, Leeson Street, National Promoter CLC
1983-1990: Chaplain at Charles Lwanga Teachers’ Training College, Chisekesi, Zambia
1990-1991: John Austin House, studying at Syon House, High Street, Angmering, Sussex
1993-1995: St Aloysius Residence, Widside Place, Glasgow, Scotland (BRI) working

Leave of absence announced 22/06/1995. Dispensed by Rome from celibacy 22/09/1997. Married Marie McEvoy 2000

Adsdress 1996: Harcourt Road, Wood Green, London and Blessing Way, Barking, Essex, England
Address 2000: Rockfield Gardens, Maynooth, County Kildare & Blessing Way, Barking, Essex, England
Interfuse No 139 : Easter 2009

Obituary

Fr Val Mac Lochlainn (1930-2007) : former Jesuit

Paul Andrews (Interfuse Obituarist) writes:
Because Val died as a married man, in Edgeworthstown in August 2007, we never had an obituary of him in Interfuse. That was an oversight, because he was an Irish Jesuit for 47 years, and remained a close friend after he left the Society in 1995. What follows is a memoir put together with the help of Tom McGivern in Zambia,

Val's education took him from “Joey's” CBS in Fairview through Emo, UCD (BA in Latin and Irish), philosophy in Tullabeg, theology in Milltown and tertianship in Rathfarnham. He then taught for two years in the Crescent, and three in Galway, where he had done his Regency. There followed four years in Gardiner Street church, a sabbatical in Rome, and then the work for which he is probably best remembered, nine years as National Promoter for the Christian Life Communities. There were 310 CLC groups in Ireland, and Val worked assiduously to encourage them all. When he left the job in 1983 he wrote in his CV of “mental exhaustion resulting from over zealous commitment to study while at secondary school”.

At the age of 53 he volunteered for Zambia, and he worked there for seven years, mostly in Charles Lwanga Teacher Training College. He suffered greatly from the fact that his mother had fallen into dementia, and in 1981 had to be put into a home; she died in 1988.

For Val the 1990s were years of uncertainty. He returned to Ireland in 1990, and while working as a priest - mostly in Scotland - he went through a period of painful discernment, with strong help from his Irish Jesuit director. In 1995 he decided to leave the Society and the priesthood. Through the remaining twelve years of his life, in England and Ireland, he stayed in close contact with Jesuit friends, especially Michael O. Gallagher who now holds Val's old post in CLC. Val married an old friend in 2000, and contributed energetically to the parish of Edgeworthstown where they lived.

Val was a good man, a zealous priest, a brilliant footballer who might well have made the Dublin team, a cherished husband, and, above all, a searcher. May he rest in peace, having reached his goal.

Born: 19 February 1912, Wellington Place, Sunday’s Well, Cork City, County Cork
Entered: 01 September 1928, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 13 May 1942, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1945, Belvedere College SJ, Dublin
Died: 09 July 1995, Cherryfield Lodge, Dublin

Part of the University Hall, Hatch St, Dublin community at the time of death.

Father was a commercial traveller. and now supported with his mother by private means.

Youngest of two boys with five sisters.

Early education at Presentation Brothers College Cork (eleven years)

◆ Interfuse
Interfuse No 86 : July 1996

Obituary
An t-Ath Séamus Mac Amhlaoibh (1912-1995)

19th Feb. 1912: Born in Cork
Education: Presentation College, Cork
1st Sept. 1928: Entered Society at Tullabeg
2nd Sept. 1930: First Vows at Emo
1930 - 1933: Rathfarnham, Arts at UCD
1933 - 1936: Philosophy at Tuilabeg, Co. Offaly
1936 - 1938; Crescent College, Limerick, Teacher
1938 - 1939; Clongowes Wood College, Teacher
1939 - 1943; Theology at Milltown Park
13th May 1942: Ordained Priest at Milltown Park by Bishop J.C. McQuaid
1943 - 1944: Tertianship at Rathfarnham
1944 - 1945; Belvedere College, Teacher
1945 - 1969: St. Francis Xavier's, Ministering in the Church; Director, soldality for Irish Speakers and Night Workers
1969 - 1972: St. Ignatius College, Galway, Spiritual Father.
1972-1975: Sacred Heart Church, Limerick, Ministering in the Church
1975 - 1985: Rathfarnham, Giving Missions and the Spiritual Exercises
1985-1995: University Hall, Giving Missions and the Spiritual Exercises
Dec. 1994: Séamus had a recurrence of cancer shortly before Christmas. He suffered severe pain and was taken to the Meath where he spent Christmas. He moved to Cherryfield shortly afterwards and with the help of the Cancer Unit from Harold's Cross, which got his pain under control, he soon began to show an improvement. However, he knew his life was drawing to a close and he accepted that fact with wonderful equanimity and gratitude. He was always very happy to receive visitors right to the very end.
9th July 1995: Died at Cherryfield Lodge

I, and many more, loved, and love an t-Ath Séamus. It was clear after he died that his gentle touch would be missed by many. No more loyal friend ever existed. Happily Fr. Ted McAsey had taken a lovely, smiling photograph of Fr. Séamus in the garden of University Hall last summer. Now A4 copies are framed in many a room and convent. The feed-back on the joy and inspiration this has given is tangible.

Fr. Séamus MacAmhlaoibh left us on the 9th of July after seven long patient months on his bed, in full acceptance of God's will. He was ready to practise what he had preached. During the last six months of his life in Cherryfield his constant prayer was 'Yes', 'yes' to whatever God was sending him at that moment - whether it was something pleasant, like gifts of flowers, which really delighted him, or something painful and difficult, like the pain he experienced, or some visitor who stayed too long and drained his energy. At least twice he spoke of this form of praying and it seems it was the root of his very placid disposition that so impressed both the staff in Cherryfield and Séamus's visitors.

There is no more fitting place in which he should be remembered than in Timire an Chroí Naofa, for there was his heart - in the permanent message of the Heart of Christ, as we say in homely fashion “I agra Dé agus na comharsan” - in the love of God and the neighbour. Washing himself every morning he had pinned up before him the Intentions of the Apostleship of Prayer, so that he could know exactly what he was praying for in his Morning Offering. This exactitude was in all he did, all he planned, all his preparation of retreats, of sermons. No doubt of his belief in the well-known adage, “Is maith le Dia cabhair” - God likes help.

He was ever intent on promoting An Timire, so that the message of Christ and the illimitable and incredible love of his Heart might be spread everywhere. I think we can look to the famous promises given through St. Margaret Mary to those who foster that devotion, for an explanation of the great fruit of Fr. Séamus' work in Cuallacht Mhuire in Gardiner Street - so many of the Sodalists became priests and religious. These included the Dublin diocese, the Cistercians, Loreto, the Visitation, the Poor Clares, the Little Sisters of Charles de Foucauld. There would also be a long list of happily married couples who looked back to their days in the Cuallacht with affection and gratitude. For the same twenty four years he directed the Nightworkers sodality whose members showed the same warm and appreciative sentiments.

He was a gifted soulfriend, anamchara, with his wisdom, his patience and his sense of humour. These traits were notable in him as a preacher, but above all, as a director of retreats, long and short.

He had a caring way with people, available and generous with time. Sensitive, discerning, friendly, he was always ready to give a helping hand. Nevertheless, as he told a close friend, he somehow could sense if a person coming to him was a fraud. He surely met an odd one coming into the parlour in SFX!

He was an Irish priest. For him our Faith and our tradition were one, and it saddened him that so many, lay and clerical, were indifferent to the power in that tradition of holiness that has come down to us through our native language; for him it embodied our Christian 'dúchas', a word he loved.

He was always ready to help out when he could. On a number of Occasions he was asked to help out with the weekend retreats of the LRA. The response from the retreatants was striking. All experienced him as very encouraging, simple, very spiritual and sympathetic. A number asked to have him back again - 'Where have you been hiding?'

At Spanish Point, when a number of older Jesuits came together for a short holiday, Séamus joined them with his car. He was a delight, with a gift and a readiness to organise a wee outing or a game of cards. He was always thinking of others. He will be missed.

He was born in Cork on the 19th February, 1912, he died in Cherryfield on the 9th July, 1995. He entered the Society, aged 16, at Tullabeg, and was part of the move to Emo, where he took his first vows. He did Regency in the Crescent and Clongowes. Christmas cards still came to him in Cherryfield from friends made in those days. He spent twenty-four years in SFX, Gardiner Street, a few years in Galway, and then began his great work of giving Missions and Retreats, ten years based in Rathfarnham (1975-1985) and ten years in University Hall (1985-1995).
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

Jack Brennan SJ

Born: 17 July 1863, Staplestown Place, Dundalk, County Louth
Entered: 20 June 1883, Milltown Park, Dublin and Loyola House, Dromore, County Down
Ordained: 02 August 1896, St Francis Xavier's, Gardiner Street, Dublin
Final Vows: 15 August 1900
Died: 27 December 1942, St Francis Xavier's, Upper Gardiner Street, Dublin

Early education at St Mary’s Dundalk and Royal University, Dublin

Novice at Milltown Park, Dublin and Loyola House, Dromore, County Down
by 1899 at Leuven Belgium (BELG) making Tertianship

◆ Jesuits in Ireland : https://www.jesuit.ie/news/the-macardles-of-dundalk/

The Macardles of Dundalk
Desmond Gibney, Lecturer of Accounting at the National College of Ireland (NCI) in Dublin, has written an article in the Irish Jesuit quarterly Studies about the Macardle brothers of Dundalk. Both brothers were well established in their respective fields, one was in charge of a prominent brewery now owned by Diageo and another was a Jesuit priest (highlighted in the photo) who influenced the writing of James Joyce.
The article entitled ‘Irish Catholics in Early Twentieth Century Ireland: The Case of the Macardle Brothers’ explores the very different paths taken by the brothers of a wealthy Catholic family, around the time of the First World War, Easter Rising and establishment of the Free State. It deals with themes of loyalty of Irish Catholics to the crown, and expands on Fergus Campbell’s study of the ‘Irish establishment’ around the time of the First World War.
Thomas Macardle, was chairman and owner of Macardles Brewery in Dundalk which continues with the brewing of Macardles Ale today. He received a knighthood for his services to British army recruitment during the Great War. His daughter Dorothy was a famous historian and writer, and also served time in jail for her republican activities.
Andrew Macardle, served two terms as Superior in Gardiner Street. He was renowned for his skills in attracting converts to the Catholic faith. He taught James Joyce in two Jesuit schools, Belvedere and Clongowes. In fact, Andrew sent a seven-year old Joyce for punishment for the offence of using vulgar language! Notwithstanding that, Joyce used Andrew as the inspiration for the benign character of McGlade in ‘A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man’.
Summer 2018, Studies, Volume 107, No. 264, pp199-210,

◆ Irish Province News

Irish Province News 18th Year No 2 1943
Obituary :
Father Andrew Macardle SJ (1863-1942)

Fr Macardle was born on 17th July, 1863, of a well-known Dundalk family. being the son of the late Mr. E. H. Macardle, J.P.
He was educated at the Marist College Dundalk, and after securing his First Arts in the Royal. University entered the Society on 20th June 1883. his noviceship being spent at Milltown Park and Dromore House Co. Down. His studies both in rhetoric and in philosophy and theology were all done at Milltown Park. He spent three years as master at Clongowes and Belvedere before beginning his higher studies.
He was ordained priest at St. Francis Xavier's Church, Gardiner Street on St. Ignatius' Day, 1896, by the Most Rev. William Walsh and made his third year probation at Tronchiennes with five other members of the Province, of whom Fr. Stanislaus McLoughlin is the sole survivor.
After a year at the Crescent College as Minister, he was appointed to the mission staff, and for the next ten years gave missions and retreats in all parts of the country. For four years he laboured at the Crescent as master and operarius till his appointment as Rector of St Ignatius' College, Galway. During the ten years (1908-1919) of his Rectorate he worked indefatigably in promoting the welfare of the Church and College. To him is due the purchase of the then derelict fields opposite St. Ignatius', and of the Protestant house of worship now the Columban Hall, which has proved, ever since, so useful an adjunct to the College. The familiar statue of the Immaculate Conception in Carrara marble, which he erected outside the Residence was the gift of his mother. The present existing Stations of the Cross in the Church were also donations during his period of office, and the present Sanctuary flooring in tiles was laid by direct labour under his personal supervision. In addition to his other duties in the Church he directed the ladies' sodality, and was choir-master during the ten years he spent in Galway. Under his capable management the College grew in prestige and in the numbers of boys on the school-roll. Three out of the four scholarships granted by the University in those years were secured by the College, and their holders now occupy honourable positions in the civil life of Galway. During this sojourn in the west he had many contracts and made many life-long friends, and appears to have been a power in the land.
In 1919 began that association with Gardiner Street, which was to continue till his death. He was twice Superior - from 1919 to 1922 and again from 1928 till 1934. It fell to his lot during the latter period to organise the celebrations of the first centenary of the opening of the Church as well as those of the Eucharistic Congress Week, details of which will be found in the Province News July and October, 1932. A large measure of the success of both these remarkable functions is attributable to Fr. Macardle's careful planning, which was best seen in the arrangements for the Slav Mass and necessitated much correspondence with Prelates on the Continent.
He directed for years the Ignatian Sociality and the Association of Perpetual Adoration and work for poor Churches. In connection with the latter activity he was able in 1939 to send to the Primate of Spain a magnificent collection of sacred Vestments, Missals. Chalices and other altar requisites to help replace what had been destroyed by the sacrilegious fury of the Reds during the Spanish civil war.
Fr. Macardle excelled as a confessor and as instructor of converts. As early as his first mission, or Retreat given as a tertian in Jersey he showed himself the possessor of special gifts in the matter of converting non-Catholics, and Canon Hourigan, the well-known Irish pastor on the island, invited him back later to repeat his former successes as preacher and apologist. A conservative estimate of the number of converts he made during his priestly ministry would be six hundred and more.
His devotion to this form of apostolate knew no bounds. His leisure hours in the evening he gave over to the instruction of would-be converts, and he continued to instruct them in the parlour, almost to the day of his death, during the tedious months in which he struggled so manfully with the mortal disease which finally carried him off on 27th December. R.I.P.

We append an appreciation of him which appeared in the Standard of 8th January, 1943, from the pen of an extern :
All that is best in Catholic and Christian Ireland will mourn the passing of Father Andrew Macardle, S.J., truly a great priest, who, in his days pleased God.
Having dedicated himself to God in the Society of Jesus, he became impregnated with its spirit to an extent which few have surpassed. To every task assigned him, he brought the same great Christian culture and kindliness, industry and patience. A true priest and Christian gentleman, he could not but have a host of friends. Yet perhaps his greatest admirers are to be found among the parishioners of St. Francis Xavier's, Gardiner Street, for whom he spent himself unsparingly during so many years.
Each day found him for long hours in the Sacred Tribunal, where his wise guidance and sympathetic counsel was sought by a clientele varied as human nature itself.
Driven by failing health from his official duties as a confessor he continued to exercise his influence on souls from his private room, truly a fitting preparation for the account he was so soon to render.
His cultured bearing, breadth of view based on sound theological knowledge had the happiest results with prospective converts. Yet perhaps the greatest fruit of his ministry was gathered from his work as a confessor, for his patience and self-sacrifice made of him another Christ.
In the pulpit, at the Ignatian Sodality of which he was Spiritual Director, in the midst of his devoted flock, Christian culture served always as the handmaid of Christian faith.
So it was that he was venerated as a Superior loved and trusted as a confessor and spiritual father and honoured as a priest a true Jesuit because in faith and hope a soldier, whilst in charity possessing the gentleness of the spotless Lamb of God. “For the greater glory of God”, let us, priests and people, be true to his blessed memory in faithfulness to the example he has left us.

◆ James B Stephenson SJ Menologies 1973

Father Andrew McArdle 1863-1942
Fr Andrew McArdle was a Dundalk man, born there on July 17th 1863, of a well known family. He entered the Society in 1883, having already go his First Arts exam at the Royal University.

He became Rector of Galway in 1908. It was during his term as Rector that the Columban Hall was purchased. The statue of Our Lady in front of the house was a gift from his mother. The Stations of the Cross in the Church were also presented to him by a benefactor. Under his regime the College grew immensely in prestige.

In 1919 he began his connection with Gardiner Street. He was twice Superior, from 1919-1922 and 1928-1934. He celebrated the centenary of the Church and all its functions in connection with the Eucharistic Congress of 1932 were ably arranged by him.

He was outstanding in the work of the confessional, and did much to build up the reputation of Gardiner Street for that ministry. He also excelled as an instructor of converts, this dated from his first Mission in Jersey. A conservative estimate of the number of converts he made during his priestly life would be 600 and more.

He died on December 27th 1942.

◆ The Crescent : Limerick Jesuit Centenary Record 1859-1959

Bonum Certamen ... A Biographical Index of Former Members of the Limerick Jesuit Commnnity

Father Andrew Macardle (1863-1942)

Was born in Dundalk, educated at the Marist College in that town, and entered the Society in 1883, after he had already commenced his Arts studies in the Royal University. All his higher studies were made in Ireland. He was ordained in Dublin in 1896. Father Macardle first arrived at the Crescent in 1897 but remained only a year as he had to leave to make his tertianship at Tronchiennes. He returned, however, in 1899 and remained for two years on the teaching staff but also gained useful experience in church work. For the next eight years, Father Macardle was a member of the mission staff until his appointment to the rectorship of St Ignatius, Galway in 1908. He remained in office there for ten years. During his time in Galway, most of the permanent decorative schemes for the church were implemented by him. The rest of his life was to be passed in Gardiner St., Dublin, where he was twice superior, 1919-22 and 1928-34. Father Macardle was one of the best-known priests of his time. He was in much demand as a preacher for great occasions, in England as well as in Ireland. But one aspect of his work was never known or mentioned in his lifetime: his work in the instruction of converts. He was a master of patient and urbane exposition of the Church's claims, qualities of paramount importance in this most exacting apostolic work. Even in his closing years, he would spend interminable hours in the parlour with prospective converts. When the final summons came, this great priest could, under God, account for over six hundred conversions to the true faith.

Born: 12 February 1886, Miltown Malbay, County Clare
Entered: 08 September 1903, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Died: 29 September 1948, West Cliff, Spanish Point, County Clare, Ireland

Left Society of Jesus: August 1904

Parents farmers.

Fourth of a family of nine, six brothers (1 deceased) and three sisters (2 deceased).

Early education was at a local NS, and then with a tutor from Dublin. At 11 he went to Clongowes

https://www.ancestry.com/genealogy/records/daniel-ignatius-macclancy-24-15x13lc
Daniel Ignatius MacClancy
Birth
12 Feb 1886 - Miltown Malbay, Clare, Ireland
Death
29 Sep 1948 - West Cliff, Spanish Point, Clare, Ireland
Mother
Mary E McMahon
Father
James Snr MacClancy

Born: 26 July 1793, Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 07 September 1813, Hodder, Stonyhurst, England - Angliae Province (ANG)
Died: 19 May 1821, Clongowes Wood College, Naas, County Kildare

◆ Fr Edmund Hogan SJ “Catalogica Chronologica” :
This pious Scholastic died at Clongowes 19/05/1821
Loose leaf note in CatChrn : Entitled “Left Stonyhurst for Castle Brown” : 06 May 1814

◆ George Oliver Towards Illustrating the Biography of the Scotch, English and Irish Members SJ
MAC CLUE, JOSEPH. This good Brother, after a long and painful illness, died at Clongowes Wood, on the 19th of May, 1821. Soc. 8.

Born: 20 February 1863, Cork City, County Cork
Entered: 07 September 1881, Milltown Park, Dublin
Ordained: 30 July 1899, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 05 August 1901
Died: 26 September 1931, Dublin

Part of Mungret College community, Limerick at time of his death.

Early education at Castleknock College, Ratcliffe College and St Stanislaus College SJ, Tullabeg

by 1900 at Drongen Belgium (BELG) making Tertianship
Came to Australia 1895

◆ Irish Province News

Irish Province News 7th Year No 1 1932

Obituary :

Fr William McCormack

Fr. McCormack died in Dublin, Saturday 26 September 1931. For some years previously he had been in very feeble health. It could scarcely be said that he suffered from any disease to which a descriptive name could easily be given, but there was a gradual sinking, a steady wasting away until the end came last September.

He first saw the light in Cork 20 Feb. 1863, was educated in Tullabeg, and began his novitiate at Milltown Park 7 Sept. 1881. In the same place he did Rhetoric for one year and Philosophy for three. Six years at Clongowes and two at Mungret as Master and Prefect brought him to 1895. Even at this early date the nerves were giving considerable trouble, and he was sent on a trip to Australia in the hope that a long sea voyage would bring about a recovery.
On his return the following year he began Theology at Milltown, worked at it for three years, and then went to Tronchiennes. From 1900 to his death in 1931 he was stationed either at Galway, Clongowes, or Mungret. In all, dating from his Philosophy, he spent 17 years in Mungret, 14 in Clongowes, 8 in Galway.
He was Minister in Galway for 3 years, and, in spite of his bad health had change of the “big study” in Clongowes for five. In the Catalogue he has the honourable record - an 35. Mag.
Nearly the whole of Fr. McCormack's life in the Society was one long struggle against feeble health, and,as can be gathered from the above record, a victorious struggle. With the exception of the last few years, when he was utterly prostrate, he ever and always put in an honest day's work. He was efficient, very punctual, and quite ready to meet any emergency that might arise in the discharge of his duty.
Despite the nerve trouble he was generally in good humour, hearty, enjoyed a joke, and was not a little amused by the small foibles and peculiarities inseparable from every day life, even in the Society.
The source of all his strength was a fund of genuine holiness from which he constantly drew to support his suffering life, and which enabled him to persevere along the path of duty even to the very end.
The following appreciation has been kindly sent us by Fr. J. Casey and J. Mahoney :
“The last eight years of Fr. McCormack's life were spent at Mungret. Owing to his chronic ill-health he was unable to undertake much school-work. But as a confessor his services were much in demand , and the large numbers who thronged to his confessional testified to the great influence which he exercised in the spiritual life of the boys. As a preacher too he was very successful - the boys often expressed their appreciation of his sermons and instructions. He frequently gave retreats in convents and convent-schools, and he acted as extraordinary confessor to the nuns of the Mercy Convent, Nenagh. He was devoted to the sick and poor in the neighbourhood of Mungret, all of whom will feel that in the death of Fr. McCormack they have lost a very true and devoted friend.
Fr. McCormack’s influence for good must to a very great extent be ascribed to the innate kindness and gentleness of disposition. He suffered frequently from nervous prostration and the mental depression which companies such forms of disease, but neither physical nor mental suffering could deprive him of that inbred courtesy which was one of his characteristic traits, and which gained for him the respect and love of all with whom he came in contact”.
When stationed in Galway Fr. McCormack did full Church work. In addition he was Prefect of Discipline in the College, and taught some classes.
It will interest some people to know that he often spoke with appreciation of the fact that he studied Homer when a boy in Tullabeg under Fr Henry Browne S. J.

◆ The Clongownian, 1932

Obituary

Father William MacCormack SJ

Father William MacCormack SJ, was born in Cork, February, 1863, and was educated at Tullabeg. He entered the Society in 1881, and after the usual years of noviceship and study, he went to Clongowes as Prefect. Here he remained for six years, when he was transferred to Mungret. After two years there he was, owing to ill health, sent to Australia, where he remained a year, returning in 1896 to Milltown Park for Theology. He was ordained in 1899, and after a further year on the Continent, he was sent back to Clongowes to take charge of the Big Study. From 1908 to 1914 he was on the teaching staff in Mungret. From 1914-17 he was Minister in Galway, returning to Clongowes, this time to take charge of the Small Study until 1920. From 1926-23 he was stationed in Galway, whence he was transferred to Mungret, where he remained till his death.

Father McCormack was nearly all his life in, very indifferent health; yet, notwithstanding, he ever did a day's work. In the Study Hall he was most efficient, in the Class Room most effective; as a Minister he was most successful. He was endowed with a charming personality. He captivated the boys who had the privilege of being in his class and many of them afterwards spoke of him with sincere affection. As a companion he was most lovable, ever ready to enjoy a joke, but never saying an unkind word about others. He was an excellent cricketer and tennis player, and could play a good game of golf. Games often test a man, but Father McCormack would never lose his good humour and patience on the links, even when his companion was simply outrageous. As a Confessor his advice and direction were keenly sought and appreciated; as a preacher he was quiet but apostolic; as a retreat giver he was a great favourite. He had a keen sense of justice and would never stand for any harshness to the poor. It was hard for him to do, and to be, all that, for he was never for any length of time in good health. He suffered greatly, but, nothwithstanding it all, he was ever the gentleman, smiling, kind and unselfish. Some of us have lost a dear personal friend. May. God have mercy on his soul. RIP

◆ The Mungret Annual, 1932 : Golden Jubilee

Obituary

Father William MacCormack SJ

On Saturday 26th, the news of Father McCormack's death reached us. It was the inevitable end of a life-long struggle against ill-health carried on with a stern determination on his part never to yield any ground to an enemy that, even in his early manhood attempted to lessen the usefulness of his life in God's service. Except during the last few years of his life, when the weight of years had crushed his vitality and completely prostrated him, he worked constantly and strenuously. He was a kindly master, but efficient and never wanting in correct judgment of the boys with whom his class work brought him into contact; ready, too, to meet any emergency that might arise in the discharge of his duty.

He first came to Mungret in 1907, and continued there until 1914, when he left to take up duties as minister in St Ignatius College, Galway His name will awaken in the minds of boys of that period memories of his prowess on the cricket pitch, where on some memorable occasions he carried his bat.

Returning to Mungret in 1923, he spent the last eight years of his life there. Owing to his chronic ill-health, he was unable to under take much school work. But as a confessor his services were much in demand, and the large numbers that thronged to his confessional testified to the great influence he exercised in the spiritual life of the boys.

As a preacher, too, he was very successful - the boys often expressed their appreciation of his sermons and instructions. He frequently gave Retreats in convents and convent-schools. He was devoted to the sick and poor in the neighbourhood of Mungret, all of whom will feel that in the death of Father McCormack they have lost a true and. devoted friend.

His influence for good must, to a very great extent, be ascribed to his innate kindness and gentleness of disposition. Neither physical nor mental suffering could deprive him of that inbred courtesy which was one of his most characteristic traits, and which gained for him the respect and love of all with whom he came into contact. Lux perpetua luceat ei.

Born: 05 February 1932, Iona Road, Glasnevin, Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 02 October 1950, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Died 25 February 2013, L'Hôpital Riviera-Chablais, Chemin. de Mottex, Blonay, Switzerland

Left Society of Jesus: 15 June 1961

Father, James, was a doctor. Father, step-mother and family lived at Wilkinstown, Navan, County Meath. Mother was Eileen (Brangan).

Second eldest of five step-brothers and have one step-sister.

Educated at a Convent school in Kells, County Meath and a National school in Wilkinstown for two years, he then went to Clongowes Wood College SJ for six years.

Baptised at St Kevin’s, Harrington St, Dublin, 14/02/1932
Conformed at St John the Baptist, Kilberry, County Meath by Dr D’Alton of Meath, 03/05/1944

1950-1952: St Mary's, Emo, Novitiate
1952-1955: Rathfarnham Castle, Juniorate
1955-1958: St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, Philosophy
1958-1960: Mungret College SJ, Regency
1960-1961: Belvedere College SJ, Regency

Address 2000 & 1991: Château la Bergère, Château de la Tuillière, Jogny, Vaud, Switzerland

https://notices.irishtimes.com/death/macdonald-gerald/24691405?from_mobile=1

MacDONALD, Gerald: Death

MacDONALD, Gerald (Vevey, Switzerland) - February 25, 2013. Deeply regretted by by his loving wife Susy and son Alain, brothers, sister, nieces and nephews and all his relatives and friends. Funeral took place in Vevey on March 1st. Requiem Mass will be celebrated in The Jesuit Church, Milltown Park at 11am on Saturday March 16th.

https://www.hommages.ch › gerald-macdonald › pdf

« La vie semble si pleine de lumière ce soir ici que, Si jamais je m’en vais, ce sera pour un pays Qui nous appartiendra ». Anna Lucia Joyce à son père
Dans la matinée du lundi 25 février 2013,
Monsieur Gérald MACDONALD
1932
s’est endormi à l’hôpital de Mottex, à Blonay, entouré de l’amour des siens et des bons soins du personnel compétent à qui va toute notre gratitude.
Font part de leur tristesse :
Susy MacDonald-Krähenbuhl ;
Alain MacDonald ;
Sa sœur, ses frères, ses belles-sœurs, ses beaux-frères, ses nièces, ses neveux, ses cousines, ses cousins, leur famille ;
ainsi que les familles parentes, alliées et amies.
Gérald repose en la crypte du cimetière de Vassin, à La Tour-de-Peilz. La cérémonie d’adieux aura lieu au temple St-Martin, à Vevey, le vendredi 1er mars, à 14 heures 30.
En lieu et place de fleurs, un don peut-être adressé à : Kasa Komitas Action Suisse-Arménie CCP 17-274614-1.
Un merci tout particulier au Dr Emery, au Dr Héritier, ainsi qu’au personnel de l’EMS Le Maillon, à Blonay
Adresse de la famille :
Madame Susy MacDonald, ch. du Vallon 61, 1814 La Tour-de-Peilz.
Cet avis tient lieu de lettre de faire part.

Born: 24 June 1810, Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 28 July 1827, Montrouge/Avignon, France - Galliae Province (GALL)
Ordained: 1841
Final Vows: 15 August 1846
Died: 21 August 1893, St Stanislaus, Tullabeg, County Offaly

by 1841 at Leuven (BELG) studying Theology 1

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
He was an outstanding figure in Clongowes where he held many offices - sub-Minister 1857-1858; Vice-Rector 1858-1860; Teacher of the highest classes; Prefect of Choir and Music.
1878 He was in poor health and was sent to Milltown.
1888 He was sent to Tullabeg where he lingered in poor health for five years, dying there 21 August 1893. He was attended there in his last hours by the saintly Charles Young. he had been 67 years in the Society.

Born: 26 April 1926, Iona Road, Glasnevin, Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 07 September 1944, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Ordained: 31 July 1958, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 05 November 1977, Canisius College, Chikuni, Zambia
Died: 04 May 2005, Victoria Hospital, Lusaka, Zambia - Zambia-Malawi Province (ZAM)

Part of the Nakambala Church, Mazabuka, Zambia community at the time of death

Transcribed HIB to ZAM : 03 December 1969

Father was a doctor. Father, step-mother and family lived at Wilkinstown, Navan, County Meath.

Eldest of five step-brothers and have one step-sister.

Educated at a Christian Brothers school in Kells, County Meath for five years, he then went to Clongowes Wood College SJ for six years.

by 1953 at Chikuni, Chisekesi, N Rhodesia (POL Mi) Regency - fifth wave of Zambian Missioners
by 1967 at SFX University Antigonish Canada (CAN S) studying

◆ Companions in Mission 1880- Zambia-Malawi (ZAM) Obituaries :
Fr Norman MacDonald was born in Dublin on 26 April 1926. His mother died while he was still a child. However he had stepbrothers, three of whom came to see him while he was in Zambia.

He went to Clongowes Wood College as a young boy and had the nickname of 'Curley Wee', not after the cartoon character but because of his short curly hair at that time. After secondary school, he entered the Jesuits at Emo Park in 1944 and pursued the normal study course of arts, philosophy and theology. He went to the then Northern Rhodesia in 1951 as a scholastic, learned ciTonga and taught for two years in Canisius Secondary School, as well as being involved in brick making.

Returning to Ireland for theology, he was ordained priest at Milltown Park Dublin on 31 July 1958. After tertianship, he returned to Northern Rhodesia and was minister at Chikuni for a year.

Looking at his curriculum, Fr Norman was parish priest or assistant parish priest for over forty years. This was work he was good at and did well. He first went to Kasiya Parish (1961-1970), then to Mazabuka to Assumption Parish (1970-1976). His longest continuous stint was at Chilalatambo as parish priest from 1976 to 1993 – 17 years. He built a number of small churches at the outstations where he went to say Mass and over a number of years he was part of a team involved in translating the Bible into ciTonga.

He lived on his own over these years and established a daily routine for himself, everything in its place, an unchanging routine meticulously laid out. He was attached to Mukasa Community in Choma 60 miles away and would come in once a week to load up with supplies, arriving at a set time and departing next morning. Before he stopped smoking, it was a lesson in itself to see him prepare and light his pipe in the evening. Everything he did was carefully jotted down, things done, things to be done, in his round copperplate almost childlike handwriting.

He loved the game of rugby, for he was on the school rugby team as a boy, a solid fullback. In fact when he went on leave he opted for the winter months so that he could attend the rugby matches in Ireland.

A year spent in Chikuni parish brought him again to Mazabuka, this time to Nakambala parish in 1994. As he worked there, a day came which was to change his life. In early July he got a stroke, just as he parked his vanette and was getting out of it. He was incapacitated and was brought to John Chula House in Lusaka. His mind and speech were clear. Slowly he began to mend; he got to the stage that with a walker he could make his way to the dining room for morning tea. He was brought to Victoria hospital for treatment and there he fell out of bed and broke his shoulder. This really set him back and he seemed worse than when he came in at first. However he began again with physiotherapy and slowly, oh so slowly, he tried to get onto his feet again but with little improvement. He was aided to get in and out of bed and at night a minder was there, William by name. He complained of stomach trouble, an ulcer he called it and would take antacid tablets before bed. As the stomach pain got worse he was taken to Victoria hospital with his minder William. Stomach cancer was diagnosed. On the morning he was to be operated on, he asked William to hold his hand, and thus he died on 4 May 2005 at 05.10, a complete surprise!

His brother Paddy came from Australia for the funeral with Mass at Nakambala and afterwards Norman was buried at Chikuni. Fr O'Keeffe gave the homily in ciTonga and Fr Walsh in English.

During his period at John Chula house, from the time he came until he died, Fr Norman showed extraordinary courage. His sense of humour, his day-to-day acceptance of his condition and his lack of self-pity were the fruit of his inner life. A fellow Jesuit described Fr Norman as 'a nice person' in the sense that he had a pleasant disposition and was very pleasant to visit – and that does sum him up.

Note from Philip O’Keeffe Entry
And now the darkness of the open door into some small African house is reflected on the blue water across the river where he has now gone. Maureen and Bill, his parents are there to meet him. Rufina Mwiinga and Jennifer Ndima and Norman MacDonald and many many others are there too.

https://ordo.jesuitssouthern.africa/obit/05-04-2005%20%E2%80%93%20Norman%20MacDonald.pdf

Obituary

Norman MacDonald (1926-2005) : Zambia-Malawi Province

April 26th 1926: Born in Dublin, Ireland
September 7th 1944: Entered in Emo Park
July 31st 1958 Ordainedin Milltown Park, Dublin
November 5th 1977 Final Vows in Chikuni
May 4th 2005: Died in Lusaka

From Newsletter for Zambia-Malawi:
Norman's mother died while he was still an infant and her only child. However, his father remarried and Norman had five stepbrothers and a stepsister; three of the brothers and the sister came to see him while he was in Zambia.

He went to Clongowes Wood College as a young boy and had the nickname of “Curley Wee”, not after the cartoon character, but because of his sort curly hair at that time. After secondary school, he entered the Jesuit Novitiate at Emo Park in 1944 and pursued the normal study course of arts, philosophy and theology. He was sent to the then Northern Rhodesia in 1953 for regency, where he learned Chitonga and taught for two years in Canisius Secondary School.

Returning to Ireland for theology, he was ordained at Milltown Park on July 3154 1953. After tertianship, he returned to N. Rhodesia and was minister of Chikuni for a year.

Looking at his curriculum vitae, we see Norman was parish priest, or assistant parish priest for over forty years, work he enjoyed and did well. He first went to Kasiya Parish (1961-1970), then to Mazabuka to Assumption Parish (1970-1976). His longest continuous stint was at Chilalantambo as parish priest from 1976 to 1993, 17 years. There he built a number of small churches at the out stations where he went to say Mass and was part of a team involved in translating the Bible into Chitonga over a number of years.

He lived on his own over these years and established a daily routine for himself, everything in its place, an unchanging routine meticulously laid out. He was attached to the Mukasa Community in Choma 80 km away and would come in once a week to load up with supplies, arriving at a set time and departing the next morning. Before he stopped smoking, it was a lesson in itself to see him prepare and light his pipe in the evening. Everything he did was carefully jotted down, things done, things to be done, in his round copperplate almost childlike handwriting.

He loved the game of rugby. As a boy, he himself was on the school rugby team, a solid fullback, When he went on his home leave, he opted for the winter months so that he could watch the rugby matches in Ireland.

After Chilalantambo, he spent a year in Chikuni Parish and then on to Mazabuka, this time to Nakambala parish in 1994. As he worked there, a day came which was to change his life. In early July he got a stroke, just as he parked his vanette and was getting out of it. Incapacitated, he was brought to John Chula House in Lusaka. His mind and speech were clear. Slowly he began to mend; he got to the stage that with a walker he could make his way to the dining room for meals. A little setback sent him to Victoria hospital where lie fell out of bed and broke his shoulder. This really set him back but he began again with physiotherapy and slowly, oh so slowly, he tried to get on his feet again but without much success. He returned to the hospital on the morning of 3rd May because of severe abdominal pains. Early the following morning he asked William Sakala, his attendant, to hold his hand and thus he died.

A tribute from a Bishop: Bishop Emilio Patriarca, Monze
Our sincere condolence on the death of Fr. Mac Donald. He was a great missionary and did a lot for our people. He gave inspiration to our young Priests beginning their parish work and we thank God for his life among us. He will be greatly missed.

A tribute from a Scholastic: Kenneth Simalalo, S.J.
I am saddened that a friend and father has left us. At the same time I am glad that he has gone to meet the Lord whom he served so tirelessly among his Tonga people for many years....I would be telling myself that one day I should be like him in his love for the people in his care. It was then that my desire to become a Jesuit was strengthened...... Fr. Norman influenced and inspired me in many ways; he really has left a mark on me. I thank the Lord for what Norman was to me and to many youths in the places that he worked. I will miss a friend and father in him.

◆ The Clongownian, 2005

Obituary

Father Norman MacDonald SJ

Following his “stroke” at the age of 78, Norman was reminded in jest that he had always regarded years beyond the age of 75 (at which age his father died) as "”xtra time”. He responded, while smiling from his wheelchair, “yes, but I didn't want to spend it on the bench”. He died some months later and is buried among the people he served in Zambia for more than forty-five years.

Norman was born in Navan in 1926 where his father was a family doctor. His mother died one year later and Norman was integrated into a family that eventually grew to six boys and one girl. As a boy he had green fingers and enjoyed all aspects of gardening, bee keeping and domestic farming. In Clongowes “Curley Wee" showed above average ability in team sports and became a skilled fullback or scrum half on the SCT in 1944 (one of the years CWC did not win the cup!). He enjoyed nusic and played in the Gondoliers at Christmas as well is being a regular choir member. He enjoyed all aspects of his time in Clongowes.

He entered the Jesuit Novitiate at Emo in September 1944 following an Irish holiday during which he joined his father on a 500 mile cycling tour around Ireland: good training for hard times ahead! (Doctors were allowed 8 gallons of petrol monthly.) He moved through Rathfarnham, Tullabeg and Milltown before ordination in 1958. Three of those years were spent at the Jesuit mission station in Chikuni, Zambia. He often said that pushing a Raleigh around Ireland was easy when compared to the six week journey by boat to Cape Town and train to Chikuni: a journey he subsequently made many times in twelve hours by jet. He was ordained in July 1958 and returned to Zambia in 1961 and apart from visits home or to Canada or the USA for different courses the remainder of his busy life was spent among bis parishioners there.

Norman was a warm and caring person with a keen sense of humour. He maintained close contact with family officiating at weddings and baptisms where possible. He travelled home to his father's funeral in 1975. Family also went to visit him in his “native habitat”. Rugby football was his passion particularly when his Alma Mater or any Irish team were involved but he also enthused about receiving the late Micheal O'Hehir's commentaries via Radio Brazaville in the early days of international sport. In general he enjoyed good health but was forever grateful to his caregivers in Zambia who brought him through a severe attack of cerebral malaria. Perhaps his greatest contribution was being one of a small team that made the good news of the Bible available by translation to more than half a million people. His parishioners, colleagues and friends in Zambia celebrated his life in a genuine and moving fashion at his funeral.

Many in Zambia and will miss him as will his family in Ireland: his brothers Gerald (OC 1950), Dermot (OC 1951), Jimmy (OC 1958), Paddy (OC 1958), Donal (OC 1960), and his sister Caroline (nee Byrne).

Born: 17 July 1941, Glendore, Dangan, Newcastle, County Galway
Entered: 02 November 1960, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Died: 25 August 2014, Booterstown Avenue, Blackrock, County Dublin

Left Society of Jesus: 23 August 1969

Born in Galway City.

Father (Douglas) was an engineer. Mother was Imelda (Davis).

Elder of two boys with four sisters.

Educated for two years at a Convent school in Galway he then was at the Christian Brothers school for one year. He then went to Coláiste Iognáid SJ for ten years.

Baptised at St Joseph’s, Rahoon, 23/07/1941
Confirmed at St Nicholas Galway, 31/03/1954

1960-1962: St Mary's, Emo, Novitiate
1962-1965: Rathfarnham Castle, Juniorate,. UCD
1965-1968: Chantilly France (GAL S) studying Philosophy
1968-1969: Clongowes Wood College SJ, Regency

Address 2000: St Paul’s College, Sybill Hill, Raheny, Dublin City & Booterstown Avenue, Blackrock, County Dublin

https://rip.ie/death-notice/ron-macdonald-dublin-222081

The death has occurred of

Ron Macdonald
Booterstown Ave., Dublin
Macdonald Ron, Booterstown Ave., Co. Dublin. August 25th. 2014. (Suddenly), will sadly missed by his brother Peter, sisters Dell, Mary, Patsy and Mel, niece Amy, extended family and friends.

Reposing at Thomas Murphy and Sons Funeral Home, Boghall Road, Bray on Wednesday afternoon from 3pm with removal at 4.15pm to the Church of The Assumption, Booterstown Ave., arriving at 5pm. Funeral Mass on Thursday morning at 10am followed by interment in Shaganagh Cemetery.

Born: 09 March 1805, Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 19 October 1822, St Andrea, Rome - Romanae Province (ROM)
Ordained: 13 June1835, St Patrick's College, Maynooth, County Kildare
Final Vows: 02 February 1846
Died: 26 October 1866, St Francis Xavier, Gardiner St, Dublinn

James McDonnell
Ordained at St Patrick’s College Maynooth, 13 June 1826, having studied Theology at Clongowes.

by 1829 in Clongowes
by 1839 doing Tertianship in Stonyhurst (ANG)

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
Early education was at Clongowes.

After First Vows he was sent for studies to Rome and France. he was said at this time to be a model of candour and innocence.
After studies he was sent for Regency to teach at Clongowes, and was a great success.
1830 He went to Rome again for Dogmatic Theology, and finished his Theology in England, where he was Ordained.
After Ordination he was sent again to Clongowes, where he taught Modern Languages and had charge of the Choir.
Later he was sent to Gardiner St, where he suffered a good deal during the remainder of his life. he suffered from a nervous debility as well as other physical problems, and this rendered him unfit for work. He died there, greatly regretted by his many friends 26 October 1866.

He was a man with an exceedingly quick mind, with a remarkable taste for musical knowledge, and was gifted with a very good voice. His zeal, lively faith and charity won him much admiration from the community in which he lived.

Born: 15 February 1870, Belfast, County Antrim
Entered: 28 September 1888, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 31 July 1904
Final Vows: 15 August 1907, St Francis Xavier, Gardiner Street, Dublin
Died: 24 March 1950, Milltown Park, Dublin

Brother of Andrew MacErlean - LEFT 1908

Educated at St Malachy’s College, Belfast

by 1893 at Exaeten College, Limburg, Netherlands (GER) studying
by 1895 at St Aloysius, Jersey Channel Islands (FRA) studying
by 1906 at Manresa, Spain (ARA) making Tertianship
by 1925 at Rome, Italy (ROM) writing Province History

◆ Royal Irish Academy : Dictionary of Irish Biography, Cambridge University Press online :
MacErlean, John Campbell (Mac Fhir Léinn, Eoin)
by Vincent Morley

MacErlean, John Campbell (Mac Fhir Léinn, Eoin) (1870–1950), Irish-language scholar and church historian, was born 15 February 1870 in Belfast, son of Andrew MacErlean, legal clerk, and Eliza MacErlean (née Campbell). Having attended St Malachy's College, Belfast, he entered the Jesuit novitiate at Tullabeg, King's Co. (1888), and graduated with a BA from the Royal University (1892). After further study on the Continent he returned to Ireland and taught classics and four modern languages (Irish, French, Italian, and German) at Clongowes Wood College, Co. Kildare, for six years. His colleagues at Clongowes included Fr Patrick Dinneen (qv), and MacErlean has been credited with arousing the latter's interest in Irish.

MacErlean showed an interest in Irish as early as 1887 when he collected phrases while on a brief visit to Rathlin Island, although it was not until 1895 that he published this material. He was elected to the Gaelic League's central branch in 1899 and his first scholarly work, an edition of the poetry of Geoffrey Keating (qv), appeared in 1900. After his ordination in 1904 he completed his religious training at Barcelona, where he also acquired a knowledge of Spanish. On his return to Ireland he began to research his most important work, an edition of the poetry of Dáibhí Ó Bruadair (qv) that appeared in three volumes between 1910 and 1917. In the same period he assisted his fellow Jesuit Edmund Hogan (qv) in the preparation of Onomasticon Goedelicum, an index to Irish placenames that was published in 1910. MacErlean was also drawn towards church history: in 1912 he edited seven poems addressed to Eoin Ó Cuileanáin, bishop of Raphoe (1629–c.1658) in the first volume of Archivium Hibernicum; in 1914 his study of the synod of Ráith Bressail, based on the evidence of Keating's Foras feasa ar Éirinn, appeared in the same journal; for many years he was a frequent reviewer of books on church history for Studies; and in 1939 he argued in Analecta Bollandiana that the ‘Silva Focluti’ mentioned in the Confessio of St Patrick (qv) should be identified with modern Magherafelt. Charged by his superiors with the task of collecting materials for a history of the Irish province of the Society of Jesus, he spent two years researching the subject in the archives of Italy, Spain, and Portugal and compiled copious notes, but the history remained unwritten at his death. He also researched the history of the Irish Sisters of Mercy, and the material he collected was used by a biographer of Catherine McAuley (qv).

MacErlean taught theology in the Jesuit novitiate at Milltown Park, Dublin, for twenty-five years and continued to live there until the end of his life. He died in Dublin on 24 March 1950.

‘Irish in Rathlin’, Irisleabhar na Gaedhilge, Dec. 1895, 140; Roland Burke Savage, Catherine McAuley: the first Sister of Mercy (1949), p. ix; Ir, Independent, 25 Mar. 1950; Proinsias Ó Conluain and Donncha Ó Céileachair, An Duinníneach (1958), 102–5; Hayes, Sources: periodicals, iii, 460–62; F. X. Martin and F. J. Byrne, The scholar revolutionary (1973), 317; Aubrey Gwynn, ‘A forgotten Irish theologian’, Studies, xliii (1974), 259; Beathaisnéis, iii (1992), 53

◆ Irish Province News

Irish Province News 25th Year No 3 1950

Obituary

Fr. John MacErlean (1870-1888-1950)

Fr. John MacErlean was born in Belfast on 15th February, 1870: and was educated at St. Malachy's College. He entered the noviceship at Tullabeg 28th September, 1888, and graduated in the Royal University in 1892. He did philosophy at Exaten in Holland and in Jersey. He taught for six years in Clongowes. He did theology in Milltown Park and was ordained 31st July, 1904; Tertianship followed, in Barcelona.
As a young man he collaborated with Fr. E. Hogan in the compilation of the standard work on Irish place names. He worked for two years in the libraries and archives of Italy, Spain and Portugal. He devoted many years of strenuous research to the promotion of the cause of the Irish martyrs.
For twenty-five years he was Professor in Milltown Park.
He published scholarly editions of the works of Keating and O'Bruadair for the Irish Texts Society, and contributed many articles to “Analecta Bollandiana”, “Gaelic Journal”, “Archivum Hibernicum”, “Studies” and “Irish Monthly”. He supplied much of the matter for other historical writers.

An Appreciation :
In the old Gaelic economy there was a class of men called fir leighinn: men of learning, professors, lectors. From these Fr. John MacErlean got a surname of which he was proud and to which he brought honour.
Father MacErlean was a versatile man, He excelled not only in the usual studies of the Society, but in much else. It is doubtful whether any one of our time had such a comprehensive and accurate knowledge of the language, history and literary monuments of Gaelic Ireland. He was an admirable Latin and Greek scholar. He knew Sanskrit and Hebrew, and among modern languages, German, French and Spanish. He had a special gift for languages. He was not, perhaps, specially fluent in speaking, though the writer remembers his free German spoken in the Roman Forum to a lady who sought information about a monument. It is a little difficult to define in what his power lay. He seemed to reverse the conventional direction in language study which is to work from the periphery to the centre. He appeared to begin at the centre and proceed outwards. Even a Cursory examination of his editions of Keating and O Bruadair attests the power and accuracy of his scholarship in a domain in which he had to depend on his own resources and could not with impunity fall below the exacting standards of Irish textual studies.
For many years Fr. MacErlean taught Church History in Milltown Park. He specialised in the History of the Irish Church and of the Irish Province of the Society. In the former domain he had few peers, in the latter none. He devoted much time and labour to collecting and collating materials for Irish hagiography, for Irish Causes for Beatification, in particular for the Cause of Mother Catherine McAuley, Foundress of the Sister's of Mercy. We have heard it reported that an ecclesiastical judge acclaimed him as an incomparable witness before such tribunals.
But the quality of Fr. MacErlean's learning was even more remark able than its range. His mind was acutely critical not only in professional subjects, but in the discussion of current topics or of a newspaper report. It was also very exact. He was impatient of approximations and of loose generalities. He acquired the scholastic genius for bringing the question at issue to the test of the simple proposition with subject and predicate clearly defined. He had considerable dialectical skill and could defend his views with great ingenuity. He enjoyed nothing better on a rustication evening that defending some unpopular cause against all comers. He had a natural attraction for difficult studies and problems, and was never satisfied until he had got to the root of a question or reached the prime sources. He had a bent for establishing indices and vocabularies. The index to Migne in the Milltown Library is his, so is a vocabulary to the Writings of St. Patrick, so, too, is a valuable glossary of words and phrases from old Irish Texts. Apart from the daily paper he had little or no interest in ephemeral literature, but there was no new publication of scholarly interest which escaped his attention.
Fr. MacErlean's production in later years did not answer common expectation. We are the poorer for want of a history of the Province from one who wrote well and had a unique knowledge of the sources. As an offset to this loss we may notice that the Archives are the richer for the mass of historical material which he collected for others to exploit. Further, it may be fairly contended that the less he published over his own name in later years, the more he helped and inspired others to write. He was constantly reviewing some MS at the author's request, providing references and reading lists, solving historical and textual problems. He gave freely of his learning and time to many, and the annotations which he wrote in his neat legible hand in answer to a question were a model of accuracy and relevancy,
In fine Father MacErlean was a scholar of the first rank, not surpassed in his own field by any contemporary and worthy of a place among the eminent Irish scholars of the New and Old Society.
So far we have dealt with Fr. MacErlean's academic achievements. Of other things we must speak briefly. He was a man of strong character and uncompromising opinions strongly held on many subjects. He defended them in a spirit of independence and with great moral courage, though without rancour or bitterness. For all his learning he was the most modest and simple of men. He had a special charism for the direction of religious women. Communities to whom he had given the Exercises in his youth were still asking him twenty and thirty years later. He was much consulted by convents of the Dublin district, Nor should we omit to record his apostolate over many years in Donnybrook Convent. Only those who have met the sisters in charge could credit the amazing influence and power for good which he exercised over the penitents.
Not so long ago Fr. MacErlean told the writer that every night he recited a Gaelic quatrain which dedicates lying down to sleep as lying down to die. This was one of the rare and fugitive glimpses of the inner life of a great and good man who was not given to self-revelation, Ar Dheis De go raibh a anam.

Born: 01 March 1828, Banagher, County Offaly
Entered: 23 May 1858, Clongowes Wood College SJ, County Kildare
Final vows: 15 August 1868
Died: 01 February 1901, Crescent College, Limerick

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
From the very beginning of his religious life he practised the austerities to which he was addicted in his later life. One of his fellow Novices said “I remember how we used torment him by pulling the board he slept on from under his bed”!

1863-1870 He was Villicus and Cook at Tullabeg, and he left behind him the reputation as one of the best land stewards that ever was there. He reclaimed much of what had been considered waste land around the College and made it profitable, and he infused a not altogether spontaneous spirit of energy into the inhabitants of Rahan.
1870-1871 He was sent to Gardiner St for a year.
After this he served mostly as a Cook in Milltown, Clongowes, Crescent, UCD and Mungret for periods varying one to five years.

He was remarkable for his austerity and great spirit of prayer. For thirty years he never ate meat, save on Christmas Day and Easter Sunday, where he would accept meat on his plate, but he was never seen to eat it. After his death at Crescent, a wooden board was found under the sheet in place of a mattress. His room, if you can call a cupboard beside the organ loft a room, was a place he was happy to sleep in as he had recourse to the Blessed Sacrament whenever he wished. If ever you needed him outside his normal work hours, you could find him rapt in prayer before the Tabernacle. His life was always one of being in prayer, and he had little time for the softness of the world, saying “If we’ve got enough to keep body and soul together what more do we want?” and “It will be time enough to rest when we go to heaven!”
He was full of charity towards the poor. As Cook and Dispenser, he pushed his generosity as far as obedience would allow. When he was Dispenser at Mungret, the Rector eventually put a stop to his charity, so great was the crowd of beggars which was always around him. After dinner you would find him addressing the assorted beggars who came to him, encouraging them to keep away from sin, say prayers and go to confession - “Keep the Grace of God about you, and believe me you’ll be better off in every way, and won’t have to be begging this way around the country”. Another Brother, a good friend of his, would often remark if asked where Br McEvoy was : “Oh!” nodding towards the back door “He’s round there giving a Mission at the back door!”
His constant prayer over forty years was that he might be allowed work up to the last, and die without giving trouble to anyone, and his prayer was answered in a remarkable manner. He had been a Cook at Crescent for some years, and on the evening of his death he had cooked dinner as usual for the community. That night at eleven o’clock, he went to the Rector, telling him he was very ill and requesting the Last Sacraments. The Rector, seeing that he was in a bad way, did as requested, and Br McEvoy seemed to rally a little, and then went into a deep sleep. Early in the morning, before the call, he died 01 February 1901.

Note from Christopher Coffey Entry :
He died peacefully 29 March 1911, and after the Requiem Mass he was brought to the small cemetery and buried between William Frayne and David MacEvoy, and close to the grave of William Ronan.

Note from Francis Hegarty Entry :
He did return after some months, and there he found in Father Bracken, a Postulant Master and Novice Master, and this was a man he cherished all his life with reverence and affection. His second Postulancy was very long and hard - four years. he took the strain and was admitted as a Novice with seven others which had not had so trying a time as himself. He liked to say that all seven along with him remained true to their vocation until death, and he was the last survivor. They were John Coffey, Christopher Freeman, David McEvoy, James Maguire, John Hanly, James Rorke and Patrick Temple.

◆ James B Stephenson SJ Menologies 1973

Brother David McEvoy 1828-1901
On February 1at 1901 died David McEvoy, la Brother renowned for the austerities he practiced from the very beginning of his religious life.

He was born near Banagher on March 1st 1828. He was Villicus in Tullabeg from 1863-1870, and was responsible for the reclamation of a great deal of waste land round the College. He left behind the reputation of one of the best land stewards the College ever had.

For thirty years he never ate meat. On Feast days he used to take a piece of chicken on his plate, but was never known to eat it. He had a remarkable spirit of prayer and devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. For this reason, he took as his bedroom what was little better than a lumber room near the organ loft, so that he could visit the Blessed Sacrament at any hour of the day or night.

His austerity and spirit of prayer were only equalled to his love for the poor. As Dispenser in Mungret, his charity had to be curbed by the Rector, so great was the swarm of beggars at the back door. It was his custom to exhort his clients to a better life, to say their prayers and go to confession. “keep the grace of God about you” he would say to them “and you’ll be better off every day, and won't have to be begging this way round the country”.

His constant prayer over forty years was that he might die in harness and without causing any trouble to the community. So it was.

On the day he died he cooked an evening meal for the community. That night at eleven o’clock he went to the rector’s room and asked for the last Sacraments. Fortified by the last Rites, he sank into a deep slumber and passed away quietly an hour before the morning call on February 1st 1901.

◆ The Crescent : Limerick Jesuit Centenary Record 1859-1959

Bonum Certamen ... A Biographical Index of Former Members of the Limerick Jesuit Community

Brother David McEvoy (1828-1901)

In the last century, very few of our Brothers were associated with the Crescent and even then for but a few years at a time. Yet, two at least, of their names should find a place in this biographical index.

Brother David McEvoy (1828-1901), a native of Banagher entered the Society in 1858 and was stationed at the Crescent from 1878 to 1883 and again from 1897 until his death on 1 February, 1901. Throughout his life he was known to be a man of singular holiness. During his years at the Crescent he asked to be allowed to occupy a lumber room in the house instead of the room offered him. The only light of the room of his choice came from a tiny window opening on to the old organ gallery. It was known that he spent long vigils at the same window from which he could see the altar. On the night of the 31 January, 1901, he called at the rector's room and asked to be anointed. The rector was perplexed by the strange request, but noticing that the good Brother looked rather weak and that he repeated his request with more than customary earnestness, consented to anoint him. Some five hours later Brother David passed to his reward.

Born:
Entered: 07 September 1813: Hodder, Stonyhurst College SJ, Lancashire, England - Angliae Province (ANG)
Ordained:

Left Society of Jesus: by 1826

1813-1815: Hodder, Stonyhurst College SJ, Lancashire, England (ANG), Novitiate
1815-1822: Clongowes Wood College SJ, Regency and Theology

not in HIB or ANG 1826 Catalogi

Born: 21 September 1823, Enniskerry, County Wicklow
Entered: 30 April 1856, Clongowes Wood College SJ, County Kildare
Professed: 15 August 1871
Died: 16 March 1872, Milltown Park, Dublin

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
He worked as a Dispenser, Infirmarian and Sacristan up to 1871, and he died at Milltown 16 March 1872.
He was also at Gardiner St as Sacristan for a time.

Born: 24 October 1907, Streatham, London, England
Entered: 01 September 1925, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 31 July 1940, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1943, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Died: 15 August 1960, Dublin

Part of St Ignatius community, Lusaka, Zambia at the time of his death.

Mother died in 1918. Father was Deputy General Manager of Pearl Assurance and lives at Claremont Gardens, Surbiton, Surrey, England.

Early education in London (including two at a Convent school) he went to Clongowes Wood College SJ

by 1932 at Valkenburg, Limburg, Netherlands (GER I) studying
by 1934 at Kaulbachstrasse, Munich, Germany (GER S) studying
by 1935 at Leuven, Belgium (BELG) studying
by 1951 at Chikuni, Chisekesi, N Rhodesia (POL Mi) working - third wave of Zambian Missioners

◆ Companions in Mission 1880- Zambia-Malawi (ZAM) Obituaries :
At an early stage in the Society, someone had the courage to tell Brian that he was speaking and acting like a bishop. General agreement consecrated him with the nickname of ‘Bishop MacMahon’, almost immediately reduced to its homely form of ‘The Bish’.

Fr Brian was born in London, England in 1907 and educated at Clongowes Wood College. After vows, he studied for his BSc and then his MSc at University College Dublin also obtaining a traveling scholarship. He went to Valkenburg, Holland, for philosophy. This was followed by a further three years of Biology, one of them at Munich, Germany and the other two at Louvain (changing from German to French!) where he obtained a Doctorate in Science with First Class Honours. He taught for a year at his Alma Mater and then went to Milltown Park for theology and ordination to the priesthood in 1940.

He was minister, Professor of Cosmology and Biology at Tullabeg 1942-1943, minister at Milltown Park 1943-1944, prefect of studies at Clongowes 1944-1947. He became rector at Mungret College, Limerick, in 1947 until 1950 when he departed for Northern Rhodesia (Zambia) with the first batch of Irish Jesuits. For several years he was rector and principal of Canisius Secondary School. In 1959, he moved to Lusaka as Education Secretary of the Bishops' Conference. Serious illness brought him back to Ireland where he died of cancer on 15 August 1960, at 53 years of age and 20 years a priest.

What of the man himself? He was a big man. Fr Dominic Nchete preached at the Mass for Brian at St Ignatius Church, saying, ‘Fr MacMahon was a big man. He had a big body, a big heart, big brains. He thought big, he spoke big, he acted big. Amid his many and varied occupations, he remained calm, kind, charitable, considerate and, above all, extremely patient; he was kind to all whether they were white or black’.

As a school boy, as novice and as a man, he was always ready to put work before play. His normal life was a steady application to duty whether it appealed to his taste or not. He would like to have studied Mathematics and Political Economy (under Fr Tom Finlay S.J.) but obedience took him down a different path of studies.

“He was dominant in height”’ one wrote about him, “but not domineering in manner. He could achieve a certain loftiness of style that well matched his bulk, but his dignity had a fatherly flavour about it; his natural superiority was almost lost in that kindly, friendly, good-humoured way he had”. He loved to keep up with world news and his brother had sent him a subscription to the air edition of the Times which Brian loved to read, sitting in his office. As one scholastic once remarked, ‘The Bish's biography should be entitled “20 years behind the Times'”

Under his direction, Canisius Secondary School was improved and enlarged. He was headmaster (then called principal) from 1951 to 1959. Senior courses leading up to the School Certificate were introduced by him. Among the large number of African schoolboys who passed through his hands, he enjoyed a unanimous reputation for patience and kindness combined with an unwavering sense of justice. To his fellow Jesuits, devotion to his work and to the interests of the school was well known. Government officials whom he dealt with held him in the highest esteem.

He did not easily resign himself to the close of his life. He fought the blood poisoning and cancerous growth to the end. He remained buoyant and optimistic as long as there was any shred of hope of recovery. Eventually, in simple faith and acceptance, he answered the call to eternity.

Note from Patrick (Sher) Sherry Entry
For the next 30 years he served the young Church in Zambia selflessly and with unbounded generosity. In Chikuni he served as a kind of ‘minister of supplies’. Fr MacMahon would lean heavily on him but Sher had his little hideouts which constituted his survival kit!

◆ Irish Province News

Irish Province News 35th Year No 4 1960

Obituary :

Fr Brian MacMahon (1907-1960)

Fr. Brian MacMahon died in a Dublin Nursing Home on 14th August, 1960. He was born in London on 24th October, 1907, was educated at Clongowes Wood College and entered the Society at Tullabeg on 1st September, 1925. Having taken his Vows in 1927, he went to Rathfarnham Castle, where he studied for his M.Sc. degree at University College, Dublin. He was sent in 1931 to Valkenburg for Philosophy. He did special studies in Biology, for one year at Munich and two years at Louvain, where in 1936 he obtained his degree of Docteur en Sciences Naturelles at Louvain University. Having returned to Ireland, after one year's teaching at Clongowes, he went to Milltown Park for the study of Theology and was ordained in 1940. He did his Tertianship at Rathfarnham Castle. He was Minister, Professor of Cosmology and Biology at Tullabeg 1942-43, Minister of Milltown Park 1943-44, and Prefect of Studies at Clongowes 1944-47. On 25th July, 1947, Fr. MacMahon was appointed Rector of Mungret College, Limerick, an office which he held until 1950, when he was sent among the first missionaries to the new Irish Jesuit Mission in Northern Rhodesia. For several years he was Rector and Prefect of Studies of St. P. Canisius College, Chikuni. In July 1959, he became Catholic Education Secretary for the Southern Province of Northern Rhodesia and also Superior of St. Ignatius Church, Lusaka.
On 14th April, owing to serious illness, he returned to Ireland and after four months of suffering he went to his eternal reward.
Fr. MacMahon's death was not sudden, for he had been in hospitals in Rhodesia and in Ireland for several months. Yet it was surprising that it came so soon; it seemed to cut him off while he was still in full vigour and on active service. “A short life in the saddle, Lord, and not a long life by the fireside” is a prayer that might come to mind when meditating on the possibility of an inordinate affection for length of days. Fr, MacMahon's twenty years from the time of his ordination was a short life of priestly activity. He did not easily resign himself to its close. His habit of hard work and constant devotion to duty made him eager to recover from the blood-poisoning and cancerous growth which proved fatal in the end. Those who visited him in hospital did not have to cheer him up; he remained buoyant and optimistic as long as there was any shred of hope of recovery. And then in simple faith and acceptance he answered the call to eternity.
Many will remember Br. MacMahon as a novice, who was primus inter pares, in stature head and shoulders above the rest of us, an out standing Br. Porter, the very symbol of stability and regularity. He enjoyed looking up old Porters' Journals in order to find precedents for “Coffees” - indeed he claimed a record in this respect for his term of office. He enjoyed recreation and he liked to see others enjoy it. But, as schoolboy, as novice and as man, he was always ready to put work before play. His normal life was of steady application to duty, whether it appealed to his taste or not. He was an excellent example both as novice and schol astic, who was not exaggerated in any way, neither excessively recollected nor excessively austere, always a man of duty of the “no nonsense” variety. He was kind and helpful to the weak; he helped them to help themselves. He was both good humoured and strict in a remarkably well blended way.
Brian MacMahon had been a talented student in Clongowes, his strongest subject being mathematics. But his course of studies in the Society was not in accordance with his tastes, though well within his ability. He would have liked to include Political Economy - then taught by Fr. Tom Finlay, S.J.- among the subjects for his Arts degree; if that were not allowed, then mathematics would have been the obvious choice. But he was transferred to the Science faculty and the B.Sc. course in Biology. Holy obedience, sheer plod, mental acumen and a good memory brought him through triumphantly to the B.Sc., the M.Sc. and a Travelling Studentship. Two years of relentless application to Philosophy followed at Valkenburg, Holland, the North German Province's Collegium Maximum. Then three further years of Biology, one at Munich, till Professor Wettstein died, and two at Louvain under the direction of Professor Gregoire. This enforced move from one University to another meant for Brian a new start. He had to commence a line of research approved by his new Professor-an investigation into the chromosomal peculiarities found at meiosis of the pollen mother-cells of Listera ovata. It meant also a change of vernacular from German to French-no small cross for one who had very little gift for acquiring languages. Yet there may have been compensations; he may have found the circumstances and companionship at Louvain more congenial. He obtained the Doctorate in Science in the form of “Aggregé”, which is equivalent to First Class Honours or summa cum laude. He had done what he was told to do, had done it with éclat.
People looked up to him, and he spoke down to them. Everyone accepted the fact that it simply had to be so. Dominant in height, but not domineering in manner, he could achieve a certain loftiness of style that well matched his bulk; but his dignity had a fatherly flavour about it; his natural superiority was almost lost in that kindly, friendly, good humoured way he had. In the College of Science Mr. MacMahon was long remembered with respect and affection. He had been a very popular Auditor of the Natural History Club. He would have been welcomed as a Lecturer in the Botany Department. Officials and former fellow students took a friendly interest in his later career,
Among his contemporaries in the Society, Brian also won a considerable degree of respect and affection. He was respected as a model religious, conscientious, exact, living up to the greater and lesser obligations of his vocation. He was an example: what standards he maintained one felt one ought to aim at; what little liberties he allowed himself, one knew one could take with impunity. As regards affection, one might search for another way of expressing it: he was well liked, he was popular, for all his dignity he was a thoroughly decent fellow. He was a good community man; he fitted easily into any community and became one of its better ingredients. At an early stage in the Society someone had the courage to tell him that he was speaking and acting like a bishop. General agreement consecrated him with the nickname of “Bishop MacMahon”. But lest perhaps this might seem to declare him more pontifical than he really was, it was almost immediately reduced to its homely form “The Bish”. Those who knew him well will find far more meaning and pleasant memories in the mention of his nickname than in the bald statement that he was popular.
During the 1940's Fr. MacMahon experienced several changes of status: the fourth year at Milltown, Tertianship at Rathfarnham, Minister and Professor of Biology in Tullabeg, Minister in Milltown, Prefect of Studies in Clongowes, Rector of Mungret. His general capability made him an obvious choice for so many various appointments. As soon as he could be spared in one place he was sent to fill a need in another, especially a need for organisation and administration. He was eminently reliable; he could grasp and control a new situation at short notice. No doubt there are records of his successes at Clongowes and Mungret, for he was chosen to guide the educational policy of our Mission in Northern Rhodesia, a very important task to which as a matter of fact he devoted the remaining decade of his life. Round about 1930 he would have been glad to be chosen for the Hong Kong Mission, but his Travelling Studentship intervened; twenty years later he was suddenly asked to go to Rhodesia. As always he responded immediately to the wishes of superiors, to the will of God: “Here I am, Lord, send me”.
As Rector of the community at Chikuni, Fr. MacMahon was head master and Prefect of Studies of St. Canisius College, the secondary school for boys.
On completing his term as Rector he remained on as Principal. It was in this capacity that he is best remembered by students and staff. Under his direction the school was improved and enlarged and Senior Secondary Courses introduced. Among the large number of African schoolboys who passed through his hands he enjoyed a unanimous reputation for patience and kindness combined with an unwavering sense of justice. To his fellow-missionaries devotion to his work and to the interests of the school was well known. And the government officials with whom he collaborated held him in the highest regard.
In 1959 Fr. MacMahon was appointed Education Secretary-General to the Catholic Schools of Northern Rhodesia and Superior of St. Ignatius Residence, Lusaka, where he lived for six months before illness forced him to return to Ireland, The last months he spent in hospital, suffering a good deal, until death, for which he was well prepared, came to release him. His loss is very deeply regretted by his colleagues on the mission and by all those who benefited by contact with him" (Extract from Your St. Ignatius Newsletter, Lusaka, 21st August, 1960).
Under News from the Missions, Northern Rhodesia, in this issue will be found the panegyric preached by Fr. Dominic at the outdoor Requiem Mass at Chikuni on 19th August.

◆ Interfuse

Interfuse No 124 : Summer 2005

MISSIONED TO ZAMBIA

Brian MacMahon

Taken from some 50 “portraits” submitted by Tom McGivern, who works in the Archives of the Province of Zambia Malawi. Brian MacMahon was one of the first group assigned to Zambia in 1950. He died in 1960, the first Irish Jesuit in Zambia to die.

At an early stage of his life in the Society, someone had the courage to tell Brian that he was speaking and acting like a bishop. General agreement consecrated him with the nickname of “Bishop Mac Mahon”, almost immediately reduced to its homely form of "The Bish". Brian was born in London, England, in 1907, and educated at Clongowes Wood College. After vows, he studied for his B.Sc. and then his M.Sc, at UCD, also obtaining a Travelling Scholarship. He went to Valkenburg, Holland, for philosophy. This was followed by a further three years of Biology, one of them at Munich, Germany, and the other two at Louvain (changing from German to French!), where he obtained a Doctorate in Science with First Class Honours, or summa cum laude. He taught for a year at his Alma Mater and then went to Milltown Park for theology and ordination to the priesthood in 1940.

He was Minister at Tullabeg and Professor of Cosmology and Biology 1942-1943; Minister at Milltown Park 1943-1944; Prefect of Studies at Clongowes 1944 -1947. He became Rector at Mungret College, Limerick, in 1947 until he departed for Northern Rhodesia (Zambia) with the first batch of Irish Jesuits that were assigned there in 1950. For several years he was Rector and Principal of Canisius Secondary School. In 1959, he moved to Lusaka as Education Secretary to the Bishops' Conference. Serious illness brought him back to Ireland where he died of cancer on August 15, 1960, at 53 years of age, and 20 years as a priest.

What of the man himself? He was a big man. Fr. Dominic Nchete preached at the Funeral Mass for Brian at St. Ignatius Church, saying, “Fr. MacMahon was a big man. He had a big body, a big heart, big brains. He thought big. He spoke big. He acted big amid his many and varied occupations. He remained calm, kind, charitable, considerate and, above all, extremely patient. He was kind to all whether they were white or black”. “Dominant in height”, one wrote about him, “but not domineering in manner, he could achieve a certain loftiness of style that well matched his bulk; but his dignity had a fatherly flavour about it; his natural superiority was almost lost in that kindly, friendly, good humoured way he had”. He loved to keep up with world news, and his brother had sent him a subscription to the airmail edition of the Times, which Brian loved to read, sitting in his office. As one scholastic once remarked, “The Bish's biography should be entitled 20 years behind the Times!”

As schoolboy, as novice and as man, he was always ready to put work before play. His normal life was a steady application to duty, whether it appealed to his taste or not. He would like to have studied Maths and Political Economy (under Fr. Tom Finlay) but obedience took him down a different path of studies. Under his direction, Canisius Secondary School was improved and enlarged. He was Headmaster (then called Principal) from 1951 to 1959. Senior courses leading up to the School Certificate were introduced by him. Among the large number of African schoolboys who passed through his hands, he enjoyed a unanimous reputation for patience and kindness combined with an unwavering sense of justice To his fellow Jesuits, devotion to his work and to the interest of the school was well known. Government officials whom he dealt with held him in the highest esteem. He did not easily resign himself to the close of his life. He fought the blood poisoning and cancerous growth to the end. He remained buoyant and optimistic as long as there was any shred of hope of recovery. And in simple faith and acceptance, he answered the call to eternity.

◆ The Clongownian, 1961

Obituary

Father Brian MacMahon SJ

One remembers Brian MacMahon as a boy who was tall, intellectually gifted, well behaved, friendly, and keenly interested in all sides of life: in short a promising boy, wherever his future might lie. He was from London; but he would not have himself regarded as anything but thoroughly Irish. His accent was not noticeably English, except for one small feature characteristic of southern England which he always preserved: his “what ... why ... when ... etc.” sounded like “wot... wy ... wen ...” to the Irish ear - but then our usual style of speech sounds like “hwat ... hwy ... etc.” to the English ear; so perhaps Brian was simply correct after all.

He was tall, sometimes sombre-looking, but never really forbidding. Of course those who were smaller and younger could be momentarily cowed by his presence. But he lacked the ability to domineer. In other words, he possessed a very endearing quality, a willingness to be joked at and teased by those who with discernment and good humour could take him down a peg or two, for he liked to relax in a spirit of camaraderie. Surely all his friends still remember him in this way. He made loyal friends, who were deeply grieved by his comparatively early death.

He never took it easy just because he had plenty of brains. He worked hard in the study-hall and in class. In fact he applied himself with interest and attention to what ever he had to do. He was always in the honours classes, and regularly got cards for places in the weekly exams. Mathematics was his best subject. It so happened that during his final years in Clongowes the mathematics course underwent certain experimental innovations: some live-wire in the Department of Education managed to raise the standard of requirements while at the same time afflicting both teachers and boys with the awful nuisance of Long Tots. Brian was well able for it. Extra hard work enabled him to cover the enlarged course, and he could boast in his good-humoured way that he was willing to challenge all comers in a contest for speed and accuracy at the Long Tots.

Cricket was the game he preferred. All the summer term he enjoyed being on the cricket-pitch - though he could also make a sacrifice and get in a fair share of voluntary study as the exams approached. He was a good fast bowler; to very small boys he might have seemed a demon. Many a timid batsman quailed as he stood facing Brian's attack, as he saw the lofty figure, dark and perspiring and intent, running up to the wicket and swinging a long arm to deliver a flying ball, like some mighty Zulu warrior hurling an assagai with full force and determination.

Let it not be said that he was a “dab” at everything. As a debater he could not compare with his best friend, Ned Tracey; yet he was interested in the debates and duly did his bit. As an actor he would never be given a leading role; but in “The Private Secretary” he played his part well: a peppery old colonel retired from the Indian Army. He was always interested in what others could do better than himself, and only too willing to proclaim his own limitations. To the end of his life he was catholic in his curiosity, a great absorber of informative newspapers and journals, a storehouse of factual information on all kinds of topics, events and personalities at home and abroad. Not high-falutin', but sensible, matter-of-fact, down-to-earth, no nonsense.

Brian MacMahon was always a good boy, the sort of good boy that really makes a good man. He was serious about his religious life; he made a good job of his prayers and religious duties; but he gave no sign of adding trimmings to the solid essentials. He was just thoroughly reliable and faithful in this as in everything else. God gave him a vocation to the priesthood, and he simply responded. There was nothing surprising about that: it fitted in perfectly with people's proper appreciation of what a vocation is.

To anyone who asks about Brian's later career as a Jesuit the answer has to be that he had two careers, both of them extremely successful. His academic studies at UCD and at the Universities of Munich and Louvain, culminated in his winning a Doctorate in Science with the highest possible distinction and acclamation. Later, after his ordination to the priesthood, he was entrusted with administrative posts: Prefect of Studies in Clongowes and Rector of Mungret College during the 1940s; then Rector and Prefect of Studies at Chikuni, Superior at Lusaka and Education Secretary-General for the Catholic Schools of Northern Rhodesia during the 1950s. To his religious superiors he presented a sort of insoluble problem. They would have liked to multiply him by two, or rather to divide him into two persons: one with his academic ability, the other with his powers of organisation and administration. When ever his fellow-Jesuits heard how Mr MacMahon and then Father MacMahon had succeeded in this way or that they would say in a tone of friendly appreciation “Good old Brian” and “we all knew he could do it”.

Mr MacMahon taught in Clongowes for one year, 1936-37, before going on to theology at Milltown Park. At that time he was a somewhat eminent and senior scholastic. The Prefect of Studies valued him as a most reliable teacher and an excellent judge of a boy's ability. His pupils must have found that he was also a great '”spotter” of questions likely to appear on the exam papers. Father MacMahon was himself Prefect of Studies in Clongowes for three years, 1944-47, before he received his appointment as Rector of Mungret. A few years later he was chosen for the Irish Jesuit Mission in Northern Rhodesia to help in guiding the educational policy there a very important task to which he devoted the remaining ten years of his life. His final appointment made him the representative of the Catholic bishops in Northern Rhodesia; his duty it was to collaborate with the Government officials in all educational matters that concerned the Church as well as the State, Nowadays everyone knows that educational facilities are of vital importance in all foreign missions.

Respected and liked: these are the words that people use in recalling Father MacMahon. He was indeed highly respected and well liked everywhere he lived and worked, from the Biology Department in the College of Science to the Educational Department at Lusaka. The Africans who had known him at St Peter Canisius College, Chikuni, said the same in their own way. They said “he was a big man”, not because of his great stature but because they had immense respect for him; they said “he was a big man in every way” because they liked him, because he was so extremely fair to them and so concerned for them in every way; they said “he is a big loss”.

The ways of Divine Providence are inscrutable to men. Human wisdom would have kept Father Brian MacMahon another ten years in Lusaka in that special post that he was so qualified to fill in this critical period of African unrest. But God decided otherwise; that he should endure some months of puzzling lingering, wasting sickness and so move on to his final reward on 14th August, 1960. God decided that he may now rest in peace.

B L

Born: 10 June 1920, Daly’s Terrace, Rathfarnham, Dublin City County Dublin
Entered: 04 October 1937, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois

Left Society of Jesus: 16 June 1948 (from Clongowes Wood College SJ)

Younger brother of Thomas MacMahon - RIP 2009

Father, Thomas, was an Executive Officer in thee Civil Service. Mother, Elizabeth (Hickey).

Youngest of two boys and two girls.

Early education was at a Presentation Convent school Terenure and Beaufort High School Rathfarnham and then at age 9 he went to Synge Street (1923-1933)

Baptised at Church of the Annunciation, Rathfarnham, 12/06/1920
Confirmed at St Kevin’s Church, Harrington Street, by Dr Wall of Dublin, 01/03/1932

1937-1939: St Mary's, Emo, Novitiate
1939-1943: Rathfarnham Castle, Juniorate, UCD
1943-1946: St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, Philosophy
1946-1948: Clongowes Wood College SJ, Regency

Address 2000: Shangannagh Vale, Shankill, County Dublin

Born: 15 January 1915, Daly’s Terrace, Rathfarnham, Dublin City County Dublin
Entered: 30 September 1933, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Ordained: 30 July 1947, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1950, Sacred Heart College SJ, Limerick
Died: 24 January 2009, Cherryfield Lodge, Dublin

Part of the Milltown Park, Dublin community at the time of death.

Older brother of Oliver P MacMahon - LEFT 1948

Born at Holles Street.

Father, Thomas, was an Executive Officer in thee Civil Service. Mother, Elizabeth (Hickey).

Older of two boys with two sisters.

Early education was at a Convent school and then at age 8 he went to Synge Street (1923-1933)

◆ Jesuits in Ireland

https://www.jesuit.ie/news/memories-of-father-tom/

Memories of Father Tom

Nine days after his 94th birthday Tom McMahon died peacefully on Saturday 24 January in Cherryfield, which he never tired of praising for the happiness and hope he enjoyed
there. Not all his memories died with him. Apart from innumerable poems about his friends and enthusiasms, he has left a video clip (now on YouTube – also viewable on Jesuit.ie) taken from the DVD about the closing of the Sacred Heart Church in Limerick, and an interview about his life, made three years ago, which you can read below. His Limerick friends came in strength to his funeral, and he would have loved the sound of Cecilian voices filling the Milltown chapel.

The Society still has a kick in it !

An Interview with Tom Mc Mahon, Sept 3rd, 2005, reported in Interfuse, Autumn 2005

You were born way back in 1915, at the very beginning of it. You’re almost 91, and you must have wonderful memories. Tell me some of your early memories of the time before school, at school, and before you entered the Society.

Well, I was only an infant when we went to live in Rathfarnham and, of course, Rathfarnham was completely different then. We had little cottages with half doors on them, and we had a forge in the middle of the village. And there was Prescotts, where the trams originally went round by the Protestant church, and then back; that was the tram station. And there was another one down in Terenure, opposite the Catholic Church. But I remember during the troubles in 1922, the Barracks that was at the corner there was blown up. But before that I remember we went to school in the Presentation Convent in Terenure. Myself and my older sister were walking down to school when we were stopped in horror by the Dodder Bridge, because there was a whole line of barbed wire across it. There were soldiers, so we turned back and hurried home. We were frightened out of our lives. I remember, for instance, the taking of a barracks on the South Circular Road. You could hear the shots in Rathfarnham. And one single shot I saw fired during the Civil War was when the Free Staters were leaving the Barracks. They walked up through the village and one fellow pulled out his revolver and fired a shot, because the Free Staters were coming up. But actually they had had a bolt hole dug through the Castle wall to escape through the Castle gardens and out that way, but they eventually went up through the village and away off, so that was the one shot I actually saw being fired.

You were only six then– you’ve a good memory to go back that far.

Yes, and, of course, Rathfarnham was completely open in those days. There were fields all the way across to the road where the steam tram used to go. And the tram went away off up to Blessington. The Castle was terra incognita, but you saw the Juniors coming out. We thought they were young priests, you know, and we would see them on Sundays, coming out for their walk. And they used to sing in the Parish Church. We thought they were magnificent, which they were. I learned one of the pieces of music I have loved all my life – it’s by one of the classical writers – I can’t think of the name just now but I was fascinated by it.

So did you go from Rathfarnham to school in Synge Street?

Oh, yes, yes. I went to Synge Street after that, and I used to cycle. And I remember we had to go to Catechism on Sunday morning, and I decided I’d cycle the whole way in without putting my hands on the handle bars – of course, on Sunday mornings there wasn’t much traffic but I did it. You wouldn’t do it now!!

You had Religious Education on Sundays, and you spent your primary and secondary school days in Synge Street?

Uncle of Father Joe Veale, a marvellous man. I remember one of the Brothers asking me what I was thinking of being. I said I was going to be a civil servant. I was too shy about telling him the other ideas I had.

What gave you the idea of the Jesuits? Had you some association with them?

Well, first of all, they lived opposite us – I could see into the grounds there in Rathfarnham Castle. Secondly the fellow sharing a bench with me at school was Terry Mc Parland, who became a novice with the Jesuits, though he died after eleven months there. He was a marvellous fellow – quite shy and retiring – but he really had something, for he managed to gather seven of us for a retreat the day after our Leaving Cert. In those days Bishop Byrne (I think it was he.) wouldn’t allow CBS boys to go on Jesuit retreats, because, he said, the Jesuits were taking all the vocations, which, of course, wasn’t true. So we couldn’t go until we had left school. Literally, the day after our Leaving Cert we went out on retreat. And who should we have for our retreat but Fr. Neary!

Ah, the man who later was to be your Master of Novices.

Yeah, and I can remember him well on that retreat saying (mimics) “Prevent, we beseech thee, O Lord, all our actions...” And then when we got to the novitiate, he came as Novice Master after Fr. Coyne. There he was again saying “Prevent, we beseech thee, O Lord...” (laughs). So that was my introduction to the Society.

And then, of course, you went to Rathfarnham, I presume.

That’s right – back to home territory. Interestingly enough, my father got a stroke and died during our Tertianship in the Castle. And I could see the blind pulled down in his window from where I was in the Castle. And, very kindly, the Instructor of Tertians allowed me to go home once a month to see him. And my father died at Easter, so I never got round to doing the statutory mission that the tertians went on, because he died just at that time. Charlie Heron was to have been with me in Milltown. I don’t know what Charlie did, but I was left off it because of my father’s death.

You have an extraordinary memory for so many things. So you went through the ordinary formation up to tertianship. And, after tertianship, where were you assigned?

Straight down to the Crescent.

But you didn’t spend all your life in the Crescent, did you?

No, but a great deal of it – the best part of 40 years. From 1949 (I think) till 1963, and then I was sent up to Belvedere, where I spent a year putting them on their feet (laughs). And, after that, I went to Galway for 11 years. I had quite an interesting time there. I remember I used to bring the boys out for their Irish fortnight to the Islands. But, once, I had to supply for one of the priests there. I don’t know what the islanders made of my Irish. However I got through. One very interesting thing happened when I was there. Do you remember there were two men – British soldiers – that rowed across the Atlantic in what I think they called a ‘dory’. And I met them when they came across because the islanders couldn’t talk to them in English, and I welcomed them onto the island. The next day the island was swarming with newspaper fellows from all over the world and there was a book written about it afterwards and I was mentioned in it. “Fr McMann” they called me (laughs)! So I was in Galway for 11 years, and then from 1975 on I was in the Crescent until I came a cropper!
Well, you don’t look to me as if you came a cropper! However, your time in the Crescent – boy, that was a long time!
Well, I had very interesting pupils: I had Cormac McNamara, who became a big man in Irish medical circles. He represented Ireland on the Continent and he also was, apparently, responsible for joining the two sections of the medical people here in Ireland. I don’t understand the mechanics of it, but he got them together into one. He was a very famous medical man who often appeared on TV. Brian O’Leary was another pupil, and there were quite a number of Jesuits. I can’t think of their names immediately, but they all went through my hands. We had great times together.

And, of course, if I remember correctly, you were kinda famous with the Cecilian society.

Oh yes. I ran with them for many years. And, if my memory serves me rightly, between the boys in the Crescent and the Cecilians, I think I did 29 shows. We used to do three a year at the beginning – a pantomime at Christmas and an autumn musical and an Easter musical. The result was that I never got a real holiday, because the Christmas holidays were banjaxed by the show, and the Easter holidays the same.

And were these present pupils and past pupils?

No, no. There were no present pupils in it. Really the idea was that it would be past pupils, recently left, and their sisters, and their girlfriends, and it was a very young group of very happy people.

It must have been a great time; you could use your acting ability.

Oh no, no. I didn’t do that at all. I did the singing and I did up to 21 hours of singing a week. I used to sing with the sopranos, the tenors, the altos and the bass! You see a lot of them didn’t know much about music, but they had an ear, and if you sang it at them, they’d pick it up! I literally sang for 21 hours a week!!

My goodness! And did you also play an instrument like the piano?

Oh I did, but I didn’t play it in the Cecilians. We had an orchestra and I was the conductor. It had 24 instruments in it. It was quite a thing! It was begun before the Cecilians as a separate entity, and then they all joined up. They were all amateurs at the beginning, but we got a teacher from the musical school, and he insisted on trade union regulations, and people had to be paid, which, of course, put an enormous burden on the Cecilians. They had a huge bill every year – and we’d all been amateurs before that. And then I had the church choir, and this is their last year. They’ll end up next June, because the Church (Sacred Heart Church, Limerick) is shutting down. I wrote a farewell thing to them ....... (goes and gets paper) There it is. I’ll read it for you. It’s entitled: SING, SING, CHORUS OF ANGELS, LORD, POUR GRACES AND BLESSINGS ON YE!

So have you sent it to them?

Oh yes I have – it’s what you might call a swansong.

And, please God, you’ll be able to be with them for their final session there. One thing, I think, readers of Interfuse would be interested in hearing is what you feel about the different changes that have take place in the Society and in the Province?

Well, I’m afraid I take an abstract and abstracted view of the whole thing. I feel it’s not up to me to either suggest or remedy anything. I leave that to the younger generation – and I think that’s fair enough too.

You’re comfortable with things.

Ah, look here, I’m in heaven here. I don’t know how I deserved it. Everything is so beautifully laid on. I believe it was Paddy Doyle who had the idea first of all, but, whoever it was, was inspired. You couldn’t ask for a nicer place or a nicer set of people, nurses and community and everything – absolutely marvelous.

So you still maintain that you don’t have to take care of yourself, as you said to me once, because THEY take care of you.

Yes, they take care of me – more care than I could possibly offer myself. You certainly are a great advertisement for Cherryfield.

And, of course, I have a little – what would you call it? – business here. I do teaching of English and my first pupil was Darota – a great little soul – a Pole, and then I got a Chinese lady, who’s the wife of the gardener here, and two hours with her every Saturday which was pretty hefty, and then I got another Pole – Stasik – the short for Stanislaus in Polish. There’s a bit of information for you!

So you do that as a kind of sideline?

Yes, a sideline.

You’re keeping up your extra-curricular activities.

Yes. And do you know? I find now I have time for reading that I never had before. I’ve been reading Palgrave’s Golden Treasury for many many years back, but now I get through half an hour of it every night, or maybe three quarters of an hour. And then I have the Oxford Book of Quotations, on which I spend half an hour, and I do my main reading from nine until midnight and, at 5 to midnight I say Compline. And then, as people say, ‘so to bed’.

That’s a very good day there. Apart from what you’ve said, which includes a lot of encouraging words for the brethren, if you were to sum up your last words for this interview, what would you say?

Well, I’d say this. That I suppose, like my own generation, I began to feel that – ‘ah the spirit has gone out of the province and the Society’ and so on, and then you begin to read what they‘re doing, and you think, ‘My God, there’s life in the old boy still.’ You see, ignorance is part of it. You just don’t hear what’s going on, and then you find to your surprise and delight that there’s a lot of good things going on – a lot of them. You know its like saying that young people don’t go to Mass anymore. But there’s a lot of them that do – there’s a lot of them go to Confession, and so on. But the Society has a kick in it...

And that’s a very encouraging word, particularly for us who work in the field of communications. Now with AMDG and Update – not to mention Interfuse – we aim to share those things so that people may know what’s going on ...

Yes, well take heart! An old fellow like me had his eyes opened when I poked around and saw what was going on – even by accident. I found out but it was good to know it, ‘cos otherwise I’d be a little bit soured in old age, which is a horrible thing to be. (laughs)

Well, you certainly haven’t been. God bless you, and thanks very much.
◆ Interfuse

Interfuse No 139 : Easter 2009

Obituary

Fr Thomas (Tom/Thos) MacMahon (1915-2009)

15th January 1915: Born in Dublin
Early education in Presentation, Terenure, and CBS Synge Street
30th September 1933: Entered the Society at Emo
15 October 1935: First Vows at Emo
1935 - 1938: Rathfarnham - Studied Arts at UCD
1938 - 1942: Tullabeg - Studied Philosophy
1942 - 1944: Clongowes - Teacher
1944 - 1948: Milltown Park - Studied Theology
30th July 1947: Ordained at Milltown Park
1948 - 1949: Tertianship at Rathfarnham
1949 - 1962: Crescent College Limerick -
2nd February 1950: Final Vows
1949 - 1960: Assistant Prefect of Studies.
1960 - 1962: Prefect of Studies in Crescent
1962 - 1963: Belvedere College - Teacher
1963 - 1975: St. Ignatius College Galway - Teacher
1975 - 2006: Sacred Heart Church, Limerick
1975 - 1991: Assisted in the Church; Subminister; Assistant Prefect of Theatre
1989 - 1991: Spiritual Father
1991 - 1992: Minister
1992 - 1997: Subminister; Choirmaster; Director Cecilians Musical Society
1997 - 2003: Subminister; Assisted in Church; Choirmaster; Assistant Director of Sodality BVM & St. Joseph
2000 - 2002: Director of the Church Shop
2002 - 2009: Cherryfield Lodge -Prayed for Church and Society
2006-2009: He was a member of Milltown Park community .
24th January 2009: Died at Cherryfield Lodge, Dublin.

Todd Morrissey writes:
Tom MacManon, who died at Cherryfield Lodge on 24 January 2009, aged 94 years, informed the Provincial some years previously that he had never been happier. “I'm in heaven here”, he told an interviewer in 2005, “you couldn't ask for a nicer place or a nicer set of people, nurses and community and everything - marvellous”. (cf. Interfuse 125, Autumn 2005). He radiated happiness and cheerfulness.

Tom was born on 15 January 1915, and grew up in Rathfarnham, when it was a village almost surrounded by fields, and the means of travel was by foot, bicycle, horse and trap/cart, or tram. The castle was unknown territory to him, but he was familiar with the “young priests” going for a walk on Sundays and singing in the parish church. He and his older sister walked to school at the Presentation Convent, Terenure; and later he cycled to the Christian Brothers' secondary school at Synge Street. After his Leaving Certificate he, and some others from Synge Street, attended a retreat at Rathfarnham under Fr John Neary. Subsequently, he was to have Fr Neary as novice master. He entered the Society at Emo on 30 September 1933, took his vows on 1 October 1935, and thereafter followed the usual course of training in Rathfarnham (for Arts degree), Tullabeg, regency (at Clongowes), and theology in Milltown Park. He was ordained in 1947, and returned to Rathfarnham for tertianship

He served in Crescent College, Limerick, from 1949-1962: teaching Irish and Technical Drawing, and acting as assistant to the prefect of studies until 196 From 1960-1962 he had a less than successful spell as prefect of studies. The position did not suit his temperament. He was a cheerful man but also very precise, even rigid. The cheerful, human side, so prominent in other circumstances and in later years, was overshadowed by the other aspects when it came to administering discipline as prefect of studies. After Limerick, he spent a year at Belvedere, eleven years in Galway, and then came back to Limerick, where he remained attached to the Sacred Heart Church community from 1975 to 2002. In 2002 he arrived at Cherryfield.

From the start of his second term in Limerick he was assistant in the church, and, in addition to his functions in the community, was assistant prefect of the theatre. This last brought him into work which he greatly enjoyed, and of which he had experience from his earlier years at the Crescent, namely, being involved in the preparation of various musical performances. Between the boys and the Cecilians, he recalled being involved in some 29 shows. Early on, there used to be a pantomime at Christmas, and an autumn and Easter musical. Tom, with his fondness for precision and thoroughness, worked hard to achieve excellence. The Cecilians, indeed, were known for the high quality of their performances. As a result, he seldom got a break during the Christmas and Easter vacations. He conducted the Cecilian orchestra of 24 instruments, and the Sacred Heart Church Choir, and did up to 21 hours of singing each week. Many of the participants did not read music, but they had an ear and could manage if he sang the material for them, so he used to sing with the sopranos, the tenors, the altos and the bass!

Among his other gifts, Tom was a 'carpenter'. There was not a room in the community house that did not have a chair, table, wardrobe, drawer or door that had not been mended or touched up by him. He could not bear to be idle, and, in the process, saved the house much expense. So marked was this, that Dick Coyne was moved to uncharacteristic versification:

    Our Tom is no stranger to pain
    If in anything there can be gain,
    For to save a few bob He'll do any job
    And paint it again and again.

Tom filled his day to the end. Interviewed three years before his death, he rejoiced that he now had more time for reading than ever before. He had always enjoyed Palgrave's Golden Treasury of Poetry, and in his final years he read it for half an hour, or three quarters, each evening. He followed this with the Oxford Book of Quotations for half an hour, and then his main reading from nine until midnight, and at 5 to midnight he said Compline. I was honoured to be part of the “main reading”. Time and again he told me about a book of mine that he had read. In addition to this tight nightly programme, he taught English during the day to two Polish and a Chinese lady. And then there were the numerous Limericks and other verse, which took up his time and found expression in province publications. To mark the closure of the Sacred Heart Church and the end of his much loved choir, he wrote a song with the long title “Sing, Sing, Chorus of Angels, Lord, Pour Graces and Blessings on Ye”. Six of the lines might well have been written for Tom himself:

    Now that you start this last great final year,
    Be glad of heart and shed no useless tear.
    But think of all the graces you have won
    Now that your final course is nearly run.
    If next September you'll not meet again,
    Then end this session with a great AMEN

Tom's “Amen” came after days of decline and difficulty. His Limerick friends came in strength, together with his fellow Jesuits, to his funeral to give thanks for his life and his companionship. Doubtless, he joyfully conducted and sang along in spirit with the Cecilian and Sacred Heart Choir voices that filled the Milltown chapel.

Born: 08 December 1885, Spencer Road, Dun Laoghaire, County Dublin
Entered: 06 September 1902, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 31 July 1917, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1922, Coláiste Iognáid, Galway
Died: 30 October 1956, Coláiste Iognáid, Galway

part of the Rathfarnham Castle, Dublin community at the time of death

John Joseph O’Donnell MacSheahan

Father was Assistant Secretary to the Local Government Board for Ireland and died in 1885. Mother now residing at Waterloo Road, Dublin.

Second eldest of four brothers and six sisters

Early education was by a governess and then at a local Dun Laoghaire NS, then again by a personal tutor until 1895. He then went to Clongowes Wood College SJ

Chaplain in the First World War.

by 1912 at Stonyhurst England (ANG) studying
by 1918 Military Chaplain : 6th RI Regiment, BEF France

◆ Irish Province News

Irish Province News 32nd Year No 1 1957

Obituary :

Fr John MacSheahan (1887-1956)

When the death of Fr. MacSheahan was announced, a Jesuit said to me: “The Society has another martyr in heaven”. Anyone who knew him intimately, especially for the past ten or twelve years, will have no difficulty in endorsing that statement. Instinctively one thinks of him as a man enduring suffering, constant and severe, and sustaining throughout an infectious spirit of cheerfulness and trust in God. “How are you, Fr. John?” I asked him on meeting him one day in Gardiner Street. At that moment he was the wan, emaciated figure, slightly stooped, that gave you a shock if you had not seen him for a period. “How am I? Why, I'm grand! Of course you know I have lost the sight of this eye, and the hearing of this ear”, - and he indicated both, covering them for a moment with his open palm. Then the “tummy gives me no end of trouble. If only I could live without eating! And the noises go on all the time in my old head”. “You have them at this moment?” “At this moment there is a throbbing up there like an engine; it never stops, day and night. But otherwise I'm fine!!”
“Otherwise I'm fine”. That is the characteristic note. I saw him at recreation that same evening, and he laughed and joked and told stories in his own inimitable way. But who knows the heroic effort demanded daily, hourly, by this struggle extending over his whole life - for he was always a delicate man and calling for even greater courage as the end approached? This man of indomitable will I saw one day in his room and he broke down completely. His head sank into his hands and he wept freely. “It's not easy going. Life is so useless and so lonely. I wish God would take me or give me some health and relief”. But at once he gripped himself, apologised for letting me see him weeping, and by the time I was going, the familiar patient smile was back again. But the incident gave me an inkling into the depths of depression that must have often crushed and nearly overpowered him. But nobody knew,
His optimism was irrepressible. He would tell you of his confidence in Our Lady during a novena he was making in her honour as one of her feasts came on. And when there was no cure and no relief Fr. John grinned and braced himself to carry on. He was in high glee when the Eucharistic Fast was mitigated. He could now have a cup of coffee in the early morning and “I don't know myself, it's such a help saying Mass”. He was keenly appreciative of even a tiny act of thoughtfulness...a letter or a visit or a promise of prayer. He told me at considerable length and with obviously deep gratitude in his voice of a reply he had received from a Superior. He had been lamenting the fact that he was such an expense and unable to do any work. He was assured on both points. He was reminded that his sufferings, borne with such Christlike patience, were beyond doubt calling down immense blessings and graces on the Province. I know how he treasured that word.
The moment he got any respite he was all out to give himself to work. At Gardiner Street he exercised a fruitful apostolate, doing full-time as “operarius”, director of the Irish-speaking Sodality, and settling down to “figures” - the House accounts. He was ever on the watch to multiply deeds of charity, visits to the sick, letters of advice or congratulation or of sympathy. All was done unobtrusively; much remained, and remains, entirely hidden. Often on returning from some errand of mercy he would get a “black-out” and collapse in the street. Such incidents never deterred him. He would joke about them afterwards. He would tell you of the four or five different occasions upon which people thought he was dead or dying.
He enjoyed in particular describing the night when, recovering from a “black out," he began to realise he was lying in a bed, and surrounded by lighted candles, They must surely believe that this time he really is dead, and he wondered hazily if perhaps they mightn't be right! But again he came back from the tomb. The electricity had failed that night, that was all.
Fr. MacSheahan entered the Society at Tullabeg, in 1902, when he was seventeen. His tales of the sayings and doings of a renowned Fr. Socius provided many a good laugh, nor did they lose in the telling. He went to Stonyhurst for philosophy, to Clongowes, and Mungret for “colleges”, and he was ordained at Milltown Park in 1917. He was chaplain in France during World War I, was twice Rector of Galway, worked in the Church and School at the Crescent, and, in 1940, began his long association with Gardiner Street, He went to Rathfarnham in 1955, having himself suggested the change, which he found hard to make - because he recognised he was no longer equal to the work at Gardiner Street.
As chaplain he won the M.C. and a “bar” to it. When this distinction was commented on at his Jubilee, he replied that it meant little to him. The two letters he prized, the only two, after his name were |S.J.” His daily life was the most compelling proof that he spoke the truth,
He was a fluent Irish speaker and all his life an enthusiastic supporter of the language and culture. While his work in this field was characterised by that energy and zeal which he brought to every task, he would have been the last man in the world to obtrude his interest on others. He was unfailingly companionable. His charity at recreation, and at all times, if it did not win others to the Cause he had so much at heart, ensured at least that it did not alienate them from him, nor him from his brethren. Indeed this is understatement.
A truly Christlike priest, this great Jesuit, laden with the Cross, walked unflinchingly the hard road to his Calvary. Far from hardening him, his sufferings developed, rather, that exquisite charity which bears all things, hopes all things, believes all things. Like the Master he loved so ardently, Fr. MacSheahan was obedient even to the death of the Cross. He put the Cross down only when it was impossible for him to carry it any farther. He died in Dublin on 30th October, 1956. “From his childhood”, writes his sister, “John always impressed me with his innocence, simplicity, and humility”. May he rest in peace!

◆ James B Stephenson SJ Menologies 1973

Father John MacSheahan 1885-1956
Fr John MacSheahan was a fluent Irish speaker, and all his life he was an enthusiastic supporter of our native language and culture.

He was twice Rector of Galway. The latter part of his life was spent in Gardiner Street, where he directed the Irish Sodality. He was Chaplain in WWII, and he was awarded an MC with a bar to it. But when thus distinction was mentioned at his jubilee celebration, he remarked, that the letters he prized after his name, the only two were SJ.

The last ten years of his life he suffered heroically from all kinds of complaints, and he carried on his work in spite of handicaps. At his own request he was transferred to Rathfarnham, when he felt his usefulness in Gardiner Street was at an end.

He suffered so much at this time that he often asked God to take him home, but he bore his cross obediently and resignedly until God called him on October 30th 1956.

◆ The Clongownian, 1957

Obituary

Father John MacSheahan SJ

Father MacSheahan entered the Society of Jesus at Tullabeg in 1902, when he was seventeen. After Philosophy at Stonyhurst, he returned to Clongowes as a master. He was ordained at Milltown Park in 1917. He was chaplain in France during the Great War, was twice Rector of Galway, worked in the church and school in the Crescent and, in 1940, began his long associatibn with Gardiner Street Church. He went to Rathfarnham Castle in1955, having himself suggested the change, because the recognised he was no longer equal to the Work at Gardiner Street.

As chaplain he won an M.C. with Bar: When this distinction was commented on at his Jubilee, he replied that it meant little to him. The two letters he prized most were SJ. His daily life was the most compelling proof that he spoke the truth.

He was a fluent Irish speaker and all his life an enthusiastic supporter of the language and culture. While his work in this field was characterised by the energy and zeal which he brought to every task, he would have been the last man in the world to obtrude his interest on others.

A truly Christlike priest, he walked unflinchingly the hard road to his Calvary. Far from hardening him, his sufferings developed, rather, that exquisite charity which bears all things, hopes all things, believes all things. He impressed all by his simplicity and humility. May he rest in peace.

◆ The Crescent : Limerick Jesuit Centenary Record 1859-1959

Bonum Certamen ... A Biographical Index of Former Members of the Limerick Jesuit Community

Father John MacSheahan (1885-1956)

A native of Dublin, entered the Society in 1902. On the completion of his classical studies, he began his regency at St Ignatius, Galway where he first acquired his enthusiasm for the Irish language. His higher studies were made at St Mary's Hall, Stonyhurst and Milltown Park where he was ordained in 1917. In that year he volunteered as a chaplain. After demobilisation, he completed his studies, and was appointed to Galway in 1921. He occupied the post of Vice-Rector there from 1922-1928. He was master at Sacred Heart College from 1929 to 1931 when he was appointed as Rector once more in Galway. In 1938 on relinquishing office he took up church work in Gardiner St. and with the exception of a few years at Rathfarnham, spent his remaining years there. Throughout his life in the Society, Father MacSheahan was an ardent supporter, chiefly by example, of the Gaelic language. His later years, owing to weak health, were spent in retirement.

Born: 06 August 1940, Ilnacullen, Whitebeam Avenue, Clonskeagh, Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 06 September 1958, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Died: 24 December 2011, Purfleet, Essex, England

Left Society of Jesus: 08 April 1959

Father, Anthony, was an architect. Mother was Anna (O’Connell) who died, and father remarried. Famiily lived in Flesk, Killarney for a time early in Kevin’s life.

Only child

Educated at Clongowes Wood College SJ

Baptised at St Mary’s Cathedral, New Street, Kilarney, County Kerry, 08/08/1940
Confirmed at St Mary’s Pro Cathedral, Marlborough Street, Dublin, by Dr McQuaid, 22/02/1951

https://notices.irishtimes.com/death/madden-kevin-j-kevin-j/13339963

MADDEN Kevin, J, Kevin J.: Death

MADDEN Kevin, J. (Purfleet, Essex and formerly of Whitebeam Ave, Clonskeagh) - December 24, 2011, sadly missed by his wife Sheila, sons Tim and Steve, sisters Clare (Stassen) and Paula (McGowan), brothers-in-law Leo and Fabian, nieces and nephews, relatives and friends. Funeral will take place in Essex on January 6, 2012. All enquiries to Mulley & Son Undertakers, Upminster, Essex., RM14 3DH ph. 0044 1708220330.

https://rip.ie/death-notice/kevin-j-madden-dublin-clonskeagh-145879

The death has occurred of

Kevin, J. MADDEN
Purfleet, Essex and formerly of Whitebeam Ave, Clonskeagh, Dublin

Funeral will take place in Essex on January 6, 2012.

Date Published:
Friday 30th December 2011

Date of Death:
Saturday 24th December 2011

Born: 25 November 1881, Killashee, County Longford
Entered: 07 September 1899, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 31 July 1915, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1918,St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Died: 13 September 1959, Loyola College, Watsonia, Australia - Australiae Province (ASL)

Part of the Manresa, Hawthorn, Melbourne, Australia community at the time of death.

Father died 1883. Five sisters and two brothers.

Early education at Castleknock College and Clongowes Wood College SJ

Transcribed HIB to ASL : 05 April 1931

First World War chaplain.
by 1904 at Kasteel Gemert, Netherlands (TOLO) studying
by 1918 Military Chaplain : 6th Yorks and Lancs Regiment, BEF France

◆ David Strong SJ “The Australian Dictionary of Jesuit Biography 1848-2015”, 2nd Edition, Halstead Press, Ultimo NSW, Australia, 2017 - ISBN : 9781925043280
James Magan was a real character with a boisterous sense of u and was a wonderful companion if one was not feeling depressed. His loud, melodious voice could annoy the more sensitive by his vociferous jokes on trams and buses, and he was good at “setting up” superiors by playing on their weaknesses, especially the provincial, Austin Kelly. His wit was captivating. When introducing himself he would say: “Magan's the name - James William Magan. James after St James, William after the Kaiser, and Magan after my Father.
Magan was a most devoted and respected pastor, especially good with young people. He was also very humble. and would even ask for advice about his sermons and retreat notes, even though he was highly skilled in preaching. He spoke the language of the people in simple terms, putting everyone at ease He even became an expert in the Australian accent.
He was educated at Castleknock College by the Vincentians, and Clongowes College, before he entered the Society at Tullabeg, 7 September 1899. After his juniorate there in mathematics and classics, he studied philosophy at Gemert, Toulouse province, 1903-06, and then taught at Mungret and Clongowes, 1906-12. Theology studies at Milltown Park followed, 1912-16, and tertianship at Tullabeg, 1916-17.
For a few years afterwards, Magan became a military chaplain with the 6th York and Lancasters, British Expeditionary Forces, 1917-19. Afterwards, he set sail for Australia, teaching first at Xavier College, 1920-22, then at St Aloysius' College, 1923-24, and finally spent a year at Riverview.
In Australia he had a most successful pastoral ministry, first at Lavender Bay, 1925-31, then as superior and parish priest of Richmond, 1932-36. He also worked at various times at Hawthorn, 1942-59.
Magan was a very colorful personality. He was an outstanding retreat-giver, and for twenty years gave the ordination retreat to the seminarians at Werribee. He also gave a retreat to the Cistercian monks at Tarrawarra. His short Sunday discourses were always full of bright, homely illustrations. His merry ways made him most approachable. He spoke to everyone that he met along his path, conferring on all and sundry unauthorised medical degrees. Many a junior sister he addressed as “Mother General”.
He regularly preached the devotions to the Sacred Heart during the month of June. Magan was above all a kindly, hospitable man, and definitely 'a man's man'. He died suddenly whilst giving a retreat to the priests of the Sale diocese at Loyola College, Watsonia.

◆ Irish Province News

Irish Province News 1st Year No 2 1926
Residence. S F XAVIER (Lavender Bay) :
Lavender Bay became an independent parish in 1921. Its First Pastor was Fr R O'Dempsey. He was succeeded by Fr R Murphy, who built the new school, enlarged the hall, and established four tennis courts. The present Pastor so Fr J Magan. All three are old Clongowes boys. The parish contains St, Aloysius' College, two primary schools and two large convents. Numbered amongst the parishioners is His Excellency the Apostolic Delegate.

Irish Province News 7th Year No 3 1932
Lavender Bay Parish
Father James Magan, S.J., took leave of Lavender Bay Parish at a meeting organized by his late parishioners to do him honour and to say farewell. During the proceedings several very complimentary speeches were addressed to him, and a number of substantial presents made.
The Catholic Press, commenting on the meeting, wrote “In the Archdiocese of Sydney there is no more genial priest than Rev. Father .J. Magan, SJ., who has just completed seven years as Superior of the Lavender Bay Parish, and has been transferred to the Jesuit house at Richmond, Victoria. His remarkable jovial disposition, a trait that puts his numerous callers in a friendly attitude, is the reflection of a generous heart which, allied with his high ideals of the priesthood, has made his pastorate on the harbour side a triumphant mission for Christ.Needless to say, during his stay at Lavender Bay, Father Magan won the esteem and respect of all who came in contact with him, especially the school children, in whom he took a great interest, His going is a great loss to the parish, especially to the poor, whom he was always ready to help, not only by giving food and clothing, but also money.

Irish Province News 35th Year No 1 1960
Obituary :
Fr James W Magan (1881-1959)

(From the Monthly Calenday, Hawthorn, October 1959)
The death of Fr. Magan came with startling suddenness, although we should have been prepared for it; for during the last year or so, he had been looking very frail, and aged even beyond his years. Had he lived till the 25th November, he would have been 78 years old. He was, however, so ready to undertake any apostolic work that no one dreamt, when he walked out of Manresa six days before, on the day of his Diamond Jubilee, to begin the first of two retreats to the Bishop and clergy of the diocese of Sale, at Loyola, that he would in a week's time be brought back to Hawthorn in his coffin for his Requiem.
The day he went to Loyola for that retreat was a memorable one for Fr. Magan, because it marked the sixtieth anniversary of his entrance into the Society of Jesus. Normally it would have been a festal day for him, celebrated amongst his fellow Jesuits and friends; but he elected to postpone the celebration of his Jubilee till the two retreats were over. He seemed, however, to have had some inkling that the end was at hand, for in saying goodbye to a member of the community at Hawthorn, he thanked him earnestly for kindness shown to him during the last few years.
Towards the end of the first retreat, Fr. Magan became ill and his place was taken by another priest during the final day. A doctor saw him and urged him to rest for a few days. He did as he was told and the sickness seemed to pass away, and although he did not say Mass on the morning of his death, he was present at Mass and received Holy Communion. He rested quietly during the day and appeared to be well on the mend and in particularly good form, but a visitor to his room at about 3 p.m. found him with his breviary fallen from his helpless hands. He had slipped off as if going to sleep, and I feel sure, just as he would have wished, quietly and peacefully, with no one by his side but his Angel Guardian, presenting him to the Lord, and it is hard to believe that when he met the Master in a matter of moments, he would not have indulged in his wonted pleasantry : “Magan's the name - James William Magan. James after St. James, William after the Kaiser, and Magan after my father”.
Fr. Magan was born in Kilashee, Co. Longford, Ireland. His school. years were spent partly at the Vincentians' College of Castleknock. and partly at the Jesuit College of Clongowes Wood in Kildare. His novitiate was made in Tullabeg, followed by his further classical and mathematical studies in the same place. There he had as one of his masters, Fr. John Fahy, afterwards the first Provincial of Australia. His philosophical studies were made at Gemert, Holland, after which he taught at Mungret and Clongowes Wood Colleges, before proceeding to Theology at Milltown Park, Dublin. There, in due course, he was ordained to the priesthood on the feast of St. Ignatius, 1915. His Tertianship in Ireland was interrupted at the outbreak of the First World War, when he was appointed Chaplain to the British forces in France and Belgium; and at the conclusion of the war he completed his Tertianship in the French Jesuit College, Canterbury, England.
His next important appointment was to Australia and his travelling companion was Fr. Jeremiah Murphy, for many years Rector of Newman College. He taught at Xavier College, Kew and St. Aloysius College, Milson's Point, Sydney; and he was Prefect of Studies at Aloysius and later at Riverview. But his obvious gifts for dealing intimately with souls induced Superiors to put him aside for parish work. He was parish priest at Lavender Bay and also at St. Ignatius, Richmond. For many years he was stationed at the Immaculate Conception Church, Hawthorn, where a splendid tribute to his memory paid by a church packed with priests, parishioners and friends from far and near, hundreds of whom received Holy Communion for the repose of his soul; and at the conclusion of the Requiem Mass a beautiful and perfectly true-to-life panegyric was preached by His Grace, Arch bishop Simmonds, who presided. There were present also in the Sanctuary, Bishop Lyons of Sale, who with his priests had just made with Fr. Magan the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius; Bishop Fox, the Auxiliary Bishop to Archbishop Mannix, and Fr. Swain, S.J., the English Assistant to Fr. General.
Fr. Magan was a colourful personality, whose coming to Australia was a great boon to our country. He was an outstanding retreat-giver to clergy and laity and for quite twenty years he gave the Ordination Retreat to generations of young Corpus Christi priests; many times also to various Jesuit communities in Australia, and to religious, nuns and Brothers throughout the length and breadth of our land. He was, I think, the first to give the annual retreat to the Cistercian monks at Tarrawarra, and wherever he went he left behind him happy memories and most practical lessons for the future.
“Ridentem dicere verum quid vetat?” - “What is to prevent one driving home an important truth. in a merry way?” - seems to have been almost a cardinal principle with Fr. Magan. His short Sunday discourses were always full of bright homely illustrations, but there was no mistake possible as to the lesson he set out to teach.
His merry ways made him most approachable. He spoke to everyone that he met on the way, conferring on all and sundry unauthorised medical degrees, and many a junior nun, perhaps even a novice, was swept off her feet and constrained blushingly to disclaim the title, when addressed by His Reverence as “Mother General”.
He loved to tell the following incident where he met his own “Waterloo’. It was long ago in an almost empty tram in North. Sydney, Fr. Magan boarded it at the same time as a lady who was carrying a pet monkey. When the conductor came to take his fare, Fr. Magan said (possibly not in a whisper) : “Are monkeys allowed on this tram?” The conductor replied : |Get over there in the corner and no one will notice you”.
He was always very ready when asked to preach or to give a course of sermons on special occasions. I wonder how many times be gave the “Novena of Grace”, or how often he gave the Devotions of the Sacred Heart during the month of June? The writer remembers well how on one Saturday evening in June he was in the pulpit and he was speaking on the text : “Those who propagate this devotion will have their names written on My Heart, never to be effaced”. He told how he had been asked to give this course on Devotion to the Sacred Heart and how he would never, while he lived, decline such a request. “And why should I”, he said. “Did you not hear my text : ‘They shall have their names written on My Heart, never to be effaced’? Won't that be the day for the Magans!” he cried. And assuredly, if that honour is due to anyone, it would be due to him, for devotion to the Sacred Heart was, one might say, almost a ruling passion with him.
Some years passed by and Fr. Magan was very seriously ill. A critical operation was impending. The writer went to see him in hospital. “How are you, James?” I asked. “Weak, terribly weak”, he replied. “Still I think you are going to make good”, I said, “I don't know that I want to”, was his answer. “Well, James”, I said, “at any rate your name is written deep on His Heart, never to be effaced. I have no doubt of that”. His eyes filled with tears and they coursed down his cheeks, and be blurted out : “Please God. Please God”.
Yes, Fr. Magan was a devoted priest of God. Deep down in his soul, under the veneer of what Archbishop Simmonds called his rollicking humour, was a faith in God and a love of God, for Whom with might and main he strove in the Society of Jesus for sixty years. Multitudes of people are indebted to him. He had a heart of gold, as those who knew him best can testify, and he was a devoted, faithful friend. The writer', at any rate, believes that his name is written deeply in the Heart of Christ, never to be effaced.
J. S. Bourke, S.J.

◆ The Clongownian, 1918

Clongowes Chaplains

We should have liked to be able to give a series of letters from Army. Chaplains, Past Clongownians, and former members of the Clon gowes Community, describing their professional experiences. We made considerable efforts and received promises not a few. But in the end, all found that their life was too busy and too irregular to make formal composition of that kind possible, and they one and all shrank from the task. Very often, too, no doubt, there was the fear of the Censor in the background. But notwithstanding this we thought it would be of interest to many readers of the “Clongownian” if we pieced together from these letters the scattered fragments of news coll tained in them. And this is what we have done. We begin with Father Corr, who for several years most worthily filled the position of Editor to this Magazine, and to whom is due the magnificent Centenary Number, 1914

Father James Magan SJ

Father Magan is in France with the 6th Yorkshire and Lancashire. He has, perhaps, come in contact with more Clongownians than any other of our Chaplains. He it was who had charge of the funeral of Lieut. C Shiel, RFC, whose death is announced else where, and among CWC men present at the graveside was R L Rice. He has also come: across J J Keating and poor David, who has recently been killed, and George Maher and Dr Carroll and others. He paid us a short visit during the year, and some of his adventures would make very interesting reading were it not that space, and possibly DORA, will not allow us to record them. Some of his escapes were as amusing on after thought as they must have been nerve-racking at the time.

◆ The Clongownian, 1919

Clongowes Chaplains

Our last number gave an account of the work and experiences of those Army Chaplains who were connected with Clongowes either as boys or masters. Since then a number of those mentioned have found their way back to civil life.

The Armistice.
We are glad to have the opportunity of publishing an account of the Armistice “celebrations” and the events that followed, as viewed by one of our Chaplains, Father Magan, who found himself near Mons when the order (which, apparently, they did not get) to cease fire was given. Father Magan was attached to the 6th Yorks and Lancs. Regiment, and this letter was written home by him on the 20th of November last.

6th York and Lanc, Regiment,
B.E.F., 20/11/18

Dear Father Finlay, PC,

For the past few days I have been doing rather unusual work. I am in a little village one side of which is Belgian, the opposite side is French. It was peculiarly placed during the war, as no one was allowed to go from one country to the other, no one might cross the street or even bid good day to those on the other side. There was a church for each side and a Curé for each side. It is called Goegnes-Chaussée, about 13 kilometers from Mons. Well, this village is on the high road to Germany, so there are hundreds of our prisoners who got free somehow or other from the Germans. Some were let go, some broke away. The costumes are most varied. Some come as smart young Belgians in hard hats, collars and ties; others in khaki ; others half and half, khaki and civilian; others come in prisoner usiform; others in clothes supplied from home. To each and all I supply cigarettes, having got a good supply from the Weekly Dispatch Smokes Fund, and I bear those who want to go to confession.

I met Irish of many regiments - Dublins, Connaughts, RI Rifles, RI Regt, SI, Horse, Leinsters, Munsters. Also Eoglish, Scotch, Australians, Newzealanders, French and Italians.

The Belgians on the way back treated them right royally. At Charleroi the nuns bustled aside the now subdued Germans and got the Catholics to their first Mass for eight months, The Curé there in his sermon exhorted his congregation to see that none of the returning prisoners were short of anything, and tbey followed bis advice to the letter. All they had to spare in the way of clotbes, food and smokes was open to them, I never saw such gratitude as they felt to the Belgians.

When taken they suffered extraordinary privations. To get a drink on the way back last November or March they drank the water off the streets and got no other drink. In the prison cage watches and chains were freely given for a drink of water. They worked at forward dumps of rations or shells or as grooms to German bosses, some even as mess waiters. Food varied according to the chances of scrounging. Not even the mess waiters fared well, as tbe German officers' mess was exceedingly bad. Some always cooked and ate rats when they were lucky enough to kill one. Potato skins were washed and cooked - nettles were freely eaten Tobacco was a most peculiar mixture of leaves of all kinds. Many bring back samples of the blacker brand which is vile. A loaf cost 8 marks, and it was 8 men to a loaf. They were offered 200 marks for boots coming from England; clothes went 500 marks a suit, ie, £25. I saw an overall coat made from nettles and it looked fine. Ropes and sandbags and even towels were made of paper.

Mons
I paid a visit to the famous Mons. It is a fine town and not much damaged. There are shops with fair supplies, but everything is fearfully dear-a bar of chocolate, 2/6; an egg, 1/-,

Peace was a rather tame affair out here. It started as a rumour which no one believed. Then at 11 am. the bands played, The Curé of Aubrois, where I was, made a speech to congratulate the British for having saved Belgium. I translated it; there were three cheers for the King, for Belgium, and for France, and all went their way. For days we heard, as it were, far-off guns which were hard to explain, but it was caused by German dumps being fired.

The most wonderful part of the German retreat was the way they blew up the roads behind then. Every cross road was completely blown to pieces, leaving a huge hole which caused endless inconvenience. Miles of traffic was held up by it. Side roads and main roads suffered alike. The difficulty is that there is little or no road metal to be found to fill in these lioles. For a day or two no rations could come, even aeroplanes had to drop buliy and biscuits to the troops. The papers spoke of a dramatic order to cease fire, unfix bayonets. I heard nothing of it. The war fizzled out like a dying candle. and no one knew it. The prisoners all say it is wonderful how the Germans held out. They were playing the game of bluff; their transport was hopeless - even cows being used for limbers, their harness all ropes, and those paper ropes. Their men had lost their morale; at Aubrois they broke their rifles rather than go into the line. Their treatment of civilians would demand a whole letter, and I must say good-night.

I remain, etc.,

J W Magan SJ, CF

Behind the German Lines
We are indebted to another letter of Father Magan's for the following account of life in a Belgian occupied village :

The people told ine of the invasion. Everything was commandeered Brass of all kinds, knobs of doors, windows, beds, all bedding and loodstuffs. The great complaint was against the “Komandatur” (i.e., the town major and the police). If people were found boiling potatoes the police threw out the potatoes and a fine of 50 marks was imposed. Some had a procès verbal six times a week, and so marks each time. One woman had three in one day. She got up at 6 am - procès No I. She was caught talking with others in the street procès No 2. She lit a light in her house and went straight to shut the window, but was caught (all lights should be covered) - procès No 3. All cattle and hens had been taken, so the country was exceedingly poor. Still there remained some American Red-Cross supplies, cocoa and coffee, to which they treated us.

◆ The Clongownian, 1960

Obituary

Father James William Magan SJ

On a summer's evening exactly fifty years ago a lost new boy stood amid the pile of trunks on the Higher Line Gallery, searching his pockets for the nth time for a lost key. A voice behind him said: “Cheer up, young man, if I can't find a key to fit it, I can lend you a couple of sticks of dynamite”. That was a characteristic introduction to Father, then Mr James William Magan, or as he liked to say: “James for my patron saint, James the apostle, William for the Kaiser, Magan for my father”. There cannot be many who remember the boy who came to Clongowes from Castleknock nor even very many who can remember him as Gallery Prefect, but the recollections of those who do must be vivid and vital, for Mr James Magan was a vivid and vital person. The first and not the least important thing about him in those far-off days was his high spirits. Banging his great bunch of keys with a smile that was close to a grin, he would sweep down the gallery driving the laggards out to walk the track or play “gravel” with a jovial roar, “Omnes Ex!” (“All out”).

We boys were probably quite unaware of the tonic his good spirits and energy were when the monotony of school routine threatened. The office of Gallery Prefect is not the easiest position to fill on the Clongowes staff, though it may well be reckoned one of the most influential. Father James Magan filled it perfectly. He was a strict disciplinarian who was always just, and never harsh. If you deserved it he taught you your lesson, and that done he resumed at once the friendiy relations that were his habitual attitude to all men. The writer still remembers the astonishment with which he heard the ex-gallery prefect recommend him to a successor it was hard to believe he had ever been in trouble. But James Magan was no mere disciplinarian, he could hold a group around his desk under the clock talking first sport and then books and then almost imperceptibly the things that mattered. High spirits can be trying, and they can be a matter of mood or temperament. Father James' were never irritating for he was spontaneous, unselfconscious and always kind. And they were constant. Now constant good spirits through the days and months of a Gallery Prefect's commission and for fifty years to come are not an affair of mood or temperament, they are quite simply a virtue.

He carried the same bubbling energy into his class work. He had one group of the rejected by the experts from Father James Daly's carefully picked “Honours Boys”. These mathematical morons he pushed, one and all, through their exam, a few, to his undisguised delight, took higher honours than some of the chosen race.

After these first school years I met Father James only three times. Once when a tertian father, he brought all his old power to cheer to bear on a novice in some need of it. Again, when in a Captain's uniform and talking, as he liked to do, a special soldiers' jargon inter larded with French tags, he came back from the Somme and Paschendale with unbroken cheerfulness and a completely unheroic manner. It was an unexpected visit to Australia that gave me my last glimpse of him ten years or so before his death. He had been very ill, and his chances of life were put very low. I believe he knew it, but he certainly did not show it, and he was on his way from one retreat to another. He had no intention. of “resting”. Had we ever seen him rest? In the event he served a full sixty years and fell ill and died while actually engaged in giving a clergy retreat.

And here, perhaps an apology is due for a memory of Father James that omits any real account of his life work, his years as a teacher in Australia - he was prefect of Studies in Sydney's great school, Riverview; of the long labours, half a life time, as a parish priest, a preacher. The greatest authority in Australia said to the present writer: “Father Magan is undoubtedly one of the best preachers in Australia”, and added with a touch of Father James's own humour; “And he knows it”!!!

For twenty years he had given the ordination retreat at Corpus Christi, the seminary of the Melbourne archdiocese. And it was not surprising that Dr Symonds, the Coadjutor Archbishop, should comment on the tribute the great gathering of priests at Father James's funeral was to the man he eulogised with such affection and understanding. But all that and a great deal more is told elsewhere, here it is simply the wish of one old Clongowesman to express for all his contemporaries the gratitude and affection he feels for his “prefect” and the pride he feels in his school fellow.

To his sisters and to his nephews, Michael and John, we offer our sincere sympathy.

MB

Born: 23 December 1922, Millbrook, Naas, County Kildare
Entered: 06 September 1941, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois

Left Society of Jesus: 21 April 1943

Anthony John Christopher Maguire

Father, Hugh, was manager of the Naas Carpet Factory and then employed by a Mr Hederman, coal merchant. Mother was Sally (Sarah Coffey). Family then resided at Fair View, Naas, County Kildare.

Second of three boys with three sisters.

Early education at a Convent school and the Christian Brothers school, both in Naas (1930-1940). After school he was employed as a clerk in a solicitor’’s office in Naas.

Baptised at Church of Our Lady and St David, Sallins Road, Naas, County Kildare, 31/12/1922
Confirmed at Church of Our Lady and St David, Sallins Road, Naas, County Kildare, by Dr Cullen of Kildare and Leighlin, 13/04/1932

Born: 31 March 1913, Clonliffe Road, Drumcondra, Dublin
Entered: 23 September 1932, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois

Left Society of Jesus: 08 December 1942

Father was Patrick Maguire. Mother was Elizabeth (Dunne). Family had previously lived at Fitzroy Avenue, Drumcondra, Dublin.

One brother and two sisters.

Educated at St Pat’s BNS, Drumcondra, Dublin

Baptised at St Agatha’s, North William Street, 04/04/1913
Conformed at St Columba’s, Iona Road by Dr Byrne of Dublin, 05/03/1927

1932-1934: St Mary's, Emo, Novitiate
1934-1936: St Mary's, Emo,, Infirmarian
1936-1938: St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, Infirmarian
1938-1940: Borgo Santo Spirito, Rome Italy (ROM) secretary
1940-1940: Clongowes Wood College SJ, Infirmarian
1941-1942: Milltown Park / Rathfarnham Castle, working / infirmarian

After leaving he became Sacristan at Corpus Christi, Home Farm Road. He was married with a family and worked for an Insurance company.

Born: 19 March 1824, Rush, County Dublin
Entered: 23 May 1858, Clongowes Wood College SJ, County Kildare
Final vows: 15 August 1868
Died: 18 March 1894, St Francis Xavier's, Upper Gardiner Street, Dublin

by 1871 at home for health

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
He had been a number of years in the Metropolitan Police before Ent.

He was a Novice in Clongowes under Father Bracken.
After First Vows he was sent to Gardiner St, and worked there until he became invalided in 1870 and had to live outside the Society fro a few years.
1873-1888 He was Refectorian at Milltown.
1888 he was sent to Gardiner St again and lived there until his death 18 March 1894
He was very methodical in his work, and had a particular like of gardening, spending most of his free time at this. He was in every respect an edifying and exemplary religious.

Note from Francis Hegarty Entry :
He did return after some months, and there he found in Father Bracken, a Postulant Master and Novice Master, and this was a man he cherished all his life with reverence and affection. His second Postulancy was very long and hard - four years. He took the strain and was admitted as a Novice with seven others who had not had so trying a time as himself. He liked to say that all seven along with him remained true to their vocation until death, and he was the last survivor. They were John Coffey, Christopher Freeman, David McEvoy, James Maguire, John Hanly, James Rorke and Patrick Temple.

Born: 15 June 1933, Stenagress, Glenfarne, County Leitrim
Entered: 01 July 1968, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Final Vows: 02 February 1981, Lusaka, Zambia
Died: 16 April 2020, Cherryfield Lodge, Dublin

Part of the Milltown Park community, Dublin at the time of death.

Father - Francis

by 1980 at Lusaka Zambia (ZAM) working

Early Education as Grocer in Ireland and England; Rathmines Tech, Dublin; Catholic Workers College, Dublin

1970-1974 Milltown Park - Secretary to Provincial; Studying
1974-1975 Clongowes Wood College SJ - Studying Theology at St Patrick’s College, Maynooth, Co Kildare
1975-1980 Milltown Park - Secretary to Provincial
1977 Studying Theology at Milltown Institute; Assistant Secretary to Provincial
1978 Tertianship in Tullabeg
1979 Member of Special Secretariat
1980-1984 Lusaka, Zambia - Secretary to Rector of St Dominic’s Major Seminary
1984-1987 Loyola House - Minister; Province Secretary
1985 Editor of Province Newsletter
1987-2020 Milltown Park - Province Secretary
1993 Canterbury, Kent, UK - Sabbatical at Franciscan Study Centre
1994 Administration in Provincial’s Office
2017 Prays for the Church and the Society at Cherryfield Lodge

◆ Jesuits in Ireland

https://www.jesuit.ie/news/br-john-maguire-sj-one-of-leitrims-treasures/

Br John Maguire SJ – ‘One of Leitrim’s treasures’

Brother John Maguire SJ died peacefully in Cherryfield Lodge nursing home, Ranelagh, Dublin, on 16 April 2020. Due to government guidelines regarding public gatherings, a private funeral took place on 18 April, followed by burial in Glasnevin Cemetery. A small number of relatives attended. Fr Bill Callanan SJ and Fr John K Guiney SJ represented the Jesuits. Around 100 messages were left on the online Condolences Book (RIP.ie), such was Brother John’s influence on the lives of lay people and religious over many decades. Many remember him for his quiet reassuring presence and for his wise judgement and administrative skills while working for the Irish Jesuit Province.

Brother John was born in Glenfarne, County Leitrim, in 1933. Before entering the Jesuits at 35 years old, he worked as a grocer in Ireland and England and attended Rathmines Tech and Catholic Workers College in Dublin. After his novitiate at St Mary’s, Emo, County Laois, he worked as secretary to the Provincial and studied at Milltown Park, Dublin, followed by theology studies at St Patrick’s College, Maynooth. He continued his studies and administrative work in Milltown Park and did his tertianship in Tullabeg, County Offaly.

From 1980 to 1984, Brother John was a missionary in Lusaka, Zambia, where he was secretary to the rector of St Dominic’s Major Seminary. He also took his final vows there.

Upon his return to Ireland, he worked as minister for the Loyola House community in Dublin, acted as Province secretary and editor of the Province newsletter. He continued his work as Province secretary, took a sabbatical at the Franciscan Study Centre in Canterbury, England, in 1993, and was involved with administration in the Provincial’s office right up until 2017. In recent years, he lived in Cherryfield Lodge nursing home, where he prayed for the Church and the Society of Jesus.

The private funeral which took place on 18 April was officiated by Fr Bill Callanan SJ and assisted by Fr John K Guiney SJ. Fr Guiney, director of Irish Jesuit Missions, thanked the four members of Brother John’s family who travelled from Leitrim on the morning of the funeral. He was grateful for their presence in the difficult circumstances where it was not possible to do a normal Jesuit funeral and to fully celebrate Brother John’s wonderful life as a Jesuit companion.

Fr Guiney thanked the Maguire family for giving Brother John to the Society and for his service of so many in Zambia and Ireland. He said that his gracious, gentle, dedicated and humble service touched the lives of so many down through the years. His sister Peggy was unable to attend because of government constraints, but she was well represented by her family. Brother John occupies the last place available in the old graveyard at Glasnevin Cemetery and the next Jesuit burial will take place in the new one.

A number of other Jesuits have expressed their condolences for the loss of their dear brother in the Lord. Tom Layden SJ, former Irish Provincial, commented:
“May John rest in the peace of the Risen Lord and may the hope of the resurrection bring comfort to his family and friends. I thank the Lord for John and his gifts of kindness, quiet competence and friendliness.”

Kevin O’Higgins SJ, Director of Jesuit University Support and Training (JUST) in Ballymun, said:
“It is lovely to see so many tributes to John. Like St Peter Faber, one of the first Jesuits, John was a ‘quiet companion’, always courteous, anxious to help, unfailingly kind and generous. After a lifetime of dedicated service, may he now rest peacefully in God’s love.”

Paddy Carberry SJ, former novice director and editor of Messenger magazine, commented:
“I have known John for many years, and worked closely with him at one time. He was always kind, obliging, gentle and good-humoured. I will miss him. I have offered Mass for him. My condolences to his family and to all who miss him.”

The Provincialate staff in Milltown Park remember him as a great colleague. They said:
“Brother John helped new staff settle into their jobs in so many little ways and was welcoming and good humoured to all who came into the office.
“We have memories of him loving the fun at coffee breaks, for his gifts of homemade biscuits and for his tin whistle playing.
“He was a gentleman in every sense with a lovely simplicity, albeit with a touch of delicious roguery! He was one of Leitrim’s treasures. May he rest in endless peace.”
Paddy Moloney, who used to visit Brother John in Cherryfield Lodge, also paid tribute to him.
“John was gentle, and was particular about any job he did. He liked the garden, flowers, was a player of the tin whistle and played in bands in his hometown. He was in a small 3 piece Irish music group in Dublin.

The other two remained his friends for life. My wife Aline worked as a receptionist in the Curia and knew him when he was well and said he was interested in people and she always found him helpful.”

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

https://ordo.jesuitssouthern.africa/obit/04-16-2020%20%E2%80%93%20John%20Maguire.pdf

Br John Maguire, S.J. (1933- 2020.

In Zambia 1980-1984)

16 April 2020

Brother John Maguire SJ died peacefully in Cherryfield Lodge nursing home, Dublin, on 16 April, 2020. John was known for his quiet reassuring presence, and for his wise judgement
and administrative skills while working for the Irish Jesuit Province.

He was born in Glenfarne, Co Leitrim, in 1933. Before entering the Jesuits at 35 years old, he worked as a grocer in Ireland and England and attended Rathmines Tech and Catholic Workers College in Dublin. After his novitiate at St Mary’s, Emo, he worked as secretary to the Provincial and studied at Milltown Park, Dublin, followed by theology studies at St Patrick’s College, Maynooth. He continued his studies and administrative work in Milltown Park and did his tertianship in Tullabeg, Co Offaly.

In 1980 John was missioned to Lusaka, where he was secretary to the rector of St Dominic’s Major Seminary, Fr Peter Lwaminda. He lived at Luwisha House and every morning, Fr. Lwaminda would send a driver to bring John to the seminary. John was always very dapper and neat and gave the impression of how it was also in his life: dapper, neat, everything organized and in place; and hence placing considerable premium on control, orderliness, knowing what to expect - but in a good and human way that could make allowances for departures from norms.

In community, he was a first class companion and equally a first class religious. He was always cheerful. He was interesting and lively in table conversation and in the recreation room and was never absent from Mass or any religious duty. While in Lusaka he took his final vows. In 1984, although Fr Lwaminda wanted to keep such a valuable administrator, John returned to Ireland.

In his personal life, John manifested the same kind of organizational control that he brought to his office responsibilities. Demure in personality and in his exterior, he was always neat, efficient and thoroughly reliable. Though quiet and somewhat shy, he was an excellent community man who related very well to every member of his core community as well as to the many visitors who came its way. He is well remembered for his unfailing good humor and for his ability to be sympathetic and understanding in his dealings with others. He always conveyed the sense that he was happy in his Jesuit life and in what wass asked of him, though at times one got the feeling that he needed to relax and let down his hair. A strong feature of his life was the interest he showed in the apostolates of his brethren and the concerned way he kept himself up-to-date on these.

Upon his return, he worked as minister for the Loyola House community in Dublin, acted as Province secretary and editor of the Province newsletter. He continued his work as Province secretary, took a sabbatical at the Franciscan Study Centre in Canterbury, England, in 1993, and was involved with administration in the Provincial’s office right up until 2017. In his later years, he lived in Cherryfield Lodge nursing home where he prayed for the Church and the Society of Jesus.

Born: 06 October 1834, Newgrange, County Meath
Entered: 17 February 1868, Milltown Park, Dublin
Ordained: 1872, England
Final Vows: 15 August 1880
Died: 20 April 1894, Clongowes Wood College, Naas, County Kildare

Early education at Mt St Mary’s, Derbyshire

by 1871 at Stonyhurst England (ANG) studying
by 1877 at St Beuno’s Wales (ANG) studying

Younger brother of James (ANG) - RIP 1904

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
He had an older brother James (RIP 1904) in the English Province and a nephew who was a Redemptorist.

After First Vows he was a Procurator as a Scholastic.
He studied Theology in England and was Ordained there.
1879 He was Minister in Tullabeg, and from 1880 until the College closed was also the Procurator.
1890 He was sent to Mungret.
1892 He was sent to Milltown.
1893 He was sent to Clongowes to take charge of the “small study”. He died there very suddenly of a fever 20 April 1894

Born: 07 December 1923, Bracklone, Street, Portarlington, County Laois
Entered: 14 August 1947, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois

Left Society of Jesus: 16 March 1954

Parents were James and Catherine (O’Connor). Mopther died 12/03/1934. Father was a signal man in Portarlington.

One brother and three sisters

Education at Christian Brothers Portarlington, to Leaving Cert.Before entry and after school he worked at Odlum Flour Mills, Portarlington, County Laois (1942-1944). He then worked as a Clerk at the local office of the Department of Industry and Commerce

Baptised at St Michael’s, Portarlington, 15/12/1923.
Confirmed at St Michael’s, Portarlington, by Dr Cullen of Dublin, 07/03/1935

1947-1949: St Mary's, Emo, Novitiate
1949-1950: St Stanislaus College, Tuillabeg, Refectorian
1950-1953: Clongowes Wood College SJ, working and Secretary to the Rector
1953-1954: St Stanislaus College, Tuillabeg, Infirmarian

Married in 1958

Born: 22 October 1901, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Entered: 30 April 1971, Manresa House, Dollymount, Dublin
Final Vows: 08 September 1981, Manresa House, Dollymount, Dublin
Died: 14 March 1982, Manresa House, Dollymount, Dublin

◆ Irish Province News

Irish Province News 57th Year No 3 1982

Obituary
Br Edward Maher (1901-1971-1982)

Although Br Ned was granted four score of years, his life as a Jesuit spanned little more than a decade. Before becoming “Brother” he had already filled the roles of father and grandfather. The present writer first made the acquaintance of Mr Ned Maher when he (Ned) came to have a chat with Fr Cecil McGarry about entering the Society. A very dapper man with a thin Ronnie Colman moustache; alert, brisk, humorous, at once affable and serious. All these adjectives could be applied to him twelve years later, right up to the time of his last (and really first) illness when it saddened e to see the alertness and humour fading into an almost puzzled resignation.
Ned was born in Philadelphia on 22nd October, 1901, was educated at Belvedere, Clongowes, UCD and Georgetown University. After a short spell working in a bank he took up business, in which he remained for the rest of his lay life. He entered the Society on 30th April, 1971, took his first rows on 29th April, 1973 and pronounced final vows on 8th September, 1981.
A jumble of memories comes to me as I remember Ned; his love for operatic works on stage or radio. The only holiday he allowed himself was a few days every year at 35 lower Leeson Street from which he could, with chosen companions, easily attend the operas at the Gaiety theatre. He was one of the few men I know who appreciated the works of Wagner.
Chess was a game he liked. I cannot say whether he was a skilful player, but he would take on any of the novices who knew how to play. Reading he loved, though within a rather restricted field. Surprisingly (though maybe not in a person of Wagnerian tastes) he focused his reading on the war histories and the memoirs of famous commanders. For one form of recreation he felt no attraction at all ... walking. We used joke him about never having seen the other end of our property, “Walking” for Ned was a purely functional exercise; to get to a bus or bank or post-office; and he hadn't any inclination to look at the birds of the air or the lilies in the field; they hardly existed for Ned.
Maybe I am remembering only the marginal things about Ned, the mere phenomena, as the existentialists would say. But surely it was in and through these “marginals” that one got to know and love the whole essence, flavour, tang and colour of the personality that was Ned. Devotion to crosswords, Curly Wee, Verdi and Puccini were always “in place”, in the place where “desipere” is the mark of a wise man.
So much for play. What about his work? Apart from one short and unsuccessful period as staff-manager in Mungret he was Bursar in Manresa House and secretary of the Retreat House. He really loved work; figures and account books were his delight. Being secretary to the Retreat House involved a huge correspondence especially with regard to booking-in retreatants. Since he was not too familiar with all the permutated titles of religious congregations, many an LSA sister would find herself on the list as OLA or vice versa. One day about five years ago I dropped in to see Ned and found him typing away in his tiny room, Thinking of the lovely house he had left I asked him to tell me honestly if he ever had moments of regret at leaving all that. He simply said “I would not want to be. anywhere else”.
It might be a bit too facile to write that Ned was a man close to God. He was of a generation that did not easily unburden the secrets of the heart. He belonged to the dutiful, carnest type of religious and was definitely conservative in his views on religious practice. But the surprising element in his make-up was his ability to combine these conservative attitudes with a marvellous and spontaneous capacity for getting along splendidly with younger people, especially with the novices. Because he was given the grace of living close to the young in the Society he was able to love them while rejecting, through incomprehension, or even antipathy, some of their tastes in music, clothes et cetera. The same was true on the part of the younger people. Love and respect in the Society goes beyond personal tastes in external things. The presence of the old and the young can be a blessing when both find the presence of the Lord in each other. It was this way with Ned and the novices.
Of course he never lost touch with the young of his own family and it was a source of great joy to him that his son Paul and daughter-in-law Mary kept in such close touch with him. His daughter Judith with her husband Michael were most attentive to him. It was a lovely sight on some Sunday afternoons to see the three generations of the Maher family strolling around the Manresa grounds:
Finally, just to remind those who knew him well of two familiar sayings of Ned: On being addressed at breakfast “How are you this morning, Ned?” his invariable and jocose reply was “Poorly, thank God”. And when a novice would tease him, as they constantly did, Ned would be heard to say in mock seriousness “Go away, BOY”.
Ned himself went away very peacefully at 4 am on the morning of 14th March with Fr Rector, his son Paul and his daughter Judith there to bid him a last farewell.

◆ The Clongownian, 1982

Obituary

Brother Ned Maher SJ

Although Br Ned was granted four score of years, his life as a Jesuit spanned little more than a decade. Before becoming a “brother” he had already filled the roles of father and grandfather. He has been described thus: “A very dapper man with a thin Ronnie Colman moustache; alert, brisk, humorous, at once affable and serious”. All these adjectives could be applied to him right up to his last (and really first) illness.

He was born in Philadelphia on 22nd October 1901, educated at Belvedere, Clongowes and UCD and Georgetown University. After a short spell working in a bank he took up business, in which he remained for the rest of his lay life. He entered the Society of Jesus on the 30th April 1971, took his first rows on 29th April 1973 and pronounced final vows on 8th September 1981.
Apart from one short period as staff manager in Mungret Br Ned was bursar in the Jesuit house in Dollymount and secretary of the Retreat House there. He really loved work; figures and account books were his delight. He had a great love of opera and reading and related very well indeed to the novices who live in Doilymount.

Of course he never lost touch with the young of his own family and it was a source of great joy to him that his son Paul and daughter-in-law Mary kept in close touch with him. His daughter Judith with her husband Michael were most attentive to him. Ned left this world peacefully at 4.00 a.m. on the morn ing of the 14th of March with his Rector, his son Paul and his daughter Judith there to bid him a last farewell.

Born: 19 March 1817, Athy, County Kildare
Entered: 06 August 1859, Florissant MO, USA - Missouriana Province (MIS)
Final vows: 15 August 1871
Died: 01 November 1884, Florissant MO, USA - Missouriana Province (MIS)

Born: 29 September 1859, Whitehall, Paulstown, County Kilkenny
Entered: 09 September 1876, Milltown Par, Dublin
Ordained: 31 July 1892, St Francis Xavier Gardiner Street, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1897, Sacred Heart College SJ, Limerick
Died: 27 March 1917, Willesden, England

Part of the St Francis Xavier's, Upper Gardiner Street, Dublin community at the time of death.
Older Brother of Martin Maher - RIP 1942
Early education at Carlow College and St Stanislaus College SJ, Tullabeg

by 1896 at Vienna Austria (ASR-HUN) making Tertianship

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
Came from a very respected family and two sons were in the Jesuits. A younger brother Martin was in the Society - RIP 1942.

Early education was at Carlow College and later at Tullabeg under William Delany.

he did his Philosophy and Theology at Milltown, and also did Regency at Clongowes, Belvedere.
After Tertianship under Father Bulow at Vienna, he was at Crescent, and became Vice-Rector.
1897 He was appointed Rector at Crescent 01 November 1897, and continued in that role until March 1902. During his rectorship he erected a new facade on the Church, purchased the magnificent bell and tried to improve the schools in Limerick.
He was on the Mission Staff for a while and then joined the Gardiner St community. He spent many years there and was particularly successful in his Catechism classes.
1914 Towards the middle of this year he began to show signs of failing health. He went for a short time to London as a Military Chaplain.
He returned to Ireland and took charge of the Public retreats.
Continuing to suffer poor health it was recommended that he go to Petworth in Sussex. He went from there to Willesden in London, and he died there 27 March 1917. His brother, Martin said the requiem Mass.

◆ The Crescent : Limerick Jesuit Centenary Record 1859-1959

Bonum Certamen ... A Biographical Index of Former Members of the Limerick Jesuit Commonality

Father Thomas Maher (1859-1917)

Brother of the preceding (Martin), entered the Society in 1876. He spent three years of his regency here, 1876-89 and returned later as prefect of studies in 1894. He was appointed vice-rector of the college in 1897 and later, rector, which office he held until 1902. From that year until his death, Father Maher was a member of the Gardiner St community.

Born: 31 December 1804, Cork City, County Cork
Entered: 02 October 1827, Aix en Provence, France - Franciae Province (FRA)
Ordained: 1832, Lucca, Italy
Died: 18 May 1866, Paris, France

Left Society of Jesus: 1830

Journalist in “Fraser’s” pseudonym Fr Prout

1821-1823: Montrouge, Paris, France (GAL), Novitiate
1823-1825: Rome, studying???
1825-1826: Aix en Provence, Regency

https://www.dib.ie/biography/mahony-francis-sylvester-father-prout-a5397

DICTIONARY OF IRISH BIOGRAPHY

Mahony, Francis Sylvester (‘Father Prout’)

Contributed by
Geoghegan, Patrick M.

Mahony, Francis Sylvester (‘Father Prout’) (1804–66), priest and humorist, was born 31 December 1804 in Cork, the second son of seven sons and four daughters of Martin Mahony, a woollen manufacturer, and his second wife, Mary Mahony (née Reynolds). Educated at Clongowes Wood College, Co. Kildare, he seemed destined for a career in the priesthood and was sent to St Acheul, Amiens (1819), and then to a Jesuit seminary in Paris. From there he went to Rome to study philosophy (1823–5), before returning to Clongowes to teach. A brilliant student and scholar, he was described as being the same in his youth as he was at his death: ‘caustic, irascible, opinionated, argumentative, [but] with a sharp sense of irony and satire’ (Mannin, 137).

Within two months of his return to Clongowes he was appointed master of rhetoric, but his rapid rise was halted abruptly after an ill-fated class outing to nearby Celbridge, in the course of which both students and master drank heavily and Mahony made a loud attack on the character of Daniel O'Connell (qv). There was uproar when the inebriated class returned past curfew, and Mahony was soon transferred to the Jesuit college of Fribourg, Switzerland. He went from there to Florence, where he was expelled by the Jesuits. Though he was ordained a secular priest in 1832, it seems he had persistent doubts about his vocation, which were shared by his superiors. He returned to Ireland in 1832 to assist in the Cork mission that was treating the cholera epidemic. The conflicts in his character resurfaced, however, and in 1834 he left suddenly after a serious disagreement with the local bishop. He moved to London, where he became a journalist and writer; for the rest of his life he was independent of church authority.

In 1834 Mahony began writing for Fraser's Magazine, and, like the other distinguished contributors, adopted a pseudonym – ‘Father Prout’; he also published as ‘Don Jeremy Savonarola’. Mahony had known a real Father Prout – Daniel Prout (qv), the parish priest of Watergrasshill, in his childhood – but in all other respects the character was the creation of his imagination. He invented biographical details and even a biographer; The reliques of Father Prout was published in 1837. His writing at this time was sharp and acerbic, and often brilliant: Thomas Moore (qv) was accused of plagiarism, O'Connell was regularly abused, and Prout won a wide readership. After a while Mahony's inspiration faded, and he moved to the staff of Charles Dickens's Bentley's Magazine. Conviviality was never Mahony's problem, but it seems alcoholism was, and in the engravings of the literary dinners, Thackeray, Coleridge and Carlyle are each shown with a glass of wine, whereas he is shown with three.

Deciding to travel on the Continent in 1837, from then on he lived abroad. He was Rome correspondent for the Daily News (1846–58), and Paris correspondent for the Globe from 1858 until his death. His health failed in the early 1860s and he became lonely and irritable. He burned his papers in his final days, and died 18 May 1866 at Paris. His body was brought back to Cork and he was buried in the vault of Shandon church. After his death he was remembered chiefly for ‘The bells of Shandon’, a nostalgic poem about Cork that may have been written when he was at Clongowes. It was the least of his works, but it achieved an enduring fame and became a popular song. Mahony was an erratic character, and his writing, sometimes spectacular, sometimes mediocre, reflected this.

Sources
Allibone; Webb; Cork Hist. Arch. Soc. Jn. (1892), 76–7; DNB; O'Donoghue; Ethel Mannin, Two studies in integrity: Gerald Griffin and the Rev. Francis Mahony (1954); D.Cath.B.; Robert Hogan (ed.), The Macmillan dictionary of Irish literature (1979) (under Prout); DIH; Welch; Boylan; Fergus Dunne, ‘A critical reappraisal of the texts and contexts of Francis Sylvester Mahony’ (Ph.D. thesis, University of Sussex, Brighton, 2003)

Born: 30 September 1889, Rathgar Road, Rathgar, Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 07 September 1907, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 15 August 1922, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1926, Sacred Heart College, Limerick
Died: 05 March 1956, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois

Father was a corn merchant.

He has three brothers and four sisters (1 deceased)

Early education privately then to CUS, Dublin. After that at Clongowes Wood College SJ

by 1914 at Valkenburg Netherlands (GER) studying
by 1915 at Stonyhurst England (ANG) studying

◆ Fr Francis Finegan : Admissions 1859-1948 - Clongowes student then a year in France before entry. He was studying French in Lille for a year to prepare for his father’s business, then he entered.

◆ Irish Province News
Irish Province News 31st Year No 2 1956

Obituary :

Fr Jerome Mahony 1890-1956
Fr. Jerome Mahony, S.J., died almost suddenly, after an attack of cerebral haemorrhage, in St. Mary's, Emo, on March 5th. He was born in Dublin 66 years ago and educated at the Marist College, Leeson Street, and at Clongowes Wood. He entered the Society of Jesus in 1907 at St. Stanislaus' College, Tullamore, and later studied philosophy at Valkenburg, Holland, and at Stonyhurst College, Lancashire.
On his return to Ireland, Fr. Mahony taught in Clongowes Wood and Mungret College, Limerick, for six years preceding his theological studies at Milltown Park, Dublin, where he was ordained priest in 1922. He joined the teaching staff of the College of the Sacred Heart, Limerick, before beginning his long association with Mungret College in 1928.
Fr. Mahony was appointed Rector of the Jesuit Novitiate, Emo, in 1945. On relinquishing this post, he remained at St. Mary's as Latin professor to the novices and spiritual director of the community.
Fr. Mahony served the Society loyally and well in his many years of teaching, both in the colleges and the novitiate; and his four volumes of A History of the Catholic Church for Schools are a well-thumbed testimony to his thoroughness and zeal. His will be a household name in the school-world for years to come. (One of his own favourite stories was that of hearing one small boy in Clongowes say to another as he passed : “There's Hart."). In more ambitious vein is his unpublished study of some points in St. John's Gospel; and he also wrote a number of scriptural and liturgical pamphlets for the Messenger Office.
But his most useful service to the Society of Jesus was that which he constantly and edifyingly gave within our own communities. Without parade or pretension he was an excellent religious. His charity and kindliness was never-failing. He was at the disposal, not merely of his superiors, but of everyone. A dull supply, a manuscript to be typed, a boring visitor to be shown round, an untimely confession to be heard - these and a hundred such jobs seemed to fall as by right to the lot of Fr. Jerome. He was indeed, ad omnia. And then he turned up at recreation hour to liven his brethren with quip and comment and an amazingly varied repertoire of stories. In this alone he is a sore loss to the little community where the last happy decade of his life was spent.
For those who knew Jerome Mahony at all intimately his unaffected humility impressed even more than his charity. And that says much. The third degree of humility was no mere theory for him, a thing that he had marked read on some far-away October day of the Long Retreat. It seemed to be something. always unobtrusively - almost humorously - present. On occasions where a lesser man of greater natural talents might have sulked and, so doing, ruined himself and them, Fr. Jerome, accepting that he should be esteemed and accounted as one less wise, grew in the disconcerting wisdom of the saints.
Up to the day of his death he was at work on a new Menology for the Irish province. Whoever finishes this task might well find a place for him as an example of the man, so valuable in any group, who shirking no task however unpleasant or obscure, desires only to be of help.

◆ James B Stephenson SJ Menologies 1973

Father Jerome Mahony SJ 1890-1956
“Up to the day of his death, Fr Jerome Mahony was working on a new Menology for the Irish Province. Whoever finished this task might well find a place for him as an example of a man, so valuable in any group, who, shirking no task, however unpleasant, desired only to be of help”. So wrote the obituarist of Fr Mahony. The prompting was unnecessary. Fr Jerome, by his cheerful, edifying and saintly life, easily merits a high place in these records.

He was born in Dublin in 1890, educated at Clongowes, entering the Society in1907.

He was a thorough Jesuit, giving of his best in the classroom for years on end, ever ready to shoulder unpleasant tasks that others might excuse themselves from, and yet not making himself out as a martyr for the community. In fact he was an ideal community man, every ready with a humorous story and witty retort, with a wit that had to barb to it.

He was an author of the History of the Catholic Church for use in schools, and left behind an unpublished study of St John’s Gospel together with numerous pamphlets of the “Messenger Office”.

In 1945 he was appointed Rector of Emo Park, where he died quite suddenly on March 5th 1956.

◆ The Clongownian, 1956

Obituary

Father Jerome Mahony SJ

The sudden, quite unexpected, death of Fr Jerome Mahony at Emo last March, following a cerebral haemorrhage, came as a shock to his very many friends both within and without the Society. He was not considered an old man, as years go, he had always enjoyed good health, and had always been active and deeply interested in his work. There seemed every prospect that he would be spared to continue his useful career for many years to come. But God's summons came suddenly, though it did not find him unprepared,

He was at Clongowes from 1900 to 1906, where his father and brothers also were educated and where he came into contact with two saintly men, Fr Michael Browne and Fr John Sullivan. On leaving Clongowes he was sent by his father to Lille with a view to preparing him for a business career, but he found that God had other plans for him and in 1907 he joined the Jesuit noviceship at Tullabeg. The present writer was his “angelus”, ie, the older novice told off to initiate him into the ways of the place for a few weeks, and he remembers vividly after nearly fifty years the very thin, boyish figure who had such a flow of wit and good spirits, who soon became the life of the noviceship or at least one of its lives. He went through the usual stages of the Jesuit formation with fervour and edification. After a few years in the Juniorate in Tullabeg, where he studied Classics and English, he was sent to teach at. Mungret College, because a tired head prevented him from entering his philosophical training. From the beginning he showed a good will and adaptability which made him a very useful member of the college staff. A few years afterwards he was sent to do his philosophy, first at Valkenburg, a house of German Jesuits in Holland and than at Stonyhurst. For a few years after philosophy he did college work again at Clongowes and Mungret and in 1920 he was sent to Milltown Park for his theology, where he was ordained priest in 1924. He did his final stage of formation, his tertianship, at Tullabeg from 1924 to 1925.

The greater part of his life as priest was spent at Mungret, where he taught English and History. He was a careful and conscientious teacher rather than an inspiring one. It was something of an anomaly that one whom his fellow Jesuits knew to be so witty and joyous in temperament should have appeared to the boys and outsiders as a man of rather unrelieved gravity. He had a very elevated view of his profession as a teacher and he gave himself to his work generously and conscientiously.

Outside his teaching the abiding interest of his life was history and especially Church history. The scanty margins of his day during term time and a great part of his holidays were devoted to this subject. Novels, newspapers, games and the other numerous diversions which even very busy men allow themselves were quietly set aside. He used to say when asked if he had read the paper, that he read only the papers which were at least a hundred years old, because then they were history. Thanks to this discipline and rigid adherence to his plan of studies, he succeeded in making himself an authority on Church history.

As a recognition of his competence in this subject he was asked to write a history of the Church for the programme of Religious Instruction prescribed by the bishops for the schools. He accepted the commission and for several years it was an absorbing task. He did the job with characteristic thoroughness and deliberation. He read and noted and planned and replanned; he wrote and rewrote with indefatigable energy. He consulted specialists on various portions of his wide subject, and accepted their guidance without question. Publishers and prefects of studies who were waiting impatiently for the completion of the work complained that he was too slow; but at least he did the work well, and his book in two small volumes has been very widely adopted in the schools and has met a real need.

He had always an interest in serious subjects, in such as belonged to his profession as priest. He had made a careful study of the gospels, especially that of St John. During his theology at Milltown Park he set himself to read through the “Civitas Dei” of St Augustine, and visitors to his room would see a great unkempt quarto propped up against the wall, and would inquire about his present position in the great tome. He compiled a history of the Passion in the words of the Evangelists which was published by the Messenger Office and had a very wide sale.

As has been said most of his teaching life was spent in Mungret, where he came to share something of the institutional character of his friend of many years, Fr William Kane SJ. On leaving Mungret he was appointed Rector of St Mary's, Emo, the Noviceship, and during his time as Rector he installed central heating in that house. For several years before his death he was engaged in teaching Latin to the Novices at Emo. He was active and industrious to the last.

The conscientious discharge of his duty as teacher nust have had a big influence on the great number of boys with whom he came in contact. In his community, he was an exemplary religious, observant of rule, faithful to all his religious duties, charitable and obliging to every one. His abiding interest in serious study, his industry and thoroughness in all the jobs he was appointed to do, such as the editing of the Mungret Annual or the giving of domestic exhortations to his community, were an incentive to all. But perhaps what those who knew him will best remember was the wit and gaiety of spirits with which he brightened every community in which he lived.

To his brothers and sisters, and especially to Mother Mary Angela of the Ursuline Convent, Waterford, we offer our deepest sympathy in their great loss. RIP

H K SJ

◆ The Crescent : Limerick Jesuit Centenary Record 1859-1959

Bonum Certamen ... A Biographical Index of Former Members of the Limerick Jesuit Commnnity

Father Jerome Mahony (1889-1956)

Born in Dublin of a family originally from the city of Limerick, was educated at the Marist School, Leeson St and Clongowes. On leaving school, he entered on a business career and spent a year in Paris. Feeling a call to the religious life, he entered the Society in 1907 and made his higher studies at Valkenburg, Stonyhurst and Milltown Park where he was ordained in 1922. Father Mahony was master here from 1925 to 1928 when he left for Mungret College with which he was henceforth associated for many years. He was appointed rector of Emo Park in 1945 and on relinquishing office remained as a member of the same community. It was during these later years that Father Mahony compiled his History of the Catholic Church for Schools, which is now in use throughout Ireland. At the time of his death he was engaged upon a dictionary of biography of Irish Jesuits from the time of the restoration of the Society. In his lifetime, Father Mahony was widely respected as a deeply spiritual man and a wise director of souls.

Born: 01 January 1681, Derry City, County Derry
Entered: 18 August 1703, Lisbon, Portugal - Lusitaniae Province (LUS)
Ordained: 1712/3, Coimbra, Portugal
Died: 15 January 1752, Clonmel, County Tipperary

Was younger brother of John Manby - RIP 1748

Studied in Soc Philosophy and Theology
1717 Catalogue Approved Scholastic came to Mission 3 months ago and in the country with a private family. I have not been able to get to him and there are no socii near him who could give information. Came here from Portugal and their Catalogue will give necessary info
1732 At Poitiers operarius
“The Considerations” by Peter Manby said to be at Clongowes

◆ Fr Edmund Hogan SJ “Catalogica Chronologica” :
Son of Dean, and grandson of Colonel Manby (Harris “Irish Writers”) Younger brother of John.
Imprisoned for the faith before Entry.
Writer; Studied at Coimbra (Franco “Annales Lusitaniae”)
1717 On Irish Mission (HIB Catalogue 1717)
Third Entry : No Ch Name Manby
DOB Leinster; Ent 1703.
Brother of Peter (Harris)
(This seems to be the same Entry, and perhaps should read brother of John??)

◆ Fr Francis Finegan SJ :
Son of Peter (Dean of Derry an afterwards received into the Church). Younger brother of John Manby
After First Vows he studied at Coimbra where he was Ordained 1712/13
1716 Sent to Ireland. He lived near Dublin at the house of a nobleman, exercising the ministries of Chaplain, Schoolmaster and assistant Priest for the local clergy. He worked later at the Dublin Jesuit school before he returned to Poitiers in 1730
1730-1733 Minister of Irish College Poitiers
1733 Sent back to Ireland. For a time he was tutor to the family of Lord Dunboyne, but then moved to Clonmel where he died 15 January 1752

◆ James B Stephenson SJ Menologies 1973
Father Peter Manby SJ 1681-1752
Peter Manby was born in Ireland in 1680, the son of a Protestant Clergyman, Robert Manby. His father however was converted himself and became a friar, his two sons, John and Peter, becoming Jesuits.
Peter was educated in Portugal and entered the Society in 1703. In 1714 he applied for the Irish Mission.
He published a book in Dublin in 1724 entitled “Remarks on Dr Lloyd’s Translation of the Montpelier Catechism”. His contention was that it was marred by Jansenism.

◆ George Oliver Towards Illustrating the Biography of the Scotch, English and Irish Members SJ
MANBY, PETER, was in Portugal in the spring of 1714, and had applied, as I find by F. Anthony Knoles’s letter, dated from Ross, the 6th of April, that year, to come over to serve the Irish Mission.

Born: 03 August 1848, Dingle, County Kerry
Entered: 10 September 1867, Milltown Park, Dublin
Ordained: 1885, St Beuno’s, St Asaph, Wales
Final Vows: 15 August 1888, St Francis Xavier’s, Gardiner Street
Died: 14 July 1924, Mount Saint Evin’s Hospital, Melbourne

Part of the St Patrick’s College, Melbourne, Australia community at the time of death

Brother of Thomas Manning = RIP 1893 South Africa

Educated at Christian Brothers, Tralee; Clongowes Wood College SJ

by 1870 out of community caring for health
by 1878 at St Beuno’s Wales (ANG) studying
by 1879 at Stonyhurst England (ANG) studying
by 1883 at St Beuno’s Wales (ANG) studying
Came to Australia 1889

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
Brother of Thomas Manning - RIP 1893
He made his Philosophy and Theology studies in England and Regency at Tullabeg teaching.
1887 He was Minister of Juniors at Milltown.
1888 He was appointed Socius to the Master of Novices at Dromore whilst making his Tertianship at the same time.
He then sailed for Australia where he was stationed at St Aloysius teaching.
1896 He taught at both Xavier College Kew and St Patrick’s Melbourne.
He worked at St Patrick’s Melbourne up to the time of his death 14 July 1924
He was a very earnest Jesuit.

◆ David Strong SJ “The Australian Dictionary of Jesuit Biography 1848-2015”, 2nd Edition, Halstead Press, Ultimo NSW, Australia, 2017 - ISBN : 9781925043280
Denis Manning's early education was at Clongowes Wood College, Ireland, where he was a boarder until he was nineteen years of age. He entered the Society, 10 September 1867, and his ecclesiastical studies were done in Ireland and England, 1879-86. His regency was at Tullabeg College, 1880-82, and he was minister of the scholastics, teaching rhetoric at Milltown Park, 1886-87, before his tertianship, while being socius to the master of novices, at Dromore, 1887-88.
He arrived in Australia in December 1888, and was assigned to St Aloysius' College, 1889-92, teaching for the public examinations. He taught Latin, Greek and French to senior students at Riverview, 1892-95, and at Xavier College, 1895-03. He was prefect of studies from 1897.
His final appointment was to St Patrick’s College, East Melbourne, 1904-24, where he was prefect of studies, 1904-10 and 1923-24. He was also a mission consulter, 1904-16. He was
heavily involved in pastoral work all his working life, but he rarely appeared in the pulpit. If he did, it was not enjoyed. He shunned publicity. His focus was the private chapel and the classroom.
Manning's life was busy, regular and hidden to all except his colleagues and students, and those to whom he gave retreats. He devoted his life to teaching. He taught for 44 years, 36 of them in Australia. He was extremely conservative in his tastes and could hardly be said to bristle with new ideas. He was a bright and lively person in recreation and a good listener. Although inclined to serious reading - even during vacations - he enjoyed a good joke. He was a man of iron will. If he made a plan or undertook a task, he executed it to the last detail. No flights of imagination or temptations to do other work ever deflected him from his purpose.
Although deferent to the voice of authority, he never lightly undertook a new obligation. He was a man to rely on, highly efficient, performing his duties with scrupulous exactitude. He never wavered. He rose every morning at 5.30 am, even when unwell, and was most faithful to his spiritual duties. He had great devotion to the saints. In sickness in later years, he was never heard to complain, working hard until he could physically cope no more. He was content with his approaching death that came suddenly at Mount St Evan’s Hospital.
Apart from teaching, Manning was appreciated for his retreats to nuns. He was always the student, and loved study. Intellectual life was what drew him to the Society - special interests were the ancient classics and professional studies. He thought of himself as a “labourer in the vineyard”, and that is what he was.

◆ The Xaverian, Xavier College, Melbourne, Australia, 1924

Obituary

Father Denis Manning SJ

In Melbourne, on the evening of 9th July, Father Manning died in Mount St Evin's Hospital. His death removes from the ranks of the schoolmasters a highly efficient, very interesting, and somewhat unusual personality. He may be said to have died in harness. He died within a month of his seventy-seventh year, and with the exception of the few weeks spent in hospital, he was doing his usual full work to the end.

His busy and regular, life was a hidden one. He was practically unknown - except to his colleagues and his pupils, to the fairly numerous priests who came to him for confession, and to the religious communities to which he gave retreats. Beyond these he was almost unknown.

I imagine he must have preached in his day an occasional sermon - a few words from the altar at Mass - and no doubt he gave regular instruction for over forty years to sodalists and to religious communities, but I cannot recall an instance of his appearance in a pulpit. I daresay he appeared there occasionally, long ago, but if he did I am quite sure he did not enjoy it. : He shunned publicity. His work was in the private chapel and in the classroom.

His full and useful, but uneventful life is, therefore, easily summed up. His early education was at Clongowes Wood College, Ireland, where has was a boarder till his nineteenth year. Then he entered the Society of Jesus. His training in the religious life, as well as his philosophical, theological, and other studies, mainly in England and Ireland, occupied twelve or thirteen years; in teaching he spent forty-four years, thirty-six of which were in Australia; principally in Melbourne.

Like most of his colleagues he disliked office and preferred to serve in the ranks. He was never burdened with the dignity or responsibilities of rectorship, but at Xavier for six years (ending 1903), and at St Patrick's for a much longer period, he was entrusted with the exacting duties of Prefect of Studies, Father Pidcock, so well-known to many generations of Xaverians as an original “character”, used to maintain, and some times remarked it to the present writer, who was Prefect of Studies at the time, that of all the Prefects of Studies known to him, Father Manning was the best of the lot. I suspect that Father Pidcock's admiration was not unconnected with the fact that Fr Manning; more than others, gave him a fair amount of rope for his choir practices and for his appalling concerts. Certainly Fr Manning discharged his duties as Prefect of Studies with success and with scrupulous exactitude, but he was a happy man when he was allowed to return to the ranks.

From his boyhood he was a steady student and loved study. He told me once that it was his love for study which, among other things, impelled him to seek admission into the Society of Jesus. Yet outside of the ancient classics and his professional studies his course of reading was not very varied. He read many books dealing with religious and ascetical questions but not many dealing with the lighter forms of literature, He was extremely conservative in his tastes and could hardly be said to bristle with new ideas. In time of recreation he was bright and lively, talked a good deal and was an interested listener to ordinary small talk, and moreover, though a very serious man, he had his jokes - yes, a fair number of them; but I doubt if in thirty years he added a new joke to his repertoire. Constant to an exceptional degree, he clung, even in the department of wit and humour, to old and tried friends.

Though he had a vigorous constitution, I doubt if, even as a boy, he ever played more football or cricket than he could possibly avoid. I have heard it said on good authority that as a young man he excelled at handball, That may be, but I find it hard to imagine him excelling at that or any other game, for, though firm on his feet and a strong walker in his younger days, his movements were never lively and he was awkward with his hands. At all events, his interest in sport seemed entirely limited to the school contests. Once, indeed, in a moment of inadvertent levity, he quoted from a boxing correspondent in a newspaper about some terrific wallop with which one exponent of the fistic art had put another to sleep. The exact words were, “a pile-driver to the bread basket”, and it was plain that Fr Manning, being totally inexperienced in the vivid literature of the ring, required a certain effort even to pronounce such unaccustomed language. One of his younger colleagues thereupon seized upon this incautious utterance as a pretext for assuming that Fr Manning took an intense interest in the “noble art”, and on the strength of this entirely false assumption used to retell to him the most excruciating details of the latest encounters. Fr Manning used to listen in polite but agonising silence, till one day he nearly jumped a foot off his chair when his colleague, reading something from the sporting columns of the newspaper, in formed the gathering that “Creamy” Pinkerton (or some such name) had polished off “Pinky” Tomkinson with Father Manning's favourite “punch to the bread-basket!”

Though Fr. Manning had intellectual gifts beyond the average, and as we have seen, was also exceptionally fond of books, he took little interest in novel speculations. He kept to the beaten track. Last year I dropped into his room one day in the holidays and found him reading Fabiola. I shrink from guessing how many times he must have read it since his boyhood. On another free day some years ago I called on him and found him quietly enjoying the second book of Virgil's “Aeneid”. His recreative reading was not unduly light nor ultra-modern.

In Father Manning will-power predominated over intellect. He had an iron will. If he made a plan or undertook a task, he executed it to the last detail. No flights of imagination or temptations to do other work ever deflected him from his purpose. He kept the goal before his mind, and he saw to it that he got there. Apart from deference to the voice of authority, he never lightly undertook a new obligation; but if he did, you might be perfectly sure that he would see it through. He was a man to rely on. He never wavered. He was a man who could look over a period of fifteen or twenty years and not recall a single morning when he remained a second in bed after the call at 5.30, He might have a headache or other ailment, but he simply “got up”. I venture to say that in forty years he never missed a quarter of an hour of the spiritual duties appointed by his rule. He had the heroic fidelity of the saints.

It was clear to others that in recent years his health was not good, but he never spoke a word of his health, never in his life complained, and he consistently refused proffered alleviations. Though extremely grateful for offered help, he always declined it. When I was his superior for a few years, I was in a position to know more than others about his ailments, and I had good reason to wonder at his constancy and patience. He had no fear whatever of death and no wish whatever to live unless he could keep in harness, Constitutionally Father Manning could never be among the unemployed. The limbs might be unwilling, but the strong will was always able to drive them to the task. And till close on his seventy-seventh year that task was always done with wonderful thoroughness.

During the vacation last summer he badly needed a rest, but among other works which he undertook during the recess he gave an eight-day retreat to the Sisters of Charity at Essendon. During the retreat he was far from well and seemed constantly on the point of a break-down, Indeed, he suffered much pain. The Sisters begged him to desist, but he insisted on making the effort and went through the whole retreat with its thirty-two lectures. The Sisters, who were greatly impressed by the retreat, expressed the opinion that Fr Manning would never give another. It was a prophecy justified by events. He returned to St Patrick's very unwell. Even at the end of the holidays he was clearly unfit for a serious effort, but he insisted on making it. When schools were resumed he went on with his usual work till the middle of the year. Then, in great pain he had to retire to Mount St Evin's. On the evening of 9th July he was dead. And his death was that of a true man, a hero, and a saint. May he rest in peace!

At the end of the Requiem Mass at St. Ignatius Church, Richmond, His Grace, Dr Mannix, paid the following tribute, which sums up with perfect accuracy the life of Father Manning:

“For close upon forty years Father Manning has been working continuously in the Jesuit schools of Australia. Outside his own Society his name has been rarely heard. But the fathers who were associated with him and the boys who passed through his classes know the holiness of his life and the value and thoroughness of his work. He was indeed a man of God in our midst, a man whose whole life was filled with work and prayer. . His work itself was a prayer, and he seemed to be always united to God in a remarkable manner. For years he suffered a good deal, and yet he was always at his post and no one ever heard him utter a word of complaint. A few weeks ago he found he could hold out no longer and he went to the hospital knowing, I think, that his end had come. In his last days his suffering was great, but he bore it with the patience and calmness and resignation which had marked his whole life. His work and his sufferings are over, and he has, we may be sure, entered to his reward”.

E BOYLAN SJ

◆ The Crescent : Limerick Jesuit Centenary Record 1859-1959

Bonum Certamen ... A Biographical Index of Former Members of the Limerick Jesuit Commnnity

Father Denis Manning (1848-1924)

A native of Dingle, was admitted to the Society in 1867 and ordained in 1885 at St Beuno's in Wales. He spent three years of his regency at the Crescent, 1874-77. In 1889, Father Manning was transferred to the Australian mission. He laboured at Sydney as master and minister until 1897 when he took up duty as prefect of studies at St Francis Xavier's, Kew, Melbourne where he remained for the next seven years. In 1904 began his long association with St Patrick's, Melbourne where he was many years prefect of studies. At the time of his death, Father Manning was entering on his forty-fourth year as master in the colleges, a record almost unique in the Society.

Born: 24 November 1925, Liverpool, Lancashire, England
Entered: 07 September 1943, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Ordained: 31 July 1957, Kaiserdom Sankt Bartholomäus (Frankfurter Dom), Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Final Vows: 02 February 1960, Sacred Heart College SJ, Limerick
Died: 15 November 2000, St Vincent’s Hospital, Dublin

Part of the St Francis Xavier's, Upper Gardiner Street, Dublin community at the time of death.

Father was a doctor and died in 1936. Mother then lived at Summerhill Cottage, Kilkee, County Clare.

Older of two boys with three sisters..

Early education at an FCJ convent in Liverpool and then at St Francis Xavier’s school Liverpool for four years. He then wen to Clongowes Wood College SJ for five years. He also studied piano and violin for thirteen years.

by 1955 at Sankt Georgen, Frankfurt (GER I) studying
by 1979 at Rue de Grenelle Paris, France (GAL) sabbatical

Born: 19 October 1876, Woodhouse Lane, Wigan, Lancashire, England
Entered: 07 September 1893, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 26 July 1910, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1912, Xavier College, Kew, Melbourne, Australia
Died: 05 March 1951, Burke Hall, Kew, Melbourne, Australia - Australiae Province (ASL)

Transcribed HIB to ASL : 05 April 1931

Educated at St John’s College SJ, Wigan and Mungret College SJ

by 1898 at St Aloysius Jersey Channel Islands (FRA) studying
Came to Australia for Regency 1903
by 1911 at Drongen Belgium (BELG) making Tertianship
by 1912 returned to Australia

◆ David Strong SJ “The Australian Dictionary of Jesuit Biography 1848-2015”, 2nd Edition, Halstead Press, Ultimo NSW, Australia, 2017 - ISBN : 9781925043280
John Martin a man with a ruddy complexion and twinkling eyes, was educated at Mungret, and entered the Society at Tullabeg, 7 September 1893. After his juniorate, he studied philosophy at Jersey, 1897-1900. He taught at Clongowes and Xavier College, Melbourne, 1901-07, and also a prefect.
At Xavier he taught mathematics, English, Latin and French, and his classes were always attractive for the way he aroused interest in the subject. He was a firm teacher-no foolery in
his classes. but he was able to combine humour with severity. He delighted his class at times by reading them a story from Sherlock Holmes or the like. He enjoyed games and loved music.
Theology studies followed at Milltown Park, Dublin, 1907-10, and tertianship at Tronchiennes the following year. He returned to Australia to teach at Xavier College, 1911-15, and St Patrick's College, 1915-21. He did parish work at Richmond, 1921-28, where he was recognised as an indefatigable worker, before returning to teach at Xavier College until 1940.
He was also procurator of the mission and later of the vice-province. He taught at St Aloysius College, Milsons Point, 1940-41, and at Burke Hall, 1941-50. He was always a very retiring man, rarely seen at public functions, but good company for Old Boys, who sought him out in his room, smoking a cigar or a pipe, and together they shared memories of former days.
He was a kind and thoughtful person helpful to scholastics in the colleges. He was a good counsellor, always cheerful and good with more difficult members of the community. He was an expert teacher of French and popular with his students. He had great devotion to his work, and was admired as a preacher, although he did not particularly like the pulpit. He also had a fine singing voice. In his latter years he suffered from heart disease, but did not draw attention to it.

◆ Irish Province News
Irish Province News 26th Year No 2 1951

Obituary :

Fr. Martin died in Melbourne on 4th March. A native of Wigan, Lancs, he was born in 1879 and was educated at St. John's, Wigan and at Mungret Apostolic School. He entered the Society at Tullabeg in 1893 and studied philosophy at Jersey. After a year's teaching at Clongowes, he went to Australia, where he was on the staff of Xavier College, Kew for some five years. He did theology at Milltown Park where he was ordained in 1909. His tertianship he made at Tronchiennes. He returned to Kew to resume work in the classroom till 1921. He was then made Province Procurator, a post he held till. 1935. He was transferred to St. Aloysius' College, Sydney in 1940. From 1942 till his death he was attached to Burke Hall, Preparatory School to Kew.
Fr. Martin was a man of charming manner and a great social success. A gifted singer and interpreter of Irish melodies, the “petit Martin” was a general favourite with the French. He was in constant demand as a philosopher in Jersey on the sac-au-dos or rustication days. He kept in touch with the Irish Province all his life. He and the late Fr. Flinn corresponded monthly with each other giving and receiving items of news affecting both Provinces. R.I.P.

◆ The Mungret Annual, 1951

Obituary

Father John Martin SJ

In March occurred the death in Australia of Rev John Martin SJ, a member of the Australian Province of the Society of Jesus. He was born at Wigan in 1876, and after spending some years at St John's College, Wigan, he came to Mungret, where he remained until he entered the Noviciate of the Society of Jesus at Tullamore in 1893.

He studied Philosophy at the French house of the Society at Jersey, after which he was sent to teach at Clongowes, which he left for Australia in 1902. He was master for five years at Xavier College, Melbourne, and he then returned to commence his studies in Theology at Milltown Park. He was ordained priest at Milltown in 1910, and after he left Milltown he spent one year at Tronchiennes in Belgium to complete his training. In 1911 he went to Australia, where he taught, again at Xavier College Kew, until 1921. In 1921 he was appointed Province Bursar, and remained in that post until 1935.

He was transferred to St Aloysius' College Sydney in 1940, where he re mained until 1942. From 1942 until his death in March of this year, Father Martin was attached to Burke Hall, Preparatory School to Xavier College, Kew. He was a man of very charming manner, a great singer, and interpreter of Irish melodies. All through his life he kept in touch with Irish affairs, and wrote regularly to old friends in Ireland. His many friends will regret the passing of a devoted priest and genial personality RIP

Born: 02 April 1856, Corduff, County Cavan
Entered: 22 January 1877, Milltown Park, Dublin
Ordained: 26 July 1891
Final Vows: 25 March 1896, Sacred Heart College SJ, Limerick
Died: 05 February 1935, Milltown Park, Dublin

Came to Australia 1899

◆ David Strong SJ “The Australian Dictionary of Jesuit Biography 1848-2015”, 2nd Edition, Halstead Press, Ultimo NSW, Australia, 2017 - ISBN : 9781925043280
Edward Masterson entered the Society at Milltown Park, Dublin, 22 January 1877, and after his juniorate taught Greek, Latin, French, English and mathematics at Clongowes Wood, 1880-81, and then again from 1886-87. He taught the senior examination class English, classics, and French at Tullabeg College, 1882-86 .
Philosophy studies were broken and undertaken at Milltown Park, 1881-82, 1887-88, then at Mungret, 1888-89. Theology followed at Milltown Park, 1889-93, and tertianship 1894-95. He became professed of the four Vows 25 March 1896.
Before being sent to Australia, Masterson was prefect of studies at the Crescent, Limerick 1893-94 and 1895-97. For a short time, 1897-98, he lectured in theology at Milltown Park.
His first appointment in Australia was teaching at Riverview, 1898-1901, and then 1905-06. He also taught at St Aloysius' College, Milsons Point, and gave philosophy lectures at
St John's University College, 1901-02.
He worked in the parish of Norwood, 1903-05, and returned to Ireland in 1906, where he taught and did parish work in Galway. He was also at Mungret teaching philosophy, and at Milltown Park professing canon law, scripture and philosophy.
He certainly moved regularly. He was a learned man, and wrote letters to the papers defending the Catholic side against the Orangemen during the infamous O’Haran case in Sydney

◆ Irish Province News
Irish Province News 2nd Year No 3 1927
Jubilee :
On February 3rd at St. Ignatius', Galway, Fr. Masterson celebrated his Golden jubilee. In order to be present Fr Provincial travelled from Dublin. He, Frs Rector, Minister and Coghlan spoke in grateful terms of all that Fr. Masterson had done for the Society. The Jubilarian, deeply moved at all the kind things said about him, made a suitable reply. Fr. Masterson held a number of the most important positions in the province. He was Socius to the Master of Novices, Prefect of Studies, and had charge of the Short Course at Milltown. 1898 found him at Riverview. He remained in Australia until 1906, and during that time proved himself one of the sturdiest and most successful champions of Catholicity in Australia. After his return to Ireland he was for many years diocesan examiner in Galway, and subsequently professed Canon Law and Philosophy at Milltown. These absorbing occupations did not prevent him contributing to the Press very many erudite articles on every variety of Theological thought.
Fr. Masterson possesses in a high degree the gift of making sincere friends. This was very much evidenced at the Jubilee. He received more than 100 letters and telegrams, and every oneof them he answered with his own hand. This proves that there is hope of many years sterling work before him still and this hope finds a place in the heart of every member of the Irish province.

Irish Province News 10th Year No 2 1935
Obituary :
Father Edward Masterson
Father Masterson was born at Corduff, Co. Cavan, 2nd April 1856, and educated at the Seminary in Cavan. He began his novitiate at Milltown Park on the 22nd January, 1877, and
remained there as Novice and junior until 1880, when he was sent to Clongowes. After a year he returned to Milltown, got through one year of philosophy, but then had to travel to
Tullabeg, where he taught until 1886 - “amalgamation year” - when he went with the Tullabeg Community to Clongowes. After a year, philosophy was resumed at Milltown, finished at Mungret, and then theology commenced at Milltown in 1889. After the four years we find him Prefect of Studies at the Crescent, the following year a Tertian and Socius to the Master of Novices in Tullabeg, then Milltown, where he professed the Short Course, and in 1898 he turns up in Riverview, Australia. He remained in Australia, doing work in various houses, until 1906, when he was back in Ireland, and stationed in Galway. Here he taught, worked in the church, and for some years was Diocesan Examiner until 1915, when he became Professor of Canon Law at Milltown.
From 1920 to 1922 he taught philosophy at Mungret, then returned to Milltown as Professor first year philosophy, until 1926, when Galway saw him once more as Oper., etc. In 1930 he went to Militown for the last time, and remained there until his death on Tuesday, 5th February, 1935. Father Masterson is entered in the Catalogues 20 times as Cons. Dom. and 18 times as Praes. Coll.
The following tributes to the memory of Father Masterson give us a very true estimate of his character :
From Mr. Costelloe :
These few lines will record a tribute from Milltown Park to the memory of Father Edward Masterson. It is not as a great theologian or brilliant controversialist who brought renown to the Society that the present generation of scholastics will chiefly remember him, although they knew him to be both, but as a religious who by his great kindness and charity endeared himself to all the members of the Society who were privileged to live with him.
All knew that he profited in no small measure by his Jesuit training, and combined in an extraordinary and marked degree the Christlike quality of being all things to all men. Yet I think, it is not untrue to say, that he was most happy and most at his ease when mixing and conversing with the scholastics. The late Father Henry Fegan said of him “I knew no other Jesuit who loves so much to spend his spare time with the young men”. He loved to join them at recreation on the corridors or in the garden. He shared their interests, counseled and encouraged them in their undertakings and applauded generously their successes. For those of other Provinces, there was always the kindly word of welcome on arrival, and the sincere God speed on departure. All knew by hearsay and some by experience the compelling force of his cogent logic, yet he was at all times a most considerate examiner. When a nervous scholastic came before him for examination in theology, it was his custom to begin by putting a straightforward question entailing little thought in order to soothe unsteady nerves and arouse feelings of self confidence. The unsuccessful candidate, particularly in moral theology, was the recipient of much consolation and encouragement. The writer of these lines saw him when a man of 78 years of age climbing several lofty flights of stairs to convey sympathy and hope to one who failed to enlist the favour of his examiners. As a professor he was slow to censure but quick to apportion a full meed of praise. Though his mind was of a serious cast, he was not wanting in a sense of humour and loved to hear or relate a good story. When death robbed a member of the community of one near and dear he was among the first to proper in an unobtrusive way, an appropriate word of genuine sympathy and an assurance of a first intention in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. All who knew him could not fail to be impressed with his deep fidelity to the Society and its traditions.
He was a deeply religious man, exact and careful in the performance of his spiritual duties. In the later years of life, although burdened by ill-health, he never deviated or sought relaxation from the common life of the community, and was a continual source of edification and indeed envy to many some fifty years his junior, He has left a sweet memory enshrined in the hearts of those who lived with him at Milltown Park, and our community, though considerably the poorer by his passing is made rich by the remembrance of his kind deeds. May he rest in peace.

From Father MacSheehan :
Father Masterson was associated with Galway for nearly 20 years, having come here for the first time about 1906, shortly after his return from Australia. Both as teacher and preacher he immediately won an outstanding name for himself, for he was as familiar with the old Delphin Classics as with the works of Newman and Lacordaire. Here however, as elsewhere, it was as theologian that he was best known and esteemed. At the diocesan conferences his opinion was invariably sought when any abstruse or disputed point was in question, and his accuracy for references was a bye-word. He was for some time diocesan examiner of young priests, and the late Bishop did him the honor of submitting to him for revision a new course of catechetical instructions he had just drawn up. With his pen, too, he was busy in Galway, and when delicate health and overstrain of work compelled him to lie up for a few days, it was invariably a sign that he had been pouring too long over his beloved Ballerini, preparing yet another article on “Recidivi” that would bring dismay and consternation among the ranks of his adversaries. (incidentally it is a pity that this particular series of articles has never appeared in pamphlet form.) But, if he could “slay his enemies” on paper, no one could be more genial in social intercourse and in community life. The many warm and lasting friendships that he formed both with externs and especially with the young men of the Society, bear ample testimony thereto. That he claimed many friends in Galway is shown by the fact that hardly a year passed that he did not revisit it, that many in Galway claimed him as a friend, by the spontaneous grief and sorrow with which the news of his demise was heard. The prayer of each and everyone of these is that he may rest forever in the sweet friendship of the Lord.

During his last stay at Milltown, Father Masterson was confessor to some of our well-known public men. Amongst the general public who attended his funeral were : Mr. P. J. Little, T.D., representing Mr. de Valera; Mr. T. O. Deirg Minister for Education; Mr. W. Honohan, representing Mr MacEntee, Minister for Finance; Mr. Sean Brady, TD; Mrs de Valera; Mr. F. Fahy; Mrs. Concannon TD; Mr. Louis Walsh, DJ; the President of the High Court and Mrs. Sullivan.
By mistake Father Masterson's name was left out of the 1923 Catalogue. It is certain that in 1922-23 he was Professor of first year philosophy. One of his pupils of that year writes “I remember being impressed by his great care in preparing lectures, and, in general, by his devotion to his work. He always seemed to set a very high store on doing what he considered his duty.”

◆ James B Stephenson SJ Menologies 1973

Father Edward Masterson SJ 1856-1935
Edward Masterson was born at Corduff Couthy Cavan in 1856 and received his early education at St Patrick’s Seminary, Cavan. He entered the Society in 1877, the noviceship then being in Milltown Park.

His Regency and Philosophy were erratic, commuting between Milltown, Clongowes and Tullabeg. He was a Master on the staff in Tullabeg in the fateful year of 1886 and migrated to Clongowes on the amalgamation of the two Colleges that year. After his Ordination in Milltown in 1892 he was Prefect of Studies at Crescent for some time, and then after his tertianship he began to profess in Milltown Park.

He went to Australia in 1898 where he began to show that talent for controversy which was to make him famous afterwards. He defended the Catholic doctrines on mental reservation brilliantly in a controversy which excited the widest attention.

He returned after 8 years in Australia, and was stationed in Galway from 1906-1915. In the latter year he became Professor of Canon Law in Milltown, where he spent the rest of his life, except for a brief period at Mungret, and another at Galway. In all he was associated with Galway for 20 years, where his reputation as a theologian was extremely high and where he still plied his pen. To this period date his series of articles on “Recidivi” in the Irish Ecclesiastical Record. It was at Milltown that he defended the political opinions of Suarez against a Professor of Clonliffe. After expounding Suarez’s view he said “This is the doctrine that is taught on the banks of the Tiber, let us now see what is taught on the banks of the Tolka”.

He was a most kindly man, renowned for his interest in the young theologians, a most considerate examiner, the first to console the fallen and to congratulate the victor. Much consulted by public men acting as their ever-ready counsellor and confessor. A deeply religious man, renowned for his religious observance, seeking no relaxation on account of his health, he ended his active and fruitful life at Milltown Park on February 5th 1935.

◆ The Crescent : Limerick Jesuit Centenary Record 1859-1959

Bonum Certamen ... A Biographical Index of Former Members of the Limerick Jesuit Commnnity

Father Edward Masterson (1856-1935)

Born at Corduff, Co. Cavan and educated at the diocesan College of St Patrick, entered the Society in 1877. He was ordained at Milltown Park in 1892. Father Masterson was a member of the Crescent community in 1893-94 and from 1895 to 1897, during which time he held the office of prefect of studies. In 1897 he left for Australia and remained on the mission until 1906. On his return to Ireland, he was stationed at Galway until 1915 when he was appointed to the chair of Canon Law at Milltown Park. With the exception of a few years as lecturer in philosophy at Mungret or back once more in Galway, Father Masterson spent most of his time at Milltown Park. He had a facile pen in theological or philosophical controversies of other days, and was esteemed in his time as an able spiritual adviser.

Born: 04 March 1920, Rathgar, Dublin
Entered: 07 September 1938, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 31 July 1952, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1981, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Died: 30 December 2001, Manresa, Dollymount, Dublin

Brother Joe McAsey - RIP 1991

Father was a Civil Servant.

Youngest of three, with a brother and sister.

Early education was at a Convent school and then with a private tutor. At age 10 he went to Belvedere College SJ.

by 1985 at Nairobi, Kenya (AOR) working

◆ Interfuse

Interfuse No 112 : Special Edition 2002
Obituary

Fr Edward (Ted) McAsey (1920-2001)

4th March, 1920: Born in Dublin
Early education at Belvedere College
7th Sept. 1938: Entered the Society at Emo
8th Sept. 1940: First Vows at Emo
1940 - 1943: Rathfarnham - Studied Arts at UCD
1943 - 1946: Tullabeg - Studied Philosophy
1946 - 1948: Mungret - Teacher
1948 - 1949: Clongowes Wood College - Teacher
1949 - 1953: Milltown Park - Studied Theology
31st July, 1952: Ordained at Milltown Park
1953 - 1954: Tertianship at Rathfarnham
1954 - 1958: Mungret - 3rd Club prefect
1955: 1st Club prefect
1958 - 1960: Rathfarnham - Assistant to Director of retreats.
1960 - 1962: Manresa House - Teacher of Religion in Vocation Schools and Bolton Street
1962 - 1968: Gardiner St. - Teacher of Religion in Bolton St. Church work in Gardiner Street
1968 - 1969: Eglinton Road - Studied psychology at UCD
1969 - 1970: NCIR - Studied psychology at UCD
1970 - 1973: Gardiner Street - Teacher of Religion in Vocation Schools and Bolton Street
1973 - 1984: Tullabeg - Directed Spiritual Exercises
1975: Spent 3 months in Far East.
2nd Feb. 1981: Final Vows at Tullamore
1984 - 1989: Nairobi - Mwangaza House - Minister, Directed Spiritual Exercises
1989 - 1995: University Hall - Assistant Prefect; Director LRA, Directed Spiritual Exercises
1995 - 1998: NCIR - Director LRA, Directed Sp. Exercises
1998 - 2001: Manresa - Director LRA; Counselling; Health Prefect; Director, Spiritual Exercise

Ted was on his way back from saying Mass in Balally on December 30, 2001, when he died at the wheel of his car, probably from a heart attack. He will be terribly missed, not only by numerous clients and apostolates, but by the elderly and sick of Manresa, to whom he was devoted; and by all of us as a lively, happy companion.

Todd Morrissey writes....
Perhaps the most striking aspect of Ted's sudden and dramatic death has been the gap it has left in the lives of so many. Several weeks after the event, one woman commented: “I still expect to hear his large cheerful voice on the phone, I cannot believe that he is dead”. In the community, one still expects to see him stride into the refectory exuding vitality, and always in good form. The gap reflects somehow his bigness in so many ways. He was big physically, with a big voice, a big laugh, and with a big heart, which was reflected in his care of others, his interest in others, his availability to others. Whether as friend, spiritual guide, or psychological counsellor, he gave the impression of solidity, of being there for one, ready to listen and, if needed, to provide shrewd advice and encouraging, yet searching analysis.

“Compassion” is a word that so many of his clients use in his regard. It was evident in his last two communities, at Sandford Lodge and Manresa, where he had care of the sick. Nothing seemed to be too much trouble, and service always seemed to be accompanied by a quip or a laugh. His interest in those who were ill was reflected also in his frequent visits to Cherryfield. During his twelve years as spiritual director to the Lay Retreat Association, numerous members experienced his compassion, and a number of retreatants were surprised and touched to receive a phone call from him a couple of weeks after a retreat, asking how they were getting on and how they were managing with the problem they had discussed.

Ted's vitality, trim appearance, and full head of hair made him seem younger than he was. He lived a disciplined life: early to bed, early to rise, and a short snooze after dinner, combined to leave him with what seemed an endless supply of energy. Each day, up to his final two years, he had a continuous stream of clients, Monday to Saturday Saturday evening and Sunday were frequently devoted to LRA retreats. Holiday periods were filled with tridua or eight-day retreats. Last summer was devoted, after a couple of retreats, to several weeks of supply work in a parish in California, where he was the sole priest. A friend, studying nearby, who rang and suggested they go out for a meal, was told he had not the time - there were weddings, christenings, funerals, on top of the usual masses, confessions and sick calls, and he was enjoying every moment of it! Not surprising then that so many experience a large gap in their lives, and none more than his only, much loved niece, Phena Gee, in Australia, with whom he kept in regular contact, and with whom and her family he spent a memorable few months during his 79th year.

Ted was born in Rathgar, Dublin, on March 4, 1920, one of three children. He seems to have had a happy childhood and to have enjoyed his school days at Belvedere. On September 7, 1938, he entered the Society at Emo. One contemporary recalls him as a large, energetic, noisy and awkward youth, cheerful and anxious to please. During the novitiate there was a severe prolonged frost, and old ice-skates were brought out for skating on the lake. Ted is remembered as giving so much time to fixing the skates of others as to have had little time to skate himself. His generosity, however, was not entirely appreciated. His awkwardness did not make for skill, and some of his fellow novices, with a facility in Latin, were heard to remark - “Quod tangit, frangit”. After Emo, Ted went through the usual round of studies at Rathfarnham/UCD and Tullabeg, before going on to regency at Mungret and Clongowes Wood colleges, 1946-49. His ordination was at Miltown Park in 1952, and his tertianship at Rathfarnham.

Then, free at last, he spent the years 1954-1958 at Mungret College, first as Third Club, and then as First Club, prefect. It was a difficult time at Mungret, but he relished the work as prefect. It provided an outlet for his vast energy, and revealed his capacity for detailed organisation and his ability to deal with large numbers of boys in an ordered yet human way. After Mungret, he moved to Rathfarnham as assistant to the director of retreats. There he had his first in depth contacts with the men of the Lay Retreat Association. From 1960-1973, he worked as a teacher of religion in vocational schools, and especially in Bolton Street. During that time he spent two valuable years studying psychology at UCD. It was an important time for his own development, and for his subsequent capacity to help countless people with their personal and psychological problems. It also helped him work on his own natural impatience and impetuosity. In 1973 he moved to the type of work that was to occupy him for the rest of his life - namely, directing the Spiritual Exercises, and counselling, first in Tullabeg, then in Kenya, and finally back in Dublin. In the Jesuit retreat house in Nairobi, he was minister as well as spiritual director, and he learned much from two Indian Jesuit directors on the staff with him.

A feature of Ted's life was his openness to new experiences, to new learning. One of the joys of his work with the LRA, during the last twelve years of his life, was the fact that his predecessors had opened the theology and spirituality of Vatican II to the members. This challenged him to keep reading, to keep updating his knowledge and spirituality. Shortly before his death, he eagerly shared with others what he was learning from the tapes of Raymond Brown on the Acts of the Apostles, and on the Gospel of St. John. In the community, Ted coordinated the Revision de Vie meetings, and from his frank comments it was clear that prayer was frequently a struggle for him, and yet he was to be seen in the chapel for an hour every morning giving his time to meditation. The effort paid off. The impetuosity and impatience that marked his earlier years disappeared almost entirely, and he became increasingly a man for others.

A central feature in each day was his celebration of Mass with a few members of the community. Fittingly, his final religious service was offering Mass for some of his friends of the sisters of Charity. Afterwards, he was the life of the party as usual, and then drove some of the sisters to their lodgings with no intimations of mortality. A few minutes later, on the road home, life ended with a crash - without danger to anyone else. An appropriate way to go for someone who radiated life and energy, and whose favourite texts were: “I am come that they may have life and have it to the full”, and the saying attributed to Irenaus, “The glory of God is man fully alive”.

Born: 17 August 1908, South Bank, Middlesborough, Yorkshire, England
Entered: 01 September 1926, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 31 July 1939, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1942, Belvedere College SJ, Dublin
Died: 26 July 1983, Our Lady's Hospice, Harold's Cross, Dublin

Part of the St Francis Xavier's, Upper Gardiner Street, Dublin at the time of death

Grew up in Rathfriland, County Down
Early education at Clongowes Wood College SJ

◆ Irish Province News

Irish Province News 58th Year No 4 1983

Gardiner Street
The summer months saw the passing of two members of our community. Fr Johnny McAvoy († 26th July), who had given us an outstanding example of cheerful endurance during his long struggle with ill health, was the first to go. As noted in our last report, he had had to return to Cherryfield Lodge some months ago, to receive special care. At the very end, however, he moved to Our Lady's Hospice, where he died after a brain haemorrhage which mercifully saved him from prolonged suffering.
Fr Paddy Coffey, who died almost a month later († 19th August), was also attached to our community, though he had been living at St Joseph's, Kilcroney, or many years. It is no exaggeration to say that he was a legend in the Province for his amazing will-power and persistence. It would have been fascinating to listen in to his last battle of with the Lord! His ever-widening circle of friends will miss his gentle but determined winning ways.
May he and Johnny rest in the the serenity of eternal peace.

Obituary

Fr John McAvoy (1908-1926-1983)
The 1st September 1926 saw some half-dozen Clongownians arrive at the noviciate in Tullabeg. (Their number was increased by one a couple of weeks later.) One of the six was introduced to me as John McAvoy from Rathfriland, Co Down. To me he looked like a sturdy member of the CWC rugby XV that earlier in the year had for the first time won the Leinster senior cup, snatching it from Belvedere.
Transferred from the rugby field to the noviceship soccer pitch, John's sturdiness became very evident.In those days we were dressed in full regalia for the game!) Again it was seen to full advantage when, with another novice in tandem, he was yoked under the shafts of the big farm cart used for collecting the bountiful shedding of foliage from the beautiful trees lining the avenue. I recall one day before the Long retreat hearing John and some others of the, CWC group talking about some saint or other. I asked what saint was being discussed, and was told “John Sullivan”. When I confessed that I had never heard of him, I was obviously I “just a Dublin jackeen who doesn't know our saint”.
John did the home juniorate in Rathfarnham and philosophy in Tullabeg, where we were part of the first batch of philosophers, returning there after a mere two years absence.I have no recollections of John during those years, as my presence in the Castle and in Rahan was somewhat intermittent. In 1936 however we came together again for theology in Milltown, and were ordained just before the outbreak of World War Two. At the completion of the fourth year of theology we were back again in the familiar surroundings of the Castle for tertianship under the direction of Fr Henry Keane.
At the end of this long period of gestation Fr John and I found ourselves in Belvedere, where his talents became very apparent and likewise his determination that each talent must bear worthwhile fruit. Most noticeable at this time was his conscientious application to his work class-room and his training of the Senior XV. The boys found his drive and enthusiasm highly infectious; no less so the sense of discipline he inspired. These characteristics of John's training became very evident when shortly after the war the Old Belvedere club went on tour in France. The bulk of that team had been trained by Fr John.
Despite his heavy work-load Fr John never, I feel sure, lost sight of the purpose of so much activity. I doubt if he ever 'missed out on the things of the spirit that are the hallmark of a good Jesuit priest. He was an example of sustained regularity in the performance of his spiritual duties.
John moved to Mungret in 1946 and returned to Dublin in '51, having been Vice-superior of the Apostolic school for his final two years in the college. Gardiner street became his final home in the Province, and it was here that he showed himself to be a most versatile man. For 24 years he aught in Bolton street College of Technology; studied privately and took a BA degree in UCD; learned a good deal about printing; was involved in the work of the Church, especially during Holy week and other big occasions.
In Bolton street the teachers held Fr John in high esteem for his priestly influence on both students and staff. This influence was such that many of his students in later life knew him as a trusted friend and adviser. On finishing his teaching career, John began to feel his way to becoming a first-class printer. He was listed in the Province catalogue as. Typogr Prov and during his final years produced much excellent work for both the parish and the Province. At this time also he became chaplain to St Joseph's Home, Portland row. Nothing that the sisters asked of him was ever too much for Fr John, who was so dedicated to the work that he continued to make his way to the convent on foot, until so far advanced in his illness he could no longer walk there because he was unable to eat. During these latter years he was Director of the Bona Mors Confraternity. His association with Bona Mors went back a considerable number of years. Its influence on him was such that from the time he knew his illness was terminal he became so merry and full of laughter that every member of the community was edified beyond measure. John's chief recreational outlet was fishing in season with rod and line. Lake and river were his haunts on vacations and odd free days. One year however he decided on the sea, and signed on with the skipper of a Howth or Skerries trawler for a part if not all of his villa time. He described the long hours of back bending work as really exhausting, but debilitation was more than offset by luscious steaks and other good foods - so good that the moment his head hit the pillow he fell asleep. His work on board the trawler was delightful - gutting the fish!
A man of many parts, John McAvoy was a priest well and deeply formed by the Spiritual Exercises. No matter how much he gave himself to others and their concerns, he was giving himself to God. The talents he received must already have been doubled for him by the One he served so wholeheartedly.

◆ The Clongownian, 1983

Obituary

Father John McAvoy SJ

Despite having surpassed the allotted span of three score and ten years, the announcement of Fr John McAvoy's death on 26th July brought back many recollections and memories of him to not a few Old Clongownians, both those of his own time and those of a later vintage. He took a humble pride in being an Old Clongownian, and those who knew him realised that it was his years at Clongowes that prepared and formed him into the man, the priest, and Jesuit that he became.

Among his many achievements when he finished his years as a boy in Clongowes was the winning of a Leinster Senior Schools' Cup medal when he played as a forward on the team that for the first time brought the Cup to his school in 1926. More than fifty years later he returned to Clongowes, along with the surviving members of that historic team, to join in the celebrations to mark the return of the Cup in 1978.

He joined the Jesuits in 1926, came back to teach in his old school as a Jesuit scholastic for three years up to 1936 and was ordained a priest in 1939.

Anyone who knew Johnny - as he was known to his Jesuit confreres - realised he was one who loved life and loved people. His direct North of Ireland approach (though born in England he came to live in Co Down at a very early age before coming to Clongowes with his brother Jim who died as a young married man) won him many friends and respect among his fellow Jesuits and those he worked with and met. He won the friendship and trust of the many young people he dealt with. Among them were the boys of Belvedere College where he taught for five years and in 1946 trained the Senior Cup Team that won the Cup in 1946. Later it was the same during his five years in Mungret College. His greatest sphere of influence was the last thirty-two years of his life which were spent in the Jesuit Church in Gardiner Street, over twenty of which he was chaplain and priest-teacher in the College of Technology in Bolton Street.

It was at the request of Dr McQuaid, Arch bishop of Dublin, for a Jesuit to work full-time in the Dublin Vocational Educational system that Fr McAvoy was appointed to the position in Bolton Street in 1951. His success there in adapting to new surroundings and circumstances and his organising ability gradually won him the respect and confidence of the CEO, the Vocational Committee and the teaching staff not only of Bolton Street but also of other Vocational Schools in the city. For over twenty years his influence as a priest, a teacher and a friend on the students and staff of the college was enormous. His dedication and energy there paved the way for requests for other Jesuits to work in the Dublin Vocational schools.

His love of life and many friendships continued to the end. A serious operation some ten months or so before his death slowed his pace of living. As a dedicated fisherman he was forced to lay aside his rods, and to forego many other interests. Despite discomfort and suffering he was young at heart to the end. He departed peacefully and happily from the life he loved and during which he did so much for God and for others. For several years before his death Fr McAvoy was director of the Bona Mors (Happy Death) Sodality in Gardiner Street Church. There he counselled others to prepare for a happy death. This he received himself on 27th July.

Donal Mulcahy SJ

Born: 10 September 1882, Dorset Street, Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 07 September 1909, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Final Vows: 27 February 1920, Milltown Park, Dublin
Died: 08 September 1945, St Vincent's Hospital, Dublin

Part of the St Francis Xavier, Gardiner St, Dublin community at the time of death

◆ Irish Province News
Irish Province News 20th Year No 4 1945
Obituary :
Br. James McCabe (1882-1909-1945)
“I'm asking Our Lady to take me on her Feast-Day, my Vow-day,” said Bro. McCabe to the Superior of St. Francis Xavier's, Gardiner Street (Fr. Tyndall) as he lay in St. Vincent's Hospital on the Eve of 8th September. On receiving the Papal Blessing at the hour of death, he joined in the prayers and was fully aware he was dying. He sent for his relatives and said good-bye to them in a manly and courageous manner.
That evening he became unconscious, and in a gentle sleep passed away about 10.15 on the morning of the 8th.
Br. McCabe was born in Dorset Street, Dublin, on 10th September, 1882, and was educated at Marlboro' Street schools. He secured a clerkship in the Dublin Post-Office and worked as a postman in the Fairview District till 1909. He entered the noviceship the same year, and received his gown on 7th September. After his Vows, two years later, he spent eleven years of faithful service at Mungret College, during the greater part of which he held the offices of mechanic and refectorian of the boys' refectory. After three years in Clongowes, on the death of Br. McCormack at Gardiner Street, he was called to the latter Residence where he was destined to spend the last twenty years of his life as dispenser and prefect of the domestic staff. His talent as a mechanic was exploited to the full during these years and proved of great practical utility, sparing the House, incidentally, much expense. He was an adept at managing the loud-speaker apparatus which had been installed in the Church during the period when Fr. F. Browne was Superior. Hardworking and conscientious to a fault, Br. McCabe never spared himself even during the last years of his life when he began to lose his old vigour. He made light of the internal complaint which afflicted him during the months which preceded his death, but was at last persuaded to go to Hospital. The surgeon diagnosed cancer in an advanced stage, which an operation was powerless to check.
Many business firms and tradesmen sent Fr. Superior expressions of generous sympathy when his death was announced.
After Requiem Mass celebrated by Fr. Superior at 11 a.m. on Monday, 10th September, Br. McCabe was buried in Glasnevin Cemetery, Rev. Fr. Provincial reciting the prayers at the graveside. R.I.P.

Born: 01 October 1907, Home Farm Road, Drumcondra, Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 01 September 1925, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 31 July 1938, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1942, Clongowes Wood College SJ
Died: 16 July 1975, Mungret College, County Limerick

Part of the Sacred Heart, Crescent, Limerick community at the time of death

Father was a Civil Servant. Mother died in 1923.

Second of three boys with four girls.

Early education first at a small private school and then for 10 years at O’Connell’s School Dublin

◆ Companions in Mission 1880- Zambia-Malawi (ZAM) Obituaries :
John McCarron was known as Sean. Even as a novice, his qualities of leadership and practical common sense were recognised. He was self-confident, sure of his judgment and, on occasion, forthright in urging his point of view. His self-confidence stood to him in counselling and directing the large number of people, both clerical and lay, who sought his advice.
He was born in Dublin on 1 October 1907 and entered the Society in 1925. After the normal course of studies, juniorate, philosophy, regency and theology, he was ordained at Milltown Park in 1938.

For 15 years (1942 to 1957) Fr Sean was the Central Director of the Pioneer Total Abstinence Association (PTAA) with the exception of the first year when he was the assistant. He possessed tremendous drive and was demanding of others both as to the quality and quantity of their work. Some within the Society said he was too demanding. However he had the knack or ability to draw around him people of talent and dedication who would give of their best.

He had a genius for organisation and administration which showed itself in the restructuring of the Pioneer office, in the conducting of Pioneer affairs and also in the overall direction of the memorable Golden Jubilee of the Association in 1949 which entailed a huge parade through the centre of Dublin and a massive meeting in Croke Park. He founded and launched the Pioneer Magazine in 1948 which quickly built up a good circulation in spite of the pundits who said that such a magazine would not be a practical proposition. He even procured a car for his work of promoting the Association - a very progressive action at the time. Until the late 40s, the only cars permitted in the Province were the four official cars for the country houses - Emo, Clongowes, Tullabeg and Mungret. The annual Pioneer Rally at Dublin's Theatre Royal was certainly the biggest annual rally of any group in Ireland. Because of the Association, he became one of the best known priests in Ireland.

An amusing incident took place when he was Director of the Pioneers. One afternoon seeing a poor woman pushing a pram up the hill in Gardiner Street, he went to assist her and found himself pushing a pram, not with a baby, but one full of bottles of beer!

He left the Association to be posted to Zambia (then Northern Rhodesia) for the express purpose of building and setting up Charles Lwanga Teacher Training College. His right hand man was Br Pat McElduff. It was quite a showpiece with even a fountain on the campus. He was a tremendous worker but at the same time he had great kindness towards the workers and foremen. The firms he dealt with had great respect for him as he was always so straight and clear about what he wanted. He lived where he worked, in a small house, the inside of which was littered with plans everywhere – on the floor, on the table, on his bed. Zambia was a very happy episode in his life which revealed his charm and affability.

Back in Ireland he founded Manresa Retreat House and was the first Superior of Loyola House, the provincial’s new residence. His health had not been good for a number of years though he always made light of this. The end came suddenly early in the morning of 16 July 1975 in Limerick where he had been living.

Note from Arthur J Clarke Entry
During his six years as rector, he was blessed with such outstanding heads of Canisius as Dick Cremins and Michael J Kelly. Arthur's vision for Canisius as a leading secondary school was influenced by his experience of Clongowes Wood College in Ireland. First, he wanted a proper house for the community. Though the actual building was the responsibility of Fr McCarron and Br Pat McElduff, the siting and design of the spacious community house are largely Arthur’s.

Note from Pat McElduff Entry
For the construction of the Teachers Training College Charles Lwanga across the river from Chikuni, Br Pat was the obvious man for the building together with Fr McCarron just out from Ireland.

◆ Irish Province News

Irish Province News 23rd Year No 4 1948

Manresa House, Dollymount, Dublin.
We moved in on Saturday morning, 14th August. Fr, Superior (Fr. McCarron), Fr. Minister (Fr. Kearns), and Bro. E. Foley constituted the occupying force, and Fr. T. Martin not only placed his van at our disposal, but gave generously of his time and labour for the heavy work of the first day.
A long procession of vans unloaded until noon, when the men broke off for their half-day, leaving a mountain of assorted hardware and soft goods to be unpacked and stowed. By nightfall we had a chapel installed, the kitchen working, dining-room in passable order, and beds set up, so we said litanies, Fr. Superior blessed the house and consecrated it to the Sacred Heart.
Next morning Fr. Superior said the first Mass ever offered in the building. It was the Feast of the Assumption and a Sunday, so we. placed the house and the work under the Patronage of Our Lady and paused to review the scene. Fr. Provincial came to lunch.
The building is soundly constructed from basement to roof, but needs considerable modification before it can be used as a temporary Retreat House. The permanent Retreat House has yet to be built on the existing stables about 130 yards from the principal structure, but. we hope to take about twenty exercitants as soon as builders, plumbers, electricians, carpenters and decorators have done their work.
Fr. C. Doyle is equipping and furnishing the domestic chapel as a memorial to Fr. Willie, who worked so tirelessly for the establishment of workingmen's retreats in Ireland. A mantelpiece of this room has been removed, and thermostatically controlled electric heating is being installed. Lighting is to be by means of fluorescent tubes of the latest type.
With all due respects to the expert gardeners of the Province, we modestly assert that our garden is superb. Fr. Provincial was so impressed by the work done there that he presented us with a Fordson 8 H.P. van to bring the surplus produce to market. Under the personal supervision of Fr. Superior, our two professional gardeners took nine first prizes and four seconds with fourteen exhibits at the Drimnagh show. Twelve of their potatoes filled a bucket, and were sold for one shilling each. The garden extends over 2 of our 17 acres and will, please God, provide abundant fruit and vegetables.
From the beginning we have been overwhelmed with kindness: by our houses and by individual Fathers. Fr. Provincial has been a fairy-godmother to us all the time. As well as the van, he has given us a radio to keep us in touch with the outside world. We have bene fitted by the wise advice of Frs. Doyle and Kenny in buying equipment and supplies, while both of them, together with Fr. Rector of Belvedere and Fr. Superior of Gardiner Street, have given and lent furniture for our temporary chapel Fr. Scantlebury sacrificed two fine mahogany bookcases, while Frs. Doherty and D. Dargan travelled by rail and bus so that we might have the use of the Pioneer car for three weeks. Milltown sent a roll-top desk for Fr, Superior's use. To all who helped both houses and individuals we offer our warmest thanks, and we include in this acknowledgement the many others whom we have not mentioned by name.
Our man-power problem was acute until the Theologians came to the rescue. Two servants were engaged consecutively, but called off without beginning work. An appeal to Fr. Smyth at Milltown brought us Messrs. Doris and Kelly for a week of gruelling labour in the house. They scrubbed and waxed and carpentered without respite until Saturday when Mr. Kelly had to leave us. Mr. Hornedo of the Toledo Province came to replace him, and Mr. Barry arrived for work in the grounds. Thanks to their zeal and skill, the refectory, library and several bedrooms were made ready and we welcomed our first guest on Monday, 30th August. Under the influence of the sea air, Fr. Quinlan is regaining his strength after his long and severe illness.
If anyone has old furniture, books, bedclothes, pictures, or, in fact anything which he considers superfluous, we should be very glad to hear of it, as we are faced with the task of organizing accommodation for 60 men and are trying to keep the financial load as light as possible in these times of high cost. The maintenance of the house depends on alms and whatever the garden may bring. What may look like junk to an established house may be very useful to us, starting from bare essentials. Most of all, we want the prayers of the brethren for the success of the whole venture, which is judged to be a great act of trust in the Providence of God.
Our postal address is : Manresa House, Dollymount, Dublin.

Irish Province News 50th Year No 3 and 4 1975

Obituary :

Fr Seán McCarron (1907-1975)

Fr Kevin O'Donnell writes:
“I went to Tullabeg in September 1925, a few days after Seán McCarron. We were together from that date until the end of our Tertianship in 1940, moving on from the Noviceship to the Juniorate, then to Philosophy, to Clongowes, to Milltown Park and finally to Rathfarnham.
Father Paddy Kenny was in constant attendance during our years of formation, being Socius and Minister during our noviceship and coming with us to Rathfarnham. He was appointed Minister in Clongowes at the same time as we were sent there as scholastics. We had, therefore, the benefit of the guidance and example of an outstanding Jesuit - a practical and deeply spiritual man.
Seán would be astonished if he heard anyone attempting to draw a comparison between himself and ‘PK’, and I don't intend to try it. His long and constant association with ‘PK’ undoubtedly influenced Seán.
Even in the Noviceship, Seán's qualities of leadership and practical common sense were recognised. At ‘outdoor works’, when Seán was in charge of a group, we all knew whom to obey, Seán was aware of his gifts - he was self-confident, sure of his judgement and, on occasion, forthright in urging his point. This self confidence stood to him in later life in counselling and directing the very large number of people - clerical and lay - who sought his advice.
In addition to a very practical mind and his gift of leadership, Seán had a deep and genuine spirituality, zealous and generous in giving the Spiritual Exercises, and a great worker on a Mission.
He gave devoted and distinguished service to the Society which he joined fifty years ago. God grant him his reward”.

Fr Dan Dargan writes about Seán as Director of the Pioneers :
“In 1942 Fr Seán McCarron was appointed assistant to the Director of the Pioneer Association, Fr Joe Flinn. The following year Fr Flinn died and Seán succeeded him as Central Director. He remained in that office until 1957 when he left Ireland to work on the Zambian mission.
For nine years I was his assistant, and during that time I grew to look on him as one of the most able men I have met in the Society. He was highly intelligent, practical and forceful, he commanded widespread respect throughout the country and became one of the best-known priests in Ireland. Himself possessing tremendous drive, he was demanding of others, both as to the quality and quantity of their work. In the Society some said that he was too demanding. Outside the Society I have known several people who were ready to work themselves to the bone for Fr McCarron and glad to be able to do it. Indeed a secret of his success in whatever he undertook was his ability to draw around him people of talent and dedication who would give of their best.
I was often struck by his handling of a thorny issue. He would study it, would get right to the kernel and would evaluate reasons for and against. Then, where others might hesitate, he would make a decision and would fearlessly execute it. He had a genius for organisation and administration, as he showed in his efficient re structuring of the Pioneer Association office, in his overall direction of the memorable Golden Jubilee celebrations of the Association in 1949, and in his conducting of Pioneer affairs. He was much sought after as a spiritual adviser, especially during his years at Manresa Retreat House. I have heard people speak of the valuable direction he gave them with his commonsense approach and generous kindness to them.
Until recently it fell to the lot of few Jesuits to be assigned to more than one totally new work in the course of their lives. Within ten years Seán McCarron was given three such assignments: he was appointed founder of Manresa Retreat House, first superior of Loyola, and was sent to Zambia for the express purpose of building and setting up the Charles Lwanga College. One reason for these appointments was his great initiative, to which any house where he was in charge bears witness. In the Pioneer Association, before his coming on the scene, it was the official viewpoint that a special magazine for the Association would not be a practical proposition. In 1948 Seán blew this theory to bits when he founded and launched the Pioneer magazine, which quickly built up a good circulation. After the Second World War, as soon as motor cars began to appear freely on the roads, Seán procured a car for his work of promoting the Association - an action which at the time was considered very progressive! (It may come as a surprise to younger Jesuits to learn that until the late 1940s the only cars permitted in the Province were the four official house cars allowed to our country houses, one each to Emo, Tullabeg, Clongowes and Mungret).
For him a favourite occasion was the annual Pioneer meeting in Dublin's Theatre Royal. This was quite a remarkable meeting, certainly the biggest annual rally of any group in Ireland. The theatre, which held three and a half thousand people, was always packed. No sooner had Seán risen and said a few words than you could see that he held his audience in the palm of his hand. He would begin in a relaxed, humorous vein, often referring jocosely to his personal proportions - at that time he weighed 18 stone - and he would have his listeners chuckling away merrily. Then he would grow serious, would speak with impassioned eloquence, often lifting his listeners to heights of enthusiasm. On many occasions he hit out hard at drink abuses, including breaches of the licensing laws. He was sometimes criticised by members of the Province for this, but he was convinced that he was justified in making strong protests against abuses which produced such damaging effects on the moral and social life of our people.
Those of us who worked with him often marvelled at his powers of persuasion in bringing people around to accept his viewpoint. On the occasion of the Golden Jubilee of the Association, he pro posed to archbishop McQuaid his intended programme involving a huge parade through the centre of Dublin and an open-air meet ing in Croke Park. The archbishop was anything but encouraging. Undaunted Seán explained to the archbishop the spiritual motivation of the Pioneer Association, and said that the rally would afford a unique opportunity to put this motivation before the general public. The archbishop withdrew his disapproval and gave his sanction to Seán's plans.
Almost on the eve of a national Pioneer pilgrimage to Knock in the Marian Year (1954), the men in the GNR company in the Drogheda area became involved in a dispute with the management, and decided that until they got satisfaction they would not operate any trains on Sundays. Realising the disappointment this would bring to people in Meath and Louth, Seán went up to Drogheda, met the men and appealed to them to run the trains for the Pioneer pilgrimage. To do so, he told them, would not adversely prejudice their case, but rather would win admiration from the public. The men were impressed, responded to his appeal, and - the Pioneers got to Knock!
It came as a surprise to many outside the Society to learn after his death that he experienced bad health in many forms for many years. He himself always made light of this, would even joke about it, but throughout his ill-health and suffering he showed remark able courage, never giving way to self-pity and showing a deep spirit of faith. He knew that the end might come suddenly at any time, and so it did, early in the morning of the 16th July, 1975, May his great soul enjoy happiness with God whom he served so cheerfully and courageously”.

Mary Purcell has a 3-page illustrated article on Seán in the Pioneer (September 1975).

Fr Charlie O'Connor writes about Seán in Zambia :
“I have a very clear picture of Seán in Zambia. I think he was in his element there. He had a job to do and he was complete boss in that job - and I think Seán needed to be completely in charge. He made a great job of the building of Charles Lwanga Teacher Training College: it was quite a showpiece - who in Africa had ever thought before of including a fountain in a campus?
The word I find coming to mind for the McCarron of those days (1956-'63) is genial. There was great affability towards workers and foremen - but the affable face could set in serious lines when problems arose. The firms he dealt with had great respect for him - I suppose because he was so straight and so clear about what he wanted.
Another picture comes to mind: he lived on his own in one of the teachers' houses he had erected. You'd go in and find him in a room littered with plans on the floor, table, bed, plans everywhere.
Another picture: You'd meet him making his way very purposefully towards one of the sites, his huge wide-brimmed hat on his head - that was quite a characteristic feature of Seán in those days - in shirt and trousers - and with a rolled plan under his arm.
I'm certain Zambia was a very happy episode in his life - and perhaps revealed more than other periods his great charm and affability. Before that I had thought of him as autocratic and not very warm.

Born: 01 June 1893, Inch House, New Street, Killarney, County Kerry
Entered: 29 March 1913, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 08 December 1926, Convent of Mercy, Waterford City
Final Vows: 02 February 1932, St Francis Xavier, Gardiner Street, Dublin
Died: 20 January 1986, Kilcroney, County Wicklow

Part of the St Francis Xavier's, Gardiner Street, Dublin community at the time of death.

Father died in January 1901 was a Solicitor and County Coroner. Mother died in December 1897.

Eldest of three sons.

Early education by a governess, and then for four years at a Convent school in Athlone and another in Wicklow. He then spent two years at school in Tralee and in 1907 went to Clongowes Wood College SJ

In 1911 he wished to join the Society but his guardian would not allow it and sent him back to Clongowes to study for the Civil Service exams. He did not succeed, and so was sent to Skerry’s College (Griffith College) to repeat this exam. The result this time was similar if not worse.

Studied for BA at UCD

Ordained at Waterford - Eddie Bourke's sister was Sr Veronica Bourke, and as religious sisters could not attend ordinations, Mother de Sales organised with Bishop Hackett to have the ceremony in the convent chapel, Convent of Mercy, Military Road, Waterford. Occurred in December 1926 according to Sr Veronica (1985), as Fr Eddie Bourke SJ was going on missions (she played violin at ordination).
1930-1931 Tertianship at St Beuno’s, Wales

◆ Irish Province News

Irish Province News 61st Year No 2 1986

Obituary

Fr Donal Trant McCarthy (1893-1913-1986)

1st June 1893: born, 29th March 1913: entered SJ. 1913-15 Tullabeg, noviciate. 1915-19 Rathfarnham: 1915-16 home juniorate, 1916-19 University College Dublin. 1919-21 Milltown, philosophy. 1921-24 Clongowes, regency. 1924-28 Milltown, theology (8th December 1926: ordained a priest). 1928-30 Clongowes, teaching. 1930-31 St Beuno's, tertianship.
1931-37 St Francis Xavier's, Gardiner street, Dublin, assistant in Irish Messenger office. 1937-62 Belvedere, ditto (1947-62 IMO bursar). 1962-78 Gardiner street, confessor of community (1964-75 confessor in church; 1964-75 preaching). 1979-86 in care of St John of God Brothers, Kilcroney, Bray. 20th January 1986: died

Donal Trant McCarthy was born in Killarney in 1893. His parents died when he was very young, and his home address during his schooldays was Srugrena Abbey, Cahirciveen, the residence of his uncle and guardian, Samuel Trant MacCarthy. He came to Clongowes in 1907 and left in 1912. He had a good academic career, getting an exhibition in classics in the Middle Grade and a prize in the Senior Grade of the Intermediate examination. He was also awarded the Pallas gold medal in mathematics. He repeated the Senior Grade, thus becoming a class-fellow of mine, and we were close friends during the year 1911-12. I remember him as a thoroughly good-natured boy, not brilliant at games but a fair all-rounder and generally popular both among boys and masters.
On leaving Clongowes, he commenced to work for his First Arts at University College, Dublin, but for some unknown reason broke off to enter the noviciate in March 1913. Accordingly, when I entered in the following October, our friendship was renewed. We were together at intervals as juniors, philosophers, teachers in Clongowes, and theologians. After the passage of some fifty to sixty years it is impossible to recall any special details of Donal's life at this time, but I have all along the same recollection of a most genial and helpful companion.
He was gifted with a wonderful pair of hands and an artistic eye, Carpentry, metalwork, building, painting, all came as second nature to him, and he responded with unruffled patience to the many demands which were made on him by his brethren. It would be dishonest to speak of Donal without allusion to his one minor fault, a fondness for lengthy anecdotes, but this was a trivial defect compared with his other sterling qualities.
Genealogists will learn with interest that Fr Donal had the right - which he never ever mentioned - to the title of The MacCarthy Mór. The facts concerning this claim will be found in a large volume (of which a copy is in the National Library): “The McCarthys of Munster; the story of a great Irish sept”, by Samuel Trant MacCarthy, the Mac Carthy Mór, Dundalgan Press, 1922. In this book Fr Donal's uncle claims to trace back through twelve generations in the direct male line to Cormac, second son of Tadhg-na-Mainistreach, Mac Carthy Mór, prince of Desmond, died 1413. Founder of the MacCarthys of Srugrena, co. Kerry. Fr Donal was the last in direct line of this family, neither his uncle nor either of his two brothers having had male issue.
The paths of Fr Donal and myself diverged completely after ordination, so surprising how difficult this is the first I must leave to another pen the task of time, and on top of it there are quite a chronicling his long and varied life as a number of last-minute arrangements to priest.

◆ The Clongownian, 1986

Obituary

Father Donal Trant McCarthy SJ

Donal Trant McCarthy was born in Killarney in 1893. His parents died when he was very young, and his home address during his schooldays was Srugrena Abbey, Cahirciveen, the residence of his uncle and guardian, Samuel Trant MacCarthy. He came to Clongowes in 1907 and left in 1912. He had a good academic career, getting an exhibition in classics in the Middle Grade and a prize in the Senior Grade of the Intermediate examination. He was also awarded the , Pallas gold medal in mathematics. He repeated the Senior Grade, thus becoming a class-fellow of mine, and we were close friends during the year 1911-12. I remember him as a thoroughly good-natured boy, not brilliant at games but a fair all-rounder and generally popular both among boys and masters.

He was gifted with a wonderful pair of hands and an artistic eye. Carpentry, metalwork, building, painting, all came as second nature to him, and he responded with unruffled patience to the many demands which were made on him by his brethren. It would be dishonest to speak of Donal without allusion to his one minor fault, a fondness for lengthy anecdotes, but this was a trivial defect compared with his other ster ling qualities.

Genealogists will learn with interest that Fr Donal had the right - which he never ever mentioned - to the title of The MacCarthy Mór. The facts concerning this claim will be found in a large volume (of which a copy is in the National Library): “The McCarthys of Munster: the story of a great Irish sept”, by Samuel Trant MacCarthy, the MacCarthy Mór, Dundalgan Press, 1922. In this book Fr Donal's uncle claims to trace back through twelve generations in the direct male line to Cormac, second son of Tadhg-na Mainistreach, MacCarthy Mor, prince of Desmond, died 1413, Founder of the MacCarthys of Srugrena, Co. Kerry. .

Apart from a few years teaching in Clongowes Fr McCarthy was alınost thirty years Bursar in the Irish Messenger Office. He worked in Gardiner St for eleven years up to 1975 when he had to retire because of ill-health. May he rest in peace.

F McG

Born: 17 April 1912, Rathdown Road, Phibsborough, Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 03 September 1930, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Ordained: 28 July 1943, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1946, Clongowes Wood College SJ
Died: 05 January 1986, Monze Hospital, Zambia - Zambiae Province (ZAM)

Part of the Kasisi Parish, Lusaka, Zambia at the time of death

Transcribed HIB to ZAM : 03 December 1969

Father was a land valuer in the Civil Service. Mother died in 1923.

Second eldest of five boys with four sisters.

Early education at a Convent school in Dublin he then went to O’Connell’s School Dublin and was there for 10 years.

by 1956 at Chikuni, Chisekesi, N Rhodesia (POL Mi) working - fifth wave of Zambian Missioners

◆ Companions in Mission1880- Zambia-Malawi (ZAM) Obituaries :
Because Joe was such a ‘character’ - widely known and admired (as it were from a distance), fondly mimicked, amusedly quoted in his characteristic phrases like ‘old chap’, ‘nonsense!’ ‘My community’ etc, perhaps the full depth of his humanity and Jesuit identity were known only to a small circle of friends with whom he felt totally comfortable. His achievements as a missionary can easily be narrated for the edification of others or the annals of history.

Born on 17 April 1912, to a Dublin family of Cork stock, Joe had to compete with several brothers and sisters for the approval of his father; his mother had died when Joe was very young. After secondary school with the Christian Brothers, he entered the novitiate at Emo on 3 September 1930. As a junior he finished with a B.Sc. in Mathematics from U.C.D. Philosophy, regency and theology brought him to ordination at Milltown Park on 29 July 1943. He went to teach at Clongowes Wood College and was looked upon as a very competent teacher. From his oft repeated anecdotes of his life there, it is very clear that he enjoyed himself immensely.

A call for volunteers to meet the needs of the Jesuit Mission in the then Northern Rhodesia, saw Joe packing his bags to say goodbye to Clongowes. His ability to discard the comforts of life would be a feature of his life right up to his dying moments, despite the fragility of his body and the poor state of his general health. He came out with the first nine Irish Jesuits in 1950.

In the late 50s, Joe pioneered the Chivuna Mission where he built the community house, church and Trade School with the co-operation of Br Jim Dunne and won the esteem and affection of the people in the locality who fondly spoke of him as ‘Makacki’. For four years he was in Namwala, again building the mission house, a sisters' convent and outstations. In both these places he was full time parish priest.

The new Bishop of Monze, in his wise fashion appointed Joe as his Vicar General in the newly established diocese of Monze. Few (if any) could match Joe's qualifications for such a post: clear-sighted, wide experience in pioneering Church expansion, adroit in negotiating with local authorities, well able to collaborate with so varied a group of people, and an ability to make most of the limited funds available. Joe contributed enormously to the expansion of the church in Monze diocese during those years.

At the Bishop's request he was assigned to Chirundu, to the Zambezi Farm Training Institute, sponsored by the Archdiocese of Milan. In those ten years Joe became known in the vicinity and was highly appreciated by government officials, trainees and their families.

It was characteristic of Joe that wherever he lived and worked soon became ‘his’. He would speak of ‘my’ mission, ‘my' road, ‘my’ community etc. He loved to reminisce about the good old times of his life as he got older, amusedly recalling the characters of the old days, their witty sayings that indicated their nimbleness of mind. Such memories provided him with immense entertainment. The older he got the more he tended to repeat himself.

The Society he loved and felt part of was the Society of pre-Vatican II days, the Society in Ireland before the 60s; or the pioneering Society of Chikuni Mission characterized by the thrust and energy of the newly arrived Irish Jesuits, enjoying a degree of autonomy and homogeneity. How often would he later recall those great times. The present-day emphasis on community meetings, faith-sharing, more open dialogue between the members of the community continued to baffle him and defeat him to the very end.

His health was never very good and began to wane. After surgery in early 1977, Joe realised the strong possibility of the recurrence of the cancer. However some years later, the end came quickly. Jim Carroll was with him for his last four hours of life. When taking his leave of Jim in his final moments, Joe revealed so much of himself in his final words: ‘I think you should leave me here, old chap; there are certain formalities to be undergone from here on’! Within minutes Joe had died, leaving behind so many friends regretfully but at the same time looking forward to meeting so many others.

◆ Irish Province News

Irish Province News 61st Year No 2 1986

Obituary

Fr Joseph McCarthy (1912-1930-1986) (Zambia)

17th April 1912: born. 3rd September 1930: entered SJ. 1930-32 Emo, noviciate. 1932-35 Rathfarnham, juniorate. 1935-38 Tullabeg, philosophy. 1938-39 Clongowes, regency, 1939-40 Tullabeg, philosophy. 1940-44 Milltown, theology. 1944-45 Rathfarnham, tertianship.
1945-50 Clongowes, teaching. 1950-86 Zambia.
1950-51 Chikuni, learning language. 1951-57 Chivuna, administering trade school (1954-57 Vice-superior). 1957-58 Chikuni, assistant administrator of schools. 1958-59 Kasiya. 1959-62 Namwala. 1962-66 Kasiya, acting vicar general of Monze diocese. 1966-68 Monze, building Chirundu. 1968-75 Lusaka, St Ignatius, administering Chirundu. 1975-77 Chikuni, teaching. 1977-86 Kasisi: 1977-82 Superior, 1982-86 administering Kasisi farm. 5th January 1986: died.

The following obituary notice is taken from pp. 6-9 of the Zambian Province news-letter, February 1986.

As we stood mournfully round Fr Joe McCarthy's grave at Kasisi Fr Felix Kalebwe asked the Jesuit novices to kneel round the grave and realise that they were blessed to have been able to participate in the burial of a great Jesuit; and they were invited to remember this event for the rest of their lives, and to try to emulate Fr McCarthy in his zeal and dedication.
Later, as we came away from the burial-ground, avoiding the large pools of rain-water, one of the loveliest things of my life happened: many people, Jesuits and non-Jesuits, expressed their sympathy for me personally, in words like, “You will miss him greatly; you were such great friends”.

Because Joe was such a “character”, widely known and admired (as it were from a distance), fondly mimicked, amusedly quoted in his characteristic phrases like “I say, old chap”, “Nonsense”, “My community”, perhaps the full depth of his humanity and Jesuit identity were known only to a small circle of friends with whom he felt totally comfortable. Yes, his achievements as a missionary are part of history, can easily be narrated for the edification of others or the annals of our history. But lest his shyness with so many, and his inclination to resort to eccentric behaviour would hide the warm and gentle character of Joe, I would like to try to describe Joe the man who was a dedicated Jesuit and a very warm friend to a few of us.
Born on 17th April, 1912, to a Dublin family of Cork stock, Joe had to compete with several brothers and sisters for the approval of his father; his mother died when Joe was very young. After secondary school with the Irish Christian Brothers Joe entered the Jesuit noviciate at Emo on 3rd September, 1930. University studies followed at University College, Dublin, and despite being incapacitated by tuberculosis he finished with a good BSc Mathematics. On to Tullabeg for philosophy, where his keen intellect continued to reveal itself. Regency at Clongowes, followed by theological studies at Milltown Park; he always claimed in later life, in his characteristically boastful way, that he was an outstanding moral theologian of that era! What is clear from his studies throughout his Jesuit formation is that Joe could easily have gone on to lecture in any of the three fields of mathematics, philosophy or theology - and would have made his mark in whichever he chose.

Instead, after ordination on 29th July, 1943, fourth year of theology and tertianship, Joe went to teach at Clongowes Wood College. He was looked up to as a very competent teacher while at Clongowes. And from his oft repeated anecdotes of life in Clongowes at that time it is very clear that Joe enjoyed himself immensely while there, and later treasured fond memories of characters like The Prince McGlade and Patch Byrne. A life of satisfying teaching, accompanied by the gracious- ness of castle life lay before him; an inviting prospect for a humanly intellectual person like Joe.

But the Irish Provincial of the time, Fr Thomas Byrne, called for volunteers to meet the need of the Jesuit mission in the then N. Rhodesia. Joe packed his bag and said goodbye to the status and comradeship of Clongowes. In no way did he gladly turn his back on Ireland, the land and people that he loved so much, whose history and literature were so much part of him. That innate asceticism in him, the willingness to leave what he treasured so dearly and with which he was so personally involved, led him to offer himself for the challenging work of a new mission. This ability to discard the (justifiable) comforts of life would be a feature of Joe's life till his dying moments, despite the fragility of his body and the poor state of his general health.
The long boat and train journey to Chisekesi, language study at Chikuni, and then assignment to Kasiya Mission, where he quickly proved his qualities as a missionary. In the late '50s Joe pioneered Chivuna Mission, where he built the house, church and Trade School with the able cooperation of Br Jim Dunne, and won the esteem and affection of the people in the locality, who fondly spoke of him as “Macacki”.

At this stage of his life Joe had entered into the zenith of his apostolic life. Besides being a pioneering missionary and full-time parish priest, he was soon to be an invaluable consultor of the regional Jesuit superior of the Chikuni Mission. His clear-mindedness, coupled with an imaginative zeal and appreciation of the people's needs made Joe a very valuable consultor. Besides providing the superior with the benefits of his knowledge, Joe was energetically pursuing his own expansion of the church. Teachers, headmen and chiefs appreciated his efforts to extend education in their regions. His working relations with all of them were always amicable, and highly appreciated - often still recalled with great admiration and affection even thirty years afterwards. Numerous primary schools in the southern province of Zambia are monuments to Joe's zeal and competence.

Whether as planner, builder, adminisrator, pastoral worker, negotiator, adviser, fruit farmer, cattle farmer or whatever, Joe could not only turn his hand to it, but excel in it. And could (and would!) talk per longum et latum on any of these achievements; as indeed he could talk on any other subject on this earth. He needed to talk about what occupied his time and energy, to think aloud and sound out his grasp of the subject, rather than to learn from another. He was very much a self-made man, believing that with intellect nearly everything could be mastered practically by personal trial and error). Of course he found it next to impossible to admit to others that he ever made a mistake!

The new Bishop of Monze, James Corboy, in his wise fashion appointed Joe as his Vicar-General in the newly established diocese of Monze. Few (if any) could match Joe's qualifications for such a post: clear-sightedness, wide experience in pioneering the church expansion, adroit in negotiation with local authorities, ability to collaborate with so varied a group of people, and an ability to make the most of limited funds. Joe contributed enormously to the expansion of the church in the Monze diocese area in those years. Up to last year Bishop James was still in the habit of calling on the services of Joe when negotiations had to be made with some government ministry. Joe always looked on such a task as a great honour to himself . . , “to help James”.
At the Bishop's request Joe was assigned to Chirundu, to launch the Zambezi Farm-Training Institute, sponsored by the Archdiocese of Milan. In those years (about ten) Joe became known in the vicinity, had cordial relations with all officials in the locality, and was highly appreciated by government officials, personnel of the Archdiocese of Milan, as well as by the trainees and their families who passed through the Institute. During those years, often living alone, Joe was able to give free rein to his personal eccentricities, that would make it difficult for him to re-enter into ordinary community life. To all practical purposes he was Chief of Chirundu, and would later recall the advantages of that way of life. Life at Chirundu also afforded Joe opportunity to find pleasure in the wonders of nature; his knowledge of fossils, birds and trees was very extensive indeed; and his enquiring mind found such delight in so many simple objects of nature.

It was characteristic of Joe, that wherever he lived and worked soon became “his”. He threw himself totally into whatever he was doing, mastering it and achieving his goals in it; never withholding himself from a place or a work. I guess this partly explains why he developed the habit of claiming districts, missions, churches, schools, roads, farms, communities, even cattle for his own: “my” mission, “my” community, ...

This praiseworthy characteristic, to make anything his own, might account for Joe's long-standing resistance to the formation of the Province of Zambia. It took him years to accept that such a change did not inevitably mean a neglect of the Chikuni area or of the diocese of Monze. Those areas, where for the best part of twenty years he had spent himself untiringly - often to the neglect of his health - were to remain, even to the end, of great concern for him.

As the strenuously active part of his life came to an end, other aspects of Joe's character began to manifest themselves more. He always held that he came from a long line of traditional Irish bards or poets, and was convinced that he had the gifts of oratory. He loved to reminisce about the good old times in his life, amusedly recalling the characters of those days, their witty sayings that indicated nimbleness of mind: the memorable incidents of life in Clongowes, the victories of McCarthy and O'Riordan in the early mission days, the achievements of Namwala and Chirundu, brought to life by accolades for the colourful characters of those of those days. Such memories provided Joe with entertainment. And the older he got the more he tended to repeat himself; he was aware, to a degree, that such constant re-living of the past could bore his listeners; but that did not deter him from an exercise that gave him such great delight!
The competitive element of Joe's character, which had helped make him such a zealous missionary in the 50s and 60s, remained with him in later life. How he yearned to preach the greatest sermon, even to the children of Kasisi primary schools, or to be the most heal-ing of confessors to the people of the parish! How he wanted to be the best cattle farmer, the best buyer of necessities for the community! How he was spurred on by a crossword puzzle, by a debate. Such competitiveness quite often could lead him into what seemed rudeness towards others, as he grabbed the limelight in company. Joe was never content to sit back and listen, allowing someone else to be the 'soul of the party'. He had to be the one who dazzled!
The Society he loved and felt part of was the Society of pre-Vatican II days, the Society in Ireland before the 60s; or he pioneering Society of the Chikuni Mission, characterised by the thrust and energy of the newly-arrived Irish Jesuits, enjoying a degree of autonomy and homogeneity; how often he would later those “great times”. The present day emphasis on community meetings, faith-sharing, more open dialogue between all members of the community continued to baffle and defeat him to the very end. Of course he was incapable of admitting to this bafflement, and so tended to dismiss it all as emotional immaturity, decrying the absence of the old solid virtues of self-reliance and selflessness.

How remarkable that Providence : should lead him, for the last eight years his life, to Kasisi, a non-Irish environment, As superior he was able to show his innate kindness to members of his community, to the Sisters in the nearby community and to guests who visited Kasisi to rest or make their annual retreat. All were the recipients of Joe's hospitality.
After surgery in early 1977 Joe realised the strong possibility of a recurrence of the cancer in him. But he would never discuss his anxiety with anyone else. He preferred to carry on as if
everything was okay, doing his duty; and whenever close friends tried to get him to share his anxieties with them, he would quickly switch the conversation into less personal channels. And few people were better than Joe at giving direction to a conversation, in fact at taking over the conversation completely and not giving the other conversant (!) a chance of changing it back on course!

The end came quickly: fighting for life in the intensive care unit at the University Training Hospital, imbalance of body fluids with intermittent hallucinations, infection of the surgery wound, removal to Chikuni and Monze hospitals, an apparent recovery, a lapse into pneumonia, accompanied with a great peace and acceptance of the inevitable. Jim Carroll, who was with Joe for his last four hours, describes his death as a most beautiful one, with Joe eagerly looking forward to seeing his mother and Jesus. When taking his leave of Jim, recall in his final moments, Joe revealed so much of himself in his final words: I think you should leave me, here, old chap; there are certain formalities to be undergone from here on! Within minutes Joe had died, leaving behind so many friends regretfully, but at the same time looking forward to meeting so many others.

In recent annual retreats Joe had confided in me that he had been over- whelmed by God's love for him. I honestly think that he made great efforts in returning that love through his deeds; may he now rest in that same love.

Born: 21 October 1905, North Circular Road, Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 31 August 1922, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 31 July 1936, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1939, Mungret College SJ, Limerick
Died: 14 May 1956, Mater Hospital, Dublin

Part of the Belvedere College SJ, Dublin community at the time of death

Older brother of Joseph McCarthy - RIP 1986

Father, John, was a land valuer in the Civil Service with the Boundary Survey Department. Mother, Annie McCarthy) died in 1923 (while Michael was a Novice)

Eldest of five boys with four girls.

early education was at various preparatory schools, and then at O’Connells Schools.

by 1938 at St Beuno’s Wales (ANG) making Tertianship

◆ Irish Province News
Irish Province News 31st Year No 3 1956
Obituary :

Fr Michael McCarthy

Fr. Michael McCarthy died on Monday, May 14th in the Mater Hospital Nursing Home, after an illness of nearly five months.
He was born in Dublin in 1905, the eldest son of John McCarthy, a distinguished member of the Survey and Valuation Office. He was at school at O'Connell School, Dublin. In the large world of that school he was known and appreciated as a good student and a very good athlete. It was too large a place for the flowering of his gifts and he left memories of a very quiet boy of piety and talent rather than of striking intellectual power. He entered the Society in 1922 with Fr. Thomas Byrne, who was later to be his Provincial, and together they passed into and through the influence of Fr. Michael Browne. In 1924 Michael McCarthy came to Rathfarnham Castle and spent a year as a home junior, preparing for his Matriculation examination and for an entrance scholarship in Mathematics. It was here that his talents, now maturing, became very plain. He showed all the signs of the first class mathematician and took his scholarship with first place. In his first year examinations he again came first in his subject, but added to it leadership in English, which surprised none who knew him and least of all the many readers of the juniorate magazine. His writings had a quality of clear simplicity and dry humour, humour often barbed delicately, which made it obvious that we had in our midst a mathematician with elegant prose style. It was unfortunate for the Province that Michael McCarthy who was never a robust man, should have contracted “broken head”, as it was called. This interfered so much with attention to severe study, that his brilliant course was ended and he was sent, out of time, to teach in Clongowes. So ended his academic career in the National University to the deep regret of his professors and his contemporaries.

Self pity was no part of Michael McCarthy's make up and he set to work in Clongowes as if the heights had never beckoned. He taught Mathematics and played games and relaxed his strained nerves in field sports which admirably suited his temperament. In a quiet way he became a near authority on fishing and shooting and indeed developed a certain out of this century air of the educated man who is at home with nature and knows it very well. After three happy years in Clongowes, where he recovered his health and learnt to enjoy and love men like Fr. Wrafter and Fr. Elliot, he went on to Tullabeg to take up again the student's yoke. The atmosphere of these years in Tullabeg is one most cherished by those who lived there. No day was a dull day here. There was adventure in the classroom, on the football field, with the boats and after wild fowl on the bog. Here Michael McCarthy flourished and was very much at home. Here he found himself as a good community man and here he made his friends.

After Tullabeg the more sober air of Miltown in 1933. He went into the Shorts as the only possibility for one of his disposition of health and in that less tense atmosphere studied his Theology. He was a very good moralist. By nature he was not of speculative bent, in fact he rather disliked the metaphysical approach, while the legal dissective method suited his instinct and training. He was ordained in 1936 by His Grace the Most Reverend Alban Goodier, S.J, and after his fourth year went on to St. Beuno's for his tertianship under Fr. Leonard Geddes.

In 1938 he went to Mungret to teach and act as Spiritual Father to the boys. To his great satisfaction it was English he was asked to teach and here too for the first time he began a favourite work, that of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul.

In the following year he became Minister in Belvedere in the days of the Rectorship of Fr. J. M. O'Connor, and for the first year he was also Assistant Prefect of Studies. He enjoyed telling stories of his days as Minister to Fr. O'Connor; picturing himself as the quiet man of routine and placid method in double harness with the drive, energy and unexpected inspirations of his Rector. But the combination worked and between the two to the last there was a strong bond of affection and mutual respect. From 1942 to his death Michael taught Mathematics and for all but his last short year he was Spiritual adviser to the College Conference of St. Vincent de Paul, Last autumn he gave up his formal connection with the Conference and returned to his earlier and less pleasant job as Assistant Prefect of Studies. He spent nearly twenty years in Belvedere and there was no phase of college life in which he had not a keen, appreciative and intelligent interest. His great gifts were, with patience and generosity, put at the disposal of the boys and staff of the College. He was a very successful teacher and he owed it not to his knowledge or forceful personality, but to his intelligently humorous understanding of schoolboys. He was never dis appointed, never impatient. He never looked for either the mature or the angelio in his classes so there were none of the spurious scenes, no unfocussed situations, no dramas. The principal actor did not favour melodrama. Belvedere boys will miss him for this understanding quality.

It goes without saying that Michael McCarthy is a loss to the Province. He was a young man as years go and we might have expected to have him for many years to come. He is a very great loss to Belvedere College and to all his friends. Neither health nor natural temper made him the man of marked personality who cannot be overlooked. Health and temper produced a retiring, unobtrusive man, but his colleagues and the boys whom he taught knew him for more than the delicate, reserved teacher. In him natural piety had matured into one for whom the spiritual life was not artificial, not worn as a cloak, however hardly won, but as his natural life, simple and spontaneous. He was a model of formal regularity, but never intolerant of others; he was devout without ostentation, he was charitable to his brethren without any condescension and with humour; he worked hard and unfailingly under the handicap of ill health. He was perhaps a little intolerant of artists and their temperamental vagaries, but in all else he was such a religious as St. Ignatius would have wished to see us all.
His favourite work with the Conference of St. Vincent de Paul was a little known outlet for something deep in his character, which lay concealed beneath a certain exterior reserve and restraint. Even his friends can have little idea of his influence with the poor, of the affection they had for him and of his love for them. He visited them at home, heard the whole tale of their woe and coped with their problems. Manner, elegant figure, delicate air, all meant gentleman for them and he was their “kind gentleman”. He looked after them body and soul and while he was in no doubt about values he yet knew he was dealing with human beings. Their concern for his health was amusing to him, but to others, touching. He had their prayers and Masses. They asked about him regularly. They mourned him deeply. They had lost not a benefactor, but a friend, one of themselves, another Christ.

◆ James B Stephenson SJ Menologies 1973

Father Michael McCarthy 1905-1956
Fr Michael McCarthy died on May 14th 1956 at the age of 51. With his death the Province lost a truly spiritual, congenial and lovable character, a man of exceptional mathematical and literary talents, which ill health prevented from blossoming into full maturity.

Born in Dublin in 1905, he was educated at O’Connell Schools, entering the Society in 1922. His early studies were crowned with brilliant success, but that bane of many a Jesuit “the broken head” marred his chances of further achievement.

He bore his cross lightly and good-humouredly, by no means making a martyr out of himself. His zeal and apostolic fervour found an outlet in the St Vincent de Paul Society attached to Belvedere College, where he laboured for the best part of his life as a Jesuit priest.

An unobtrusive hero, shy and reserved as to his real self, he served God faithfully in the classroom and on his quiet visits to the poor. A life hidden in God. A character truly lovable and to be admired.

◆ The Belvederian, Dublin, 1956

Obituary

Father Michael McCarthy SJ

The death has occurred of Rev Michael McCarthy SJ, of Belvedere College, Dublin, to which he had been attached for almost 20 years. A native of Dublin, he was aged 51.

Fr McCarthy was the eldest son of Mr John McCarthy, a distinguished member of the staff of the Survey and Valuation Office, Dublin. He was educated at the O'Connell School where he was a brilliant scudent as well as a fine athlete. He entered the Society of Jesus at St Stanislaus' College, Tullamore, in 1922. After his novitiate, he entered UCD as a Scholar in Mathematics and read a most successful course there, being Prizeman in Mathematics and Mathematical Physics. He then taught his subject in Clongowes Wood College for the next three years before going back to Tullamore in 1931 to study Philosophy. After two years there followed four years at Milltown Park where in July, 1936, at the end of his third year, he was ordained priest by His Grace Most Rev Alban Goodier SJ. He completed his training as a Jesuit at the House of Third Probation, St Beuno's, North Wales, in 1938.

During the next year he taught English Literature at Mungret College, Limerick, and at the same time he was Spiritual Director to the boys of the college. Then in 1939 began his long association with Belvedere College. He was Vice-Rector of Belvedere from 1939 until 1942, and for some time Assistant Prefect of Studies. During the whole period he taught Mathematics in the upper classes and until the last few months acted as Spiritual Director to the College Conferences of St Vincent de Paul.

Fr McCarthy's brother, Rev Joseph McCarthy SJ, is Superior of the Jesuit house at Chikuni, Northern Rhodesia. Another brother, Mr Owen McCarthy, BE, is at the Survey and Valuation Office, Dublin; while his third brother, Mr. James McCarthy, is Professor of English at Cairo University. His three sisters living in Dublin are Mrs N McCauley, Santry; Mrs Hastings, and Miss McCarthy.

The death of Fr. McCarthy is a severe loss to Belvedere College, and is a personal bereavement for the boys and men who have had the privilege of his company and training during almost twenty years. There was no phase of college life in which he had not a keen, intelligent and appreciative interest. He was a man of exceptional intellectual gifts, distinguished by rernarkable clarity of thought allied to clarity of expression, and given normal. health would have been a leader in the field of mathematical analysis. His great gifts were generously put with patience and success at the disposal of the boys and staff of Belvedere, and his monu ment as a teacher is their achievement.

He was widely read, possessed a critical mind, and wrote English with such elegance and distinction that his opinions were widely sought and his rare writings and sermons highly valued. He has a special niche in the hearts of the poor over a large area of the City centre. He was their trusted confidant, and their regular and honoured visitor in tenement homes.

Ill-health never interrupted his apostolate of the poor and it was an apostolate all the more valued because it was so spontaneous in its interest. His friends of the poor, hawkers, newspaper sellers, flower sellers, revered and loved him, whom they called with affection “the poor, kind gentlemnian” - well-chosen words which declared his character.

All those who suffer by his loss, his colleagues, his thousands of pupils, his poor, will pray for eternal rest for his soul.

Born: 03 October 1915, Sherkin Island, Skibbereen, County Cork
Entered: 04 October 1935, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Ordained: 31 July 1949, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1952, Clongowes Wood College SJ
Died: 18 June 2008, Cherryfield Lodge, Dublin

Part of the Della Strada, Crescent College Comprehensive, Dooradoyle, Limerick community at the time of death.

Parents were farmers.

Youngest of five boys with one sister.

Early education was at Sherkin NS until age 13, and then he had a private tutor for a year in Baltimore. He then went to the Sacred Heart College Cork. He studied at home for the Matriculation exam.

◆ Jesuits in Ireland : https://www.jesuit.ie/news/remembering-tom-mccarthy-sj/

Remembering Tom McCarthy SJ
Fr. Tom McCathy SJ was born in Co. Cork in 1915 and he entered the Society at Emo in 1937. He studied Arts at UCD before his philosophy and theology, and was ordained in Milltown Park in 1949. He taught in Clongowes Wood College for 8 years before going to St. Ignatius, Galway as Minister. Over the years, he also taught in the Crescent College and Gonzaga College, gave the Spiritual Exercises, and worked with the St. Vincent de Paul Society in Limerick. He went to Cherryfield Lodge in 2004 and despite deteriorating health, he enjoyed being out in the garden. He died peacefully on Wednesday, 18 June 2008, aged 92 years.

◆ Interfuse

Interfuse No 137 : Autumn 2008

Obituary

Fr Thomas (Tom) McCarthy (1915-2008)

3rd October 1915: Born in Sherkin, Co. Cork
Early education at Sacred Heart College, Cork
4th October 1935: Entered the Society at Emo
5th October 1937: First Vows at Emo
1937 - 1940: Rathfarnham - Studied Arts at UCD
1940 - 1944: Tullabeg - Studied Philosophy
1944 - 1946: Clongowes Wood College - Regency
1946 - 1950: Milltown Park - Studied Theology
31st July 1949: Ordained at Milltown Park
1950 - 1951: Tertianship at Rathfarnham
1951 - 1959: Clongowes Wood College - Teacher
2nd February 1952: Final Vows at Clongowes Wood College
1959 - 1961: St. Ignatius, Galway - Minister
1961 - 1963: Crescent, Limerick - Teacher, Games Manager
1963 - 1965: Gonzaga College - Teacher
1965 - 2004: Limerick -
1965 - 1977: Crescent College
1977 - 1978: Dooradoyle - Vice-Superior; Teacher
1978 - 1982: Superior
1982 - 1983: Sabbatical
1983 - 1997: Dooradoyle - Directed Spiritual Exercises
1997 - 1999: Parish Visitation
1999 - 2004: Parish Visitation; St. Vincent de Paul Society
2004 - 2008: Cherryfield Lodge - Praying for Church and Society
18th June 2008: Died at Cherryfield Lodge, Dublin

Liam O'Connell writes:
Sherkin Island:
Tom McCarthy was born on the 3rd October 1915, on Sherkin Island, off the coast of Cork, and he had a strong love of his family and his native place all his life. His parents had seven children, Patrick, James, John, Simon, William, Mary and then the youngest, Tom. One day when Tom was 9 years old, his father went away for the day. Tom took this chance to take out his father's boat, hoisted the sail and manoeuvred his way over and back around an inland lake, and he handled the boat very well. What he did not know until much later was that his father had returned early from his business, and from a distance he saw Tom sailing the boat. His father was very impressed by Tom's skill and was proud of him.

On May 21st, 1927 when 11-year-old Tom and his father were out fishing from a boat when Charles Lindberg passed overhead while flying from the USA to Paris, on one of the early translantic flights. Tom explained that at first they thought they heard a ship's engine, and then they thought they saw a large bird flying towards them, before then they realised that it was an aeroplane. Lindberg afterwards wrote about this: "The first indication of my approach to the European Coast was a small fishing boat which I first noticed a few miles ahead and slightly to the south of my course. There were several of these fishing boats grouped within a few miles of each other.

There is another story from Tom's childhood, which gives a hint of what is everlasting. One Christmas Eve, Tom and his mother had gone shopping to the mainland, to the town of Baltimore. During the day a storm blew up, and they were marooned in Baltimore, and feared that they would miss Christmas back in Sherkin with their family, because the seas were too dangerous. Late in the evening the captain of the ferry decided to set sail, and they all arrive home safely. 80 years later Tom still recalled the delight of going home with his mother and being reunited with his family.

The sea was one of Tom's great loves. Another was a life long love affair with language. He loved to find the right word for a situation. He delighted in words like 'insouciance' or
apposite' or 'flout - used correctly of course. This craft with words went back a long way. One day a schools inspector at his national school asked the students to spell three words: Furze, Yacht and Arctic. Tom got the prize for being the only person to get all three spellings correct. All his life until fairly recently he was a great reader, especially of biography and history, and books about sailing, and he loved good writing.

In 1978 when Tom retired from teaching, I suspect that it was not because he lacked energy, but, perhaps, because of the terrible things his young scholars did to language, and that this began to wear him down.

Jesuits
As a boy Tom moved from Sherkin Island to the mainland to stay with an uncle and aunt, to attend school in Baltimore, and then he moved on to the Sacred Heart Secondary School in Cork city as a boarder. After school he joined the Jesuits in October 1935. He formed great friendships with his contemporaries, especially with Michael Reidy and Eddie Diffley. In later years in community Tom was a most kind and encouraging presence, with a great sense of humour, and a lovely ability to laugh at himself. Sometimes his encouragement took the form of long homilies that kept us late for dinner on cold winter days. But no one could deny that these came from a kind spirit and a sincere zeal for the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Tom's work as a Jesuit brought him as Minister to Galway, and he taught Irish in Gonzaga College, and Latin and Irish in Clongowes. When he came to Limerick in the 1961 Tom taught these subjects again, and he also took on the job of Games Master. During the holidays he gave retreats, and he did Summer supply in a parish in New York. This also helped him to keep in touch with his brothers and sisters over there, and their families.

Old Crescent, Vincent de Paul
He was a Munster Schools Rugby Selector, and a Patron of Old Crescent Rugby Club. Devotion to Old Crescent was a big part of his life. It went very deep and in pride of place in his room was a picture of him blessing the new pavilion at Rosbrien. He enjoyed his visits to the clubhouse, where he was made feel so welcome, and where his pipe smoking was graciously tolerated.

Tom's other great interest was the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul, and the Conference of past students of Crescent, that works in St. Joseph's hospital. On Tuesdays after dinner, Tom first enjoyed a good smoke of his pipe, a mixture of Balkan Sobrany and Maltan tobacco, and then he was collected by some kind Brother, to go to St. Joseph's hospital, where they organise entertainment during the winter months. During the summer months they held outings to scenic locations around Limerick. The Brothers of this Conference of St. Vincent de Paul, and the patients of St. Joseph's were strong and constant friends to Tom. In recent years Tom said Mass at the Oratory at the Crescent Shopping Centre, and again made very good friends here. Retirement

After teaching, Tom worked with the parish priests in Southill on Parish visitation, and he travelled there on his Honda 50. He enjoyed this contact and admired the good people of Holy Family Parish. In later years, and in another part of the city, much closer to the city centre, Tom was driving by one day, when he came upon an altercation. He stopped the car and walked into the middle of the furore, and said something like “Desist from this inappropriate and unseemly behaviour”. The assailants could not believe what they were seeing and hearing; they scattered before this vision of a frail but valiant 82 year old.

Golf
Tom was a beautiful golfer with a neat and tidy swing, and he loved the cut and thrust of competition. Just before ordination in July 1949, he had a golf lesson from Christy Greene in Milltown, and discovered the secret of golf. By the end of the lesson every shot was perfect, and he could not wait to try out his new swing in a full round. However he had wait, first because of a Retreat and then Ordination and First Mass and then Mass in Sherkin Island. Eventually, two weeks later he got back to a golf course, in Killarney with his brothers. But alas! He used to chuckle as he explained that the secret of golf had escaped again. Tom had the distinction in Limerick Golf Club of winning a stroke competition, the Mungret Cup, despite taking 10 shots at one hole. Later he won the Holmes Cup with a partner, but Tom would never allow his partner, to say that 'we? won the cup, as Tom disparagingly refused to acknowledge the other's contribution.

Cherryfield
In recent years Tom's independent Island Man spirit meant that he did not want to accept help in coping with old age. However that most persistent of women, the Jesuit Health Officer, Mary Rickard, cajoled Tom to stay at the Jesuit Nursing Home in Cherryfield from time to time on short visits. At first he went reluctantly. Tom even went missing during some of Mary's visits to Limerick, but then as he grew weaker, he enjoyed the extraordinary care and goodness of the staff there, and he came to love Cherryfield, and in turn was loved and cherished by the Cherryfield Staff.

When Tom was Superior of the Jesuit Community at Dooradoyle, there was a frugality about the living conditions at Della Strada. However this was frugality with a purpose, as the community made a large contribution towards the cost of a new Jesuit community house in Kitwe in Zambia. Today this house serves as a home for Jesuits working in the University and in a Spirituality Centre. Nowadays. We use the phrase "Live simply so that others may simply live, but Tom anticipated this worldview of sharing. It came from a spirituality of the Body of Christ, which values solidarity and communion between people, and where we are all our brothers and sisters keepers.

When he was well into his 60's Tom was sent on a sabbatical year to train as a Spiritual Director and Retreat Giver. His letters from the training course to his community in Dooradoyle were masterpieces, as Tom poked fun at himself and his mistakes. But these letters were also profound, and gave an insight into Tom's willingness to unlearn old ways and to learn new skills, and to retain what was central to the message of Jesus Christ, and the Jesuit way of life. These letters showed that Tom was both daring and humble in the face of change. We had a sense that he walked with his God at his side, and in the middle of every difficulty God was his shield and his staff.

We pray that the love he learned from his father and mother, this love story with God which began at Tom's baptism, this love he kept alive all his live, will be enjoyed by Tom forever. Go dté tú slán ar shlí na firinne. Mile buíochas duit. Go dtreorai na haingil isteach sna flaithis thú.

Born: 17 January 1857, Cork City, County Cork
Entered: 23 January 1880, Milltown Park
Final Vows: 15 August 1893, Milltown Park, Dublin
Died: 01 June 1926, St Francis Xavier, Gardiner St, Dublin

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
His Master of Novices was Charles McKenna at Milltown.
1886 He was now at Milltown as Cook, and he also served as Cook in Cork, Limerick, Clongowes, Galway and Tullabeg.
1925 He was sent to Gardiner St and not long afterwards he suffered a stroke. He recovered from this sufficiently to be able to walk in the garden with the aid of a stick. His second stroke was more severe and he survived only a couple of days, and died 01 June 1926.
He was at least six feet tall and was apparently a powerful man.

◆ Irish Province News
Irish Province News 1st Year No 4 1926
Obituary
Brother William McCartney
Br McCartney . died at Gardiner Street on June 1st, 1926

He entered the Society in 1880, and two years later was appointed cook at Milltown Park. For the next forty years he was cook in one or other of our Irish houses. In his case “cook” was no mere honorary title. He spent his working day in the kitchen, and while there his coat was always off. And he had a very clear idea why he worked so hard. It may be news to many that he was known to his intimate friends as “Propter Te”. During the greater part of these forty years the words were constantly on his lips-he had learned them during a Retreat. When his work was well-nigh overwhelming - such as four villas in Galway - during the war, one after another in quick succession, he never shirked : “Propter Te”. When difficulties gathered round him he stood his ground, and faced them like a man It can be said with truth of him, “he died in harness.” Retreats were started in Rathfarnham in 1922. It meant double work for him, and he had no help except a lad to wash the dishes. He was advised to ask for assistance.
But no, he would do the best he could “Propter Te”. It was too much for him. In course of time he began to feel out of sorts, the old energy was ebbing fast, and he was sent to the doctor, who put him in his own motor and drove him straight to hospital. The heart had given way, and Br McCartney was in well nigh a dying condition. He He lingered on for two years, and IS now with that generous Father Who rewards the cup of water given for His sake. He won't forget those forty years of hard, continuous work ever and always generously done for him. Propter Te.

◆ James B Stephenson SJ Menologies 1973

Brother William McCartney 1857-1926
“Propter te” was the motto and guiding principle of Br William McCartney, who died at Gardiner Street on June 1st 1926.

Having entered the Society in 1880, he spent the next 40 years of his life as cook in one or other of our houses. During all those years the words “Propter te” were ever on his lips, so that he became known to his intimate friends as “Propter te”.

When the Retreats stared at Rathfarnham, his work doubled, yet he never asked for help. Finally his health broke down and his heart became affected. He lingered for two years before passing to Him who had heard so oft those words “Propter te”.

Born: 19 April 1809, Liverpool, England
Entered: 07 September 1826, Avignon, France - Franciae Province (FRA)
Ordained: 24 December 1839, Clongowes Wood College SJ
Final Vows: 02 February 1847
Died: 16 December 1848, Stonyhurst, England - Angliae Province (ANG)

Born: 07 January 1940, Ballybofey, County Donegal Donegal
Entered: 07 September 1957, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Died: 17 April 2020, Cherryfield Lodge, Milltown Park, Dublin City

Left Society of Jesus: 21 June 1966 (from Heythrop College, Oxfordshire, England)

Born in Dublin while parents were living at Ballybofey, County Donegal Donegal. Then family moved to North Parade, Gorey County Wexford, and in 1951 to St Anthony’s, Yellow Walls Road, Malahide, County Dublin

Father, Robert Anthony, was a civil servant in the Social Welfare Office, Dublin. Mother was Mary (Quinn).

Eldest and an only boy with two sisters.

Educated for two years at a Convent school in Gorey, County Wexford and then for four years at the Christian Brothers school in Gorey and one year at Malahide NS. He then went to Clongowes Wood College SJ for five years.

Baptised at St Andrew’s, Westland Row, 22/02/1940
Confirmed at St Michael’s, Gorey by Dr Stanton of Ferns, 28/05/1950

1957-1959: St Mary's, Emo, Novitiate
1959-1962: Rathfarnham Castle, Juniorate, UCD
1962-1963: Gonzaga College SJ, Regency
1963-1964: Berchmanskolleg, Pullach, Germany (GER S) studying philosophy
1964-1966: Heythrop Oxford (ANG) studying Philosophy

After leaving he went into the diplomatic service. He was private secretary to Paddy Hillery, and then went to the EEC. Married with children.

Address 2000: Marlborough Road, Donnybrook, Dublin City & Department of Foreign Affairs, St Stephen’s Green, Dublin City

https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/people/john-mccolgan-obituary-diplomat-played-key-role-in-north-south-relations-in-1970s-1.4299290

John McColgan obituary: Diplomat played key role in North-South relations in 1970s
Good listener was renowned for his wise counsel, keen intellect and affable manner

Born: January 7th, 1940

Died: April 17th, 2020

The Irish diplomat and European Commission official, John McColgan, who died recently was born in Dublin, with strong familial links to Donegal. He played a significant role in developing communications with the unionist community in Northern Ireland during the 1970s.

His first diplomatic role was as press officer at the Irish embassy in London in the early 1970s. Back in Dublin in 1974, he became the first Irish government official appointed as a covert contact with the unionist political, religious and paramilitary leaders in Northern Ireland

At that time there was no official home for Irish diplomats in Northern Ireland so McColgan travelled almost daily to the North accompanied by Sean Donlon, then assistant secretary at the Department of Foreign Affairs, who was meeting leaders in the nationalist and republican community. Over a period of 18 months, McColgan formed firm friendships with key political figures including Rev Ian Paisley, John Taylor and Bill Craig as well as paramilitaries, Andy Tyrie, Glenn Barr and John McKeague. Donlon recalls that following the murder of the British ambassador to Ireland, Christopher Ewart-Biggs in July 1976, a loyalist hit squad was planning a revenge killing and McColgan was its target. However, Tyrie intervened and stood down the attack, thus blowing McColgan's cover and ending his covert discussions. His work was however deemed to have laid foundations for future negotiations on Northern Ireland which culminated in the Anglo-Irish Agreement between then taoiseach Garrett FitzGerald and British prime minister, Margaret Thatcher in 1985.

Following that testing experience, McColgan returned to the European Commission office of Dr Paddy Hillery where he had previously worked from 1973 to 1974. In that earlier period, his fluency in French and German had greatly assisted Hillary as commissioner for social affairs in the initiation and implementation of the first Social Action Programme for Europe in 1974.

McColgan remained with the commission for the rest of his career and was head of administration at the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound) in Dublin, 1976-1995. This agency was one of the first decentralised EU agencies and McColgan was influential in bringing it to Ireland. In European negotiations on workers’ rights and safe working conditions, his linguistic talents, profound interest in European history and experience of being from a small country in the burgeoning European project were assets.

Donegal
The only son and eldest of three children of Robert and Mary McColgan (nee Quinn), John McColgan grew up in Malahide, Co Dublin. Both of his parents were from Donegal: his father, an accountant in the civil service was from Culdaff on the Inishowen peninsula, and his mother a Donegal County Council official before marriage, was from Ballybofey.

At 11, John was sent as a boarder to Clongowes Wood College in Co Kildare. He excelled academically and in debating and in 1957 joined the Jesuit order as a scholastic to enter the priesthood. For the next nine years, he studied classics at University College Dublin, philosophy at the University of Heidelberg and philosophy and theology at the Jesuit-run Heythrop College in Oxfordshire. However, in 1966, he left the Jesuit order before his ordination and was hired by the ministry for external affairs (later renamed the Department of Foreign Affairs).

In 1966, John met Jane Hyland, who also grew up in Malahide and played hockey with his sister, Annie. The couple married in 1969, the same year that McColgan was appointed as a private secretary to the new minister for foreign affairs, Dr Paddy Hillery.

In their early married life, the McColgan family moved between London, Brussels and Dublin but then settled in Donnybrook where their children grew up and attended school. When the children were young, they returned to Donegal for family holidays and then as they became older, the family spent long summer holidays in France.

Outside of work, he enjoyed golf, played poker and bridge, and hosted and attended dinner parties with his wife, Jane. His keen intellect was shaped by an affable manner and strong interest in cultural and political affairs. A good listener, he was renowned for his wise counsel. His friendships spanned the worlds of politics, media and the arts and he was a good source of information for many political journalists.

Following his retirement in 1996, John and Jane continued to travel throughout Europe and spend time with their adult children and grandchildren. McColgan’s health declined in latter years and he spent his last 11 months in the Jesuit run Cherryfield Lodge nursing home in Milltown where he died.

John McColgan is survived by his wife, Jane, his children, Mark, Garth, Kate, James and Robert, his sisters, Mary and Annie and nine grandchildren.

Born: 07 June 1878, Bohola, Swinford, Co Mayo
Entered: 07 June 1914, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Final Vows: 02 February 1925, Sacred heart College SJ, Limerick
Died: 15 September 1948, St Vincent’s Hospital, Dublin

Part of the St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly, Co Offaly community at the time of death

◆ Irish Province News
Irish Province News 24th Year No 1 1949
Obituary
Br. James McDonnell (1878-1914-1948)
Brother McDonnell died in St. Vincent's Hospital very suddenly in the early afternoon of Wednesday, 15th September. He had been some weeks in hospital with prostate trouble, and had had a minor operation on 14th September. He felt well and was in good spirits the next day, but at 1.45 p.m., without warning or struggle, he rendered up his soul to God. He was anointed immediately by the hospital chaplain. The funeral took place to Glasnevin 17th September, after the 10 o'clock Mass, celebrated by his Rector, Fr. Michael Connolly, St. Stanislaus College, Tullamore. The prayers at the grave-side were recited by Fr. Provincial.
Brother James was born at Bohola, Swinford, Co. Mayo, on 7th June, 1878 and was a late vocation, not entering the noviceship till he was well on in the thirties. In fact he received his gown on his 36th birthday, 7th June, 1914. It was the brother of the late Bro. James O'Grady, John Canon O'Grady, P.P. of Bohola who brought him to Dublin and introduced him to the then Provincial, Fr. T. V. Nolan with a view to his admission to the Society.
After leaving school Br. McDonnell worked on his father's farm, but about 1909 went to the United States and was employed in Butler's Chain Stores for two years at the end of which he became a Manager of one of the Stores. While in America he started a correspondence course in Commercial Art, which he continued after his return to Ireland, intending to make of this branch of art a life career. However, Providence had other designs for him. On the last night of a fortnight's mission held in the parish, Canon O'Grady arranged for him to drive the missioner to the station the following morning, and it was as the result of the conversation he had with the priest in question during the drive to the station that James McDonnell decided to join a religious Order.
On the completion of his noviceship Bro. McDonnell was sent to Belvedere College where he remained two years. The following four he spent at Clongowes, and in 1923 he began his long association with Mungret College (1923-25 and 1931-39) where for ten years and more he had charge of the boys' refectory. It was largely due to his kindly ways and neighbourly charity shown John Dillon, a farmer who lived nearby, during his serious illness that the College was left a valuable property which rounded off our farm near the Apostolic School, during the Rectorship of Fr. Edward Dillon. From 1925 to 1929 Bro. James worked at the Crescent College, where he made his final profession on 2nd February, 1925. He was in charge of the domestic staff of Belvedere College during the years 1929 and 1930 and it was at this time he contracted pneumonia from which he barely recovered, thanks to expert nursing in the Mater Hospital. The ten years preceding his death Bro. McDonnell spent in Tullabeg, engaged chiefly in secretariate and printing work in connection with the Ricci Mission Unit and in light work in the garden where he was helper to Bro. Pill. This period of his life was overclouded with ill-health and nervous exhaustion against which he struggled bravely.
Bro. James was a saintly man, very unworldly and mortified, of imperturbable patience, he was like many patient people, of strong and resolute character. Gentle to a fault, affable and sweet of temperament he won the affection and confidence of all who came in contact with him. He was deeply attached to his family relations and took the greatest interest in their spiritual and temporal welfare, and was in turn held in the deepest affection by them. Few of those who lived with Bro. James in the Society were aware of his taste for music and painting. He could play the violin quite well, and he devoted many of his leisure hours as a younger man to the painting of religious pictures. Cultured and refined by temperament and upbringing, he was before all else a model of the virtues which befit the Jesuit Brother : union with God, love of the brethren, self-effacement, anxiety to help the Society to the best of his powers, fidelity and trustworthiness, on which Superiors could ever rely. R.I.P.”

Born: 01 February 1848, George (O'Connell) Street, Limerick City, County Limerick
Entered: 14 September 1867, Milltown Park, Dublin
Ordained: 1877, Leuven, Belgium
Final Vows: 02 February 1887
Died: 07 November 1928, Milltown Park, Dublin

Educated at Crescent College SJ

by 1870 at Amiens, France (CAMP) studying
by 1871 at Leuven, Belgium (BELG) Studying
by 1877 at Leuven, Belgium (BELG) Studying
by 1886 at Drongen, Belgium (BELG) making Tertianship

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
After his Noviceship he was sent to St Acheul (Amiens) for Juniorate, and then to Louvain for Philosophy.
He was then sent to Tullabeg for Regency and returned to Louvain for Theology in 1875.
1885 He was sent to Belgium for Tertianship.
He spent seven years at Tullabeg as a Prefect or Teacher. He also spent six years in Belvedere, six years at Mungret and four at Crescent. He was also an Operarius for four years at Milltown and seven years in Galway.
He died at Milltown 07 November 1928.
His life was somewhat uneventful and hidden, though nonetheless meritorious. Teaching or Prefecting the youngest boys in the various Colleges won admiration from many. Given that he was a very highly strung man, this kind of work was quietly heroic.

◆ Irish Province News
Irish Province News 4th Year No 2 1929

Obituary :
Fr John McDonnell
John McDonnell was born in Limerick February 1st 1848, and began his noviceship at Milltown September 14th 1867. There were 24 novices in those days at Milltown, amongst them Frs. T. and P. Finlay. R. Kane, Weafer, Waters etc, He made his juniorate at S. Acheul, his philosophy at Louvain, and then went to Tullabeg as prefect. There he remained until 1875, in which year he returned to Louvain for theology. His tertianship was made in Belgium in 1885. As prefect or master Fr, McDonnell spent 7 years in Tullabeg, 6 in Belvedere, 6 in Mungret, 5 in Clongowes and 4 at the Crescent, in all 28 years. He was operarius for 4 years at Milltown and 7 in Galway. His happy death took place in Dublin on the 27 November 1928.If Fr. McDonnell's life was uneventful and hidden it was certainly meritorious. Teaching or prefecting, for 28 years, the smallest boys in the various Colleges where he was stationed is a feat that wins our admiration, and was an abundant source of merit to himself. When it is added that nature had given Fr McDonnell a set of highly strung nerves, his life for these years must have bordered on the heroic. RIP.

◆ The Crescent : Limerick Jesuit Centenary Record 1859-1959

Bonum Certamen ... A Biographical Index of Former Members of the Limerick Jesuit Community

Father John McDonnell (1848-1928)

A native of Limerick and one of the first pupils of Crescent College, entered the Society in 1867. He made his higher studies at St Acheul and Louvain where he was ordained in 1878. He spent two periods as master in the Crescent, 1887-88 and 1895-98. His teaching career throughout the Irish Jesuit colleges amounted to twenty-eight years. He spent some twelve years in church work at Milltown Park and Galway. He died at Milltown Park on 27 June, 1928.

Born: 28 March 1858, Rathgar, Dublin
Entered: 15 February 1877, Milltown Park, Dublin
Ordained: 26 July 1891, St Francis Xavier, Gardiner Street, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1897, St Francis Xavier, Gardiner St, Dublin
Died: 28 December 1928, Belvedere College SJ, Dublinn

Early education at Clongowes Wood College SJ

Cousin of Robert I - RIP 1929 T Patrick - RIP 1918 and William Kane - RIP 1945

by 1896 at Chieri Italy (TAUR) making Tertianship

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :

Early education was at Clongowes.

After his Noviceship Joseph remained at Milltown for a further five years doing Juniorate and Philosophy, and then spent five years Regency at Clongowes Prefecting and Teaching.
He began his Theology at Mold, Wales (FRA), but the new Theologate opened at Milltown in 1889, so he moved there.
After Ordination he was sent to Mungret as Assistant Moderator of the Apostolic School, and the following year Moderator and Minister.
He was then sent to Chieri, Italy for Tertianship.
1898 On return to Ireland, he was sent to Belvedere for two years as Assistant Director to James Cullen at the Messenger.
1900 He was sent to Tullabeg as Minister of Juniors for two years, and then back to Mungret as Moderator of the Apostolics for four years. All during these years he continued to act as Assistant Director of the Messenger, and by 1900 he had begun to edit “Madonna”.
1906 He was sent to Gardiner St as Operarius for a year, then another year in Clongowes as Spiritual Father.
1908 He was sent to Belvedere, and he remained there until his death 28 December 1928. During his time at Belvedere he continued to edit the Messenger and Madonna publications, and continued as Assistant Director until 1914 when he was appointed Director. He was also Spiritual Father at Belvedere 1913-1921. The end came quickly and found him perfectly resigned.

As well as his formal work, he also wrote a number of spiritual books which were well received in Ireland and other parts of the world. However, it was his work as Editor of the Messenger that he had his biggest impact. He possessed all the qualities which suited him for this work, especially his own devotion to the Sacred Heart. Under his care the Messenger became the most popular publication in Ireland, and amongst the Irish abroad. He had a reals sense of the taste and needs of his readers, and so made the Messenger very attractive to a wide circle of readers. He also believed that the real soil for evangelisation was among the ordinary people, and so he catered chiefly for them. He tried to ensure that in the contents there was something that might appeal to the interests of each reader, and often someone who read only the article on natural history as their interest, ended up reading the whole issue. So there were readers across a wide spectrum of society. It was told that an English protestant bought several dozens of copies for hiw workers due to articles on farming! His own writings showed a keen literary taste. he was also an excellent community man, and he thoroughly enjoyed friendly banter on maters arising out of his work. He was considerate in his dealings with others, and despite his increasing blindness he was also very patient.

Father General, in his letter (p825) “de Cotedianis Pietatis Exercitis” of July 2nd 1934 refers thus to Father MacDonnell : “Anno 1925 in parvo nostro conventu Redactorum Nuntiorum SS Cordis Jesu et Apostolicus Orationis, P Josephus MacDonnell, Redactor Nuntii Hibernici ......”

Note from Edward Kelly Entry :
He was ill for a very short time, and died peacefully and happily at Gardiner St 07 February 1905. The Minister Father Bannon and Father Joe McDonnell were present at his death.

◆ Irish Province News

Irish Province News 2nd Year No 3 1927

Jubilee :

On February 15th Fr Joseph McDonnell completed his 50 years' work in the Society. He received numerous letters and telegrams from all parts of the world, the most valued being one from the General, commending him for the good example he had given, and for his 50 years' work. A week later a large gathering assembled at Belvedere to wish the Jubilarian many more years of devoted service.
Fr. McDonnell was Master and Prefect at Clongowes, he was Moderator of the Apostolics in Mungret, Superior of the Juniors in Tullabeg, Operarius in Gardiner Street ; but it is as Editor of the Messenger that his best work has been done. Under this personal care for the last 21 years the progress made and the good done by the Messenger is simply marvellous And the work was accomplished in spite of grave difficulties. For some years his sight has been Much impaired. But he is holding on and to-day takes as much interest in the work as he did 20 years ago. Fr McDonnell has written quite a number of devotional works that compare very favorably with the best of our day. He still edits the Madonna.
For many years he was Confessor at the Christian Brothers Novitiate, Marius. Lately the novitiate was changed to a place a considerable distance from Belvedere. But the Brother-General asked him to continue, and, at considerable inconvenience to himself, he consented.

Irish Province News 4th Year No 2 1929

Obituary :

Fr Joseph McDonnell

Fr. Joseph McDonnell died in Dublin on Friday, December 28th in his 70th year. For some years back he had been in very bad health, but, with characteristic energy and determination, he remained at his post in the Messenger office until a few days before his death.

He was born at Dublin on the 28th March 1858, educated at Clongowes, and on February 15th 1877 began his novitiate at Milltown. There he remained for seven years - novitiate, juniorate, philosophy, and was then sent to Clongowes, where, as prefect or master, he spent the next five years. He began his theology at Mold, but in 1889 the new theologate was opened at Milltown, and Fr McDonnell joined it. Theology over he went to Mungret as Assistant Moderator of the Apostolic School. Next year he become full Moderator as well as Minister of Mungret, and at its close went to Chieri for tertianship. In 1896 he began at Belvedere his long and most fruitful connection with the Messenger as Assistant Director, Fr J. Cullen being Director. Two years at Belvedere were succeeded by two others in Tullabeg, where he had charge of the Juniors, and then Mungret once more as Moderator of the Apostolics. He held this important office for four years. From 1898 to 1906 he continued at different periods to act, at a distance, as Assistant Director of the Messenger, and in 1900 began to edit the Madonna. On leaving Mungret he spent a year in Gardiner St. as Operarius, another in Clongowes as Spiritual Father, and in 1906 returned to Belvedere, not to leave it until his holy death. During the years that followed he continued to edit the Messenger and Madonna, but did not become full Director and Editor of the Messenger until 1914. From 1913 to 1921 he was Spiritual Father at Belvedere. In addition to his other occupations Fr McDonnell wrote a number of excellent spiritual books that are doing a great amount of good in Ireland, and many other countries, but it was as Editor of the “Irish Messenger” that his great work was done. He possessed to a marked degree those qualities which fitted him for this important post, and especially a great devotion to the Sacred Heart, and zeal for souls. Under his care the Messenger became the most popular publication in Ireland, and amongst the Irish abroad. He had a wonderful flair for the tastes and needs of his readers, and he made the pages of the Messenger attractive to a very varied circle. He realised that the most fertile soil for religion is the mass of the people. He therefore catered chiefly for them. Amongst the varied contents there was sure to be some item to appeal to every reader, and those who began to read because they took interest in natural history or astronomy ended up by reading the whole through. In every rank of life one found readers of the Messenger. For the simple people the little red book was a monthly library, and supplied matter for piety and for observation and discussion of the wholesome things of life. He was proud, for example, that an English protestant bought several dozen copies for his work-people on account of a series of articles on farming. He knew that it is possible to be “too good”!
In his own writings Fr. McDonald had a fine, forcible style, and showed excellent literary taste in “Meditations on the Sacred Heart” and other books. He was an excellent community man, and thoroughly enjoyed friendly banter on matters arising out of his work. He was considerate and gentlemanly in his dealings with others, and in spite of his blindness and
feeble health was most patient. The end came quietly and found him perfectly resigned. His hope was that on account of his affliction he would go straight to Heaven, and those who know how saintly was his life feel confident that his prayer has been heard.

◆ James B Stephenson SJ Menologies 1973

Father Joe McDonnell 1858-1928
Fr Joe McDonnell will always be remembered in the Irish Province as the man who made the “Irish Messenger” what it is. He possessed to an eminent degree, those qualities which fitted him for this important post, reinforced by and rooted in an all pervading devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and zeal for souls. He catered for the mass of the people, and under his direction, the Messenger increased in circulation under the Irish abroad.

He was also the author of a number of excellent spiritual books, the chief of which is his “Meditations n the Sacred Heart”.

He became the full editor of the Messenger in 1914 and remained at his post until a few days before his death, December 28th 1928

Towards the end of his life he was blind, and he expressed the hope that on account of this affliction, gladly borne, he would go straight to heaven on his death. Those who lived close to him and knew the saintlines of the man, had no doubt but that his hope would be translated into reality.

◆ The Belvederian, Dublin, 1929

Obituary

Father Joseph McDonnell SJ

The “Irish Messenger” is the only national periodical of Ireland at home and overseas, reminding the wanderer of the Faith of the homeland, reminding those at home of sons and daughters on Canadian farms and in American cities, to whom they send the little red book month by month: it achieves thus a kind of Irish Communion of Saints and so has become a national institution worthy of a jest in a Sean O'Casey play.

Belvedere has the honour of being the home of this institution, and thus, although its late guide and genius was not himself a Belvederian, it is but fitting that Belvederians should mourn his loss as a personal one. Old Belvederians will remember him as a kindly confessor, at one time director of the Sodality of the Blessed Virgin; past and present Belvederians will remember his generosity to the College Conference of St Vincent de Paul; even diminutive Belvederians will remember the free-day they celebrated two years ago in honour of Fr. McDonnell's golden jubilee as a Jesuit.

Father McDonnell was born in Dublin on the 28th March, 1858, educated at Clongowes, and on February 15th, 1877, entered the Jesuit Novitiate, which was at that time at Milltown Park. He studied philosophy at Milltown and pursued his theological studies at Mold and at Milltown. At two different periods he was Moderator of the Apostolic School of Mungret. From 1896 dates his connection with the “Irish Messenger”. He was at Belvedere from 1896-1898 as assistant director. Father Cullen being the director; from 1898-1906 be continued to act in this capacity, although occupying posts at Tullabeg, Mungret, Clongowes, Gardiner Street. In 1906 he began to edit. the “Madonna”. In 1906 be returned to Belvedere and there he spent his days until December 28th, 1928, in the achieving of his life's work, first as assistant-editor, then as editor of the “Irish Messenger” and director of the Messenger Office Publications. If one glances at a list of his published devotional works and pamphlets one will see that his was not an idle pen; if one studies the development of the “Irish Messenger” itself, of the “Madonna”, the coming into being of the “Gaelic Messenger”, the long list of books and pamphlets by distinguished authors published by the Messenger Office, one will get some idea of the gift of organisation, of the shrewd sense of needs and values that he possessed.

Fr. McDonnell was blessed with length of days, but these were not unclouded by sorrow. To a man of his keen interests his partial blindness must have meant many hopes unfulfilled, the narrowing in of experience and the limiting of friendships; to a man of his position one would have thought it an insurmountable obstacle. His character, however was unsoured by this severe decree of Providence, and, buoyed up with an edifying courage, he worked on till the end. He was not petulant, he liked social intercourse, charmed many by his courtesy and a sympathy born of experience, liked to be “chaffed”, liked better still to pretend that he did not know that he was being “chaffed”. He was never a shirker. Although in the last few years of his life he suffered much from bronchial troubles during the winter months, he nevertheless kept to his task, was punctilious in attendance at religious duties, said Mass often in pain, and was cheerful always. Even when in hospital he used transact business with his secretary; and on the evening before his death sent for the assistant-director, Father T Ryan, to discuss the great business of his life. If by their fruits shall men be recompensed, Father McDonnell merits a reward exceeding great.

Mr. G. K. Chesterton, in an introduction to the recent translation of Henri Ghéon's study of the Curé d'Ars, points out that each nation contributes a characteristic outlook on Christianity and on Christian action, and adds that the Irish contribution is a purity in love and in hate which seems to be capable of reducing things to their simplest expression Now I think that this is a quality that might be remembered in estimating Father McDonnell's character and in explaining, too. how he made the “Irish Messenger” a national institution. He was deeply and simply everything. He was sincerely and unsophistically devout. He was wholeheartedly and undividedly absorbed in the “Irish Messenger” and in its interests, He was stoutly and, at times, singularly convinced of his ideas and policies. His devotion to his Alma Mater was unassailable and child-like. He had thus the two qualities necessary to the make-up of a good editor - thoroughness and simplicity: simplicity, in order to feel with the people; thoroughness, in order to be able to supply their needs.

But I prefer to remember him as one who had to bear a cross which, of all others, seemed too heavy to bear and yet bore it cheerfully and with courage. RIP

T I M

◆ The Mungret Annual, 1929

Obituary

Father Joseph McDonnell SJ

(Mungret, 1892-1895 & 1900-1904)

On the last day of the year 1928, the mortal remains of a devoted friend of Mungret and its students were laid to rest in Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin. Past Mungret students, especially those of the early nineties and of the first years of the present century will remember with affection and veneration Father Joseph McDonnell SJ.

Father McDonnell was born in Dublin seventy-one years ago, and spent over fifty years in the Society of Jesus. He was a first cousin of Father William Kane SJ, who is so well known as a teacher, a friend and a lovable personality to the Mungret students of the past thirty years.

Father McDonnell first came to Mungret in 1892 as a young priest, and for three years had charge of the Apostolic School, fulfilling besides in 1894-5 the additional office of Minister of the College. In 1895 he went to Chieri (in Piedmont), a beautifully situated town in the South-Eastern slopes of the Alps, for his Tertianship, or third year's noviceship. Returning to Ireland in 1896, he was appointed to the duty of assisting the late Father James Cullen SJ, in editing the Messenger of the Sacred Heart, and two years later was placed in charge of the Junior Scholastics of the Society of Jesus in Tullabeg College. In 1900 he was again transferred to Mungret College as Director of the Apostolic School, where he remained till 1904. After a few years he was again sent to Belvedere College, Dublin, to resume his former role of Assistant Editor of the “Messenger”. In this position he soon made himself indispensable, and when, in 1914, Father Cullen, then very old, had to relinquish finally the post of Editor, Father McDonnell took over the complete charge, which he retained till his holy death, in December, 1928.

Father McDonnell's work as Editor of the “Messenger” is well known. In the short sketch of his life which appears in the March number of the Messenger, we read :

Owing to his secluded life and dislike of appearing in public, Father McDonnell was personally known to only a small fraction of those who were familiar with his name, but by hundreds of thousands not merely in Ireland but also in foreign lands, he was regarded with love and respect for the comfort and courage which he had brought to them through his writings.

During his second term in Mungret, in the moments which he managed to spare from his regular work (besides being Director of the Apostolic School, he was also Spiritual Father of the Lay Boys, and taught several hours a day), he edited the “Madonna”, which he had founded in 1900, about the time of his coming to Mungret. This has gradually attained a circulation which is now probably as large as that which the “Messenger” had when Father McDonnell first took over the editorship.

In the work connected with the “Messenger” and the “Madonna”, Father McDonnell laboured unceasingly during the last twenty five years of his busy and fruitful life. His health was never robust, and he always worked up to the full measure of his strength. During the years he spent in Mungret it was a well-known and regular occurrence for Father McDonnell, after any short period of extra work or unusual strain, to become completely exhausted, and to be confined to bed, taking little or no food. He had, however, great recuperative power, on which he seemed rather to pride himself, and was usually at work again in full vigour after a day or two. During the last two years of his life his health gradually declined, and his sight, never good, failed so much that he was quite unable to read. Hence, for many years before his death he transacted all his editorial work with the aid of a secretary, who read letters, manuscripts, and proofs to him and put in writing his replies and criticisms. Yet, notwithstanding weakened health and failing sight, he worked unceasingly up to a week before his saintly death.

Father McDonnell never lost his courageous and hopeful spirit, his rare gentleness and courtesy of manner, his genial cheerfulness or his keen sense of humour. The spread of the devotion to the Sacred Heart was the passion of his life. “Few”, says the writer already quoted, “have spent themselves so unsparingly to make this devotion more known and appreciated, and few have done as much as he did to diffuse it through Ireland”. His apostleship was exercised mainly through the pages of the “Messenger” and the numerous pious publications of all kinds that gradually grew up around it as well as by his own numerous and excellent devotional books through which his name is principally known. Father McDonnell left his impress deeply in the customs and traditions of the Apostolic School. It was owing in no small part to his example and teaching that the spirit of piety and especially the devotion to the Sacred Heart, which has, since his time, been traditional among the Apostolic students, took such firm root in the College. Those who were privileged to be under his charge in Mungret will remember his fatherly kindness and patience, his gentleness of disposition, and the never-failing courtesy and respect with which he treated even the youngest and most thoughtless of the lads of whom he had charge. His zeal for souls communicated itself to the boys ; and there can be no doubt that his spirit and example have had a very important influence upon the lives of many who are now priests in different parts of the world. Although without skill in athletic exercises, and having little knowledge of boys' games, he entered into all the interests of the boys of whom he had charge, and it was amusing sometimes to see his excitement over a football match or an athletic contest in which his boys were competing against some other section of the College. He showed the same zeal in organising excursions, concerts and debates, and in the strenuous work of the College theatricals, all of which he regarded as important factors in the training and formation of the boys.

It was under Father McDonnell's direction that the “Rules and Customs of the Apostolic School” were first drawn up. It was for the students of the Apostolic School, too, that he wrote the excellent little handbook for young ecclesiastical students, called “Daily Duties”, which breathes such a spirit of solid piety, and inculcates so well the practice of prayer, self-denial and zeal, which must be at the foundation of the character of the truly apostolic priest. When leaving Mungret, Father McDonnell confessed to an intimate friend that he “felt broken-hearted” at parting from his lads and the work he loved so well. He would not trust himself to take leave of the boys, or even to drive off by the avenue in the usual way. He went round by the “Black Walk” a quarter of an hour before the appointed time, and waited for the car at the College gate.

To the end, even amid the absorbing work of his editorship and writings, he never relaxed in his love for all his own past pupils nor in his interest in the Apostolic School. He was always ready to utilise his position as editor in favour of Mungret and the work it is doing. By very many of his old pupils as by many of the readers of his works, his death will be felt as a personal loss; and though his life was blameless and spent in the service of the Master whom he loved, his many friends will not omit to pray for his speedy admittance to his eternal reward. RIP)

E Cahill SJ

Born: 25 December 1823, County Mayo
Entered: 04 December 1861, Milltown Park, Dublin
Ordained: - 1859, pre Entry
Died: 20 March 1871, Clongowes Wood College SJ, Naas, County Kildare

Educated at St Jarlath’s, Tuam and St Stanislaus College SJ, Tullabeg and then St Patrick’s College, Maynooth

Relative of Fr Daniel Jones - RIP 1869 and Fr James Jones (ANG) - RIP 1893

by 1865 at Montauban France (TOLO) studying Theology 4

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
Had been a Priest working in the Harrogate Mission in England before Entry. His Entry annoyed the local Bishop.

He was sub-Minister at Milltown, and spent a year at Montaubon studying Theology.
He was then procurator at Clongowes until his death there 20 March 1871.

Born: 25 June 1919, Moville, County Donegal
Entered: 24 September 1946, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Ordained: 03 June 1944, pre entry
Final Vows: 02 February 1959, Clongowes Wood College SJ
Died: 1997

Left Society of Jesus: 13 November 1974 (Returned to Dublin Diocese)

Father, Daniel, was a corn merchant and died in 1922. The family then lived at Frankfort Avenue, Rathgar, Dublin, County Dublin. Mother was Brigid (McDermott).

Youngest of five boys with six sisters.

Early education was at Muckross park School, Donnybrook, and then at Synge Street for nine years. In 1937 he went to Holy Cross College, Clonliffe getting a BA at UCD in 1940, and being ordained in June 1944. He was afterwards a chaplain in a Daughters of Charity convent in Henrietta Street, and later at the Dominican Convent Sion Hill.

1946-1948: St Mary's, Emo, Novitiate
1948-1950: Notre Dame de Mongre, Villefranche France (FRA) - studying Philosophy
1950-1962: Clongowes Wood College SJ, Spiritual Father an Teaching
1962-1973: Mungret College SJ, Spiritual Father an Teaching
1973-1974: Absent from community and working at St Pappin’s, Ballymun, Dublin

Incardniated back into the Dublin Diocese on the same day as dismissal from the Society - 13/11/1974

Address 2000 & 1991: Parochial House, Mount View, Blanchardstown, Dublin City

◆ The Clongownian, 1997

Obituary

Father Kevin McDowell (formerly SJ)

Kevin McDowell was ordained for the Archdiocese of Dublin and joined the Society of Jesus in 1948. He came to Clongowes in the autumn of 1950 fresh from the Noviciate to succeed a relatively elderly Jesuit as Spiritual Father. In those days the Spiritual Father was responsible for the whole school and Kevin struck us immediately by his youthful energy and enthusiasm. We grew to love his Omagh accent and his sense of fun.

Daily Mass at 7.30 am was compulsory for everyone and it was Kevin's duty to say Mass day in day out. In those days of frequent Confession, he was also available in his room every morning before Mass, as well as on every Saturday evening. From time to time he used also to give talks on “topical” matters - occasionally (especially following “Line matches” in rugby which he might have been called on to referee) making pleas for a decrease in unparliamentary language!

Kevin was a great soccer player and - along with Fr Frewen - was a regular companion on “soccer evenings”. Although always very fair and sporting, he was the sort of player who took no prisoners and was a much feared member of the “Community” XI = in those days there was a sufficient number of able-bodied Jesuits to face the Boys XI, with a little help from one or two “Laymasters”!

More than once Kevin played a very important role in pouring oil on troubled waters, acting as negotiator-cum-peacemaker in differences of opinion between the student body and school administration. On one famous occasion he managed to cram all of the 52 members of Sixth Year into the Spiritual Father's room to parley about a possible resolution of a row which had developed on account of “unacceptable behaviour” in the Refectory!

My own personal memory of Kevin is of a pleasant, if shy, person, gifted with immense patience and a great judge of character. His long years of service to Clongowes were interrupted only by the year of his Tertianship (a final year of spiritual formation in a Jesuit's training). When transferred from Clongowes, Kevin spent time in Mungret College, until its closure was announced. At the end of its penultimate year, Kevin left the Jesuits (with a broken heart? - or so it was said) to return to the Dublin Archdiocese. He served as Parish Priest in a number of parishes in and around Dublin and eventually retired from Ringsend, having reached the age of 75.

He had spent some time convalescing in Cherryfield after a serious cancer operation, and it was that terrible illness which carried him off. I used visit him in the Bullock Harbour Retirement Home and he was so grateful to be remembered, appreciating even the most fleeting call. He often surprised me by his detailed recollection of events in Clongowes over 40 years previously. He never lost his youthfulness and zest for life and he regretted his enforced inactivity. But I will always remember Kevin as ever-young and am grateful to have known him and to have been guided by him during my time as a boy in Clongowes in the 1950s. May he rest in peace.

MLS

Born: 01 October 1887, Loughrea, County Galway
Entered: 05 May 1920, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Final Vows: 02 February 1931, Clongowes Wood College SJ
Died: 21 August 1953, Our Lady's Hospice, Dublin

Part of the Clongowes Wood College, County Kildare community at the time of death.

Brother of Timothy McEntee - LEFT 1921

◆ Fr Francis Finegan : Admissions 1859-1948 - Draper before entry

◆ Irish Province News
Irish Province News 28th Year No 4 1953
Obituary :
Brother Hugh McEntee
When Brother McEntee went to hospital no one imagined that his health was to deteriorate the way it did. After a period of convalescence, he returned to Clongowes for a short time. We were surprised to see the great change in him. Clearly he had lost his customary vigour.
During this brief period, he could be seen making his way slowly along the corridor, trying to exercise himself that he might regain some of his previous energy to fit himself once more for his work as Sacristan, The boys, who always held him in high esteem, noticed his weakened condition and to members of the community they expressed their hope that Brother McEntee would soon be hale and hearty once again and be back in the Sacristy. But it was not to be, for despite further medical attention, he continually failed in health, finally in the Hospice of the Dying, on August 21st, he passed peacefully away, having received the Last Sacraments.
He was born at Loughrea on October 1st, 1887, and was educated there. As a young man he set up his own drapery business in the same town. After some time he sold out and came to Dublin where he was in employment at T. Lyons and Co., Wholesale Drapers, Chathan Row. Here he was remarkable for his piety and zeal, chiefly manifested by a striking devotion to the sick, as well as his constancy in assisting in the enrolment of large numbers of boys in the Brown Scapular. As regards. the latter devotion, he had great faith in the revelation to St. Simon Stock, namely, that those members of the Brown Scapular who died in the proper dispositions would be released from Purgatory on the Saturday following their death. Hence, it was that he prayed that he would die on a Friday, and his prayer was answered.
On May 5th, 1920, he entered the novitiate at Tullabeg. He remained at this house until 1927 when he was transferred to Clongowes. With the exception of the period 1938-1944 when he was in Mungret, Brother McEntee spent the rest of his religious life at Clongowes.
As Sacristan of the Boys' Chapel and the People's Church, he was a model of order, neatness and efficiency. He had a constant loyalty and an abiding interest in his work, and was always most obliging and charitable. The local boys, whom he had instructed in Mass-serving and as Benediction acolytes, were very devoted to him. The boys in the college looked upon him as a necessary part of Clongowes, where he was erroneously but affectionately known as “Brother McGinty”. A past pupil, now a priest in the Dublin Diocese, said that as a boy he was most impressed by the brother. This good priest confessed that in his public request for prayers to his congregation he unconsciously reverted to his student days and referred to “Brother McGinty”. No doubt, the good brother appreciated the slip.
Brother McEntee's earlier devotion to the sick revealed itself in is religious life by his thoughtfulness in sending Catholic booklets, leaflets and holy pictures to hospitals and orphanages, and these undoubtedly brought consolation and assistance to many souls.
May he rest in peace.

◆ The Clongownian, 1954

Obituary

Brother Hugh McEntee SJ

Many Clongownians will regret the passing of Brother Hugh McEntee SJ. He was born on October 1st, 1887, and died on August 21st, 1953, having given the greater part of a holy life to Our Lord's service in the Society.

Both as refectorian and sacristan, he was most painstaking and efficient. His desire to diffuse happiness and pleasure in others, especially young boys, was ever : active ; his keen sense of humour was at call whenever occasion demanded; his manner was friendly, genial. and kind. But more than all his other commendable qualities, one may recall his practical devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. He never spared himself in order to have the Boy's Chapel and the People's Church always spotlessly clean and ornate. Every sacred vessel and even the least candlestick seemed, with the perfect lustre of each, to tell the Hidden God really present in the tabernacle, the true story of his own heart's adoration and love.

His piety did not begin merely when he entered the Society. Even as a young man, when he owned a drapery business in Loughrea, Co Galway, he had a remarkable zeal for the sanctification of souls. He was an active and eager auxiliary of the local clergy in the work of enrolling boys and young men in the Brown Scapular of the Blessed Virgin.

He first came to Clongowes in 1927, when he was appointed refectorian and here he remained until July, 1938. After six years in Mungret College, he returned to us as sacristan. His last illness was long and painful but his resignation to God's will was most exemplary. RIP

Born: 21 October 1890, Hanover Place, Coleraine, County Derry
Entered: 23 September 1916, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 20 June 1915, St Patrick's College, Maynooth, County Kildare

Left Society of Jesus: 11 November 1918

Father was a merchant in Coleraine and died in 1917. Mother then resided at The Villas, Castlerock, County Derry.

Third eldest of a family of twelve, with eight boys and five girls.

Early education was a non-Catholic private school, in Coleraine, then at home and then at St Columb’s, Derry. Then in 1904 he went to Clongowes Wood College SJ until 1908. he then began to study Medicine at UCD, but only for a few months, returning home to Castlerock, studying privately and passed First Arts. in 1909.

Entered the Novitiate 07 September 1909 at Tullabeg, and left in February 1910. He then returned to St Columb’s Derry in preparation for entry to Maynooth. as a student of the Derry Diocese in 1911. He was ordained ar St Patrick’s College on June 20, 1915, and celebrated his first Mass at SFX Gardiner Street.. He was received again into the Society in 1916.

◆ Fr Francis Finegan : Admissions 1859-1948 - Entered 07 September 1909; LEFT 17 February 1910; Re-entered 23 September 1916; LEFT 11 November 1918

Born: 24 December 1927, Newry County Down
Entered: 07 September1945, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Ordained: 31 July 1959, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 05 November 1977, Canisius College, Chikuni, Zambia
Died: 14 January 2017, Cherryfield Lodge, Dublin - Zambia-Malawi Province (ZAM)

Transcribed HIB to ZAM : 03 December 1969

Son of Edward McGivern and Eileen McQuaid. Father was a business man and the family moved to Saint Clares, New Docks, Galway City, County Galway

Younger of ywo boys with two sisters.

Early education was at Coláiste Iognáid School for four years and then at Clongowes Wood College SJ

Part of the Loyola, Milltown Park, Dublin community at the time of death.

Early Education at Coláiste Iognáid and Clongowes Wood College

1947-1950 Rathfarnham - Studying at UCD
1950-1953 Tullabeg - Studying Theology Philosophy
1953-1954 Lusaka Mission - Studying CiTonga language
1954-1956 Chikuni Mission - Regency : Teaching Religion, History, Maths; Assistant Games Master; Health Prefect for students; Scouts
1956-1960 Milltown Park - Studying Theology
1960-1961 Rathfarnham - Tertianship
1961-1972 Canisius College - Prefect of Discipline; Teacher of English and Latin; President Junior Academy; Photographic Society; Scouts & Cadets; Retreats
1971 Headmaster (1971-1972)
1965 Teacher of Geography and Geology
1972-1975 Teacher; Spiritual Father to House and students; Spiritual Exercises at Kohima Barracks (Kabwe); Consultor
1975 Choma, Mukasa, Zambia – Headmaster, teacher
1976-1982 Canisius College – Rector, Teacher
1982-1997 Luwisha House, Lusaka - Religious Education Inspector for Department of Education and Culture (to 1993)
1988 Revisor of Archives for Province
1993 Education Secretary, ZEC (1993-1997)
1995 Consultor
1997-2001 Choma, Zambia - Teaches English & Geography at Mukasa Minor Seminary, Choma
2000 Librarian
2001-2011 Xavier House, Lusaka - Minister; Works in JTL and Archives at Fr John Chula House (Infirmary)
2005 House Treasurer; Works Archives at Fr John Chula House (Infirmary)
2011 Prays for the Church and the Society at Fr John Chula House
2011-2016 Loyola House, Dublin
2011 Prays for the Church and the Society at Cherryfield Lodge

◆ Jesuits in Ireland : https://www.jesuit.ie/news/tom-survives-a-battering-2/

Tom survives a battering
Galway-born Tom McGivern SJ was locking up Chula House in Lusaka, Zambia, on Thursday evening when he was set upon by a thug demanding money. Tom had very little, and
the exasperated thief bashed him over the head with an iron bar. The community found him slumped on the floor. He needed ten stitches to his head, but after observation and a scan in the ICU, the scene has improved. Fr McGloin reports from Lusaka on 10 January: “I’ve just returned from visiting Tom in hospital. He seems to be greatly improved. He recognizes people; he is talking, though sometimes he gets confused; he is eating quite well; he has walked to the toilet; he was sitting up for a while today. This morning the surgeon does not believe any surgery will be required. But pray for him. Aged 83, he faces a struggle.”

https://www.jesuit.ie/news/tom-mcgivern-sj/

Tom McGivern SJ: a man without guile
Michael J. Kelly SJ gives an account of his late missionary friend Tom McGivern SJ who passed away on 14 January, 2017 in his 90th year.
Just a month before his death, the British Journal Religion & Education referred to Tom as “father of Zambian RE” and elsewhere as its “hero”. During the years 1982–1993, he served as Zambia’s first Inspector for Religious Education. At this post, Tom was not only responsible for ensuring the quality of RE in all secondary schools across the country, but he also served as the chief professional and technical advisor to the Government on matters relating to RE.
Tom recalled very laconically his appointment to this post: “The word came to me through my superiors that I had been appointed as the Inspector of RE. So I packed my bags and headed to Luwisha House which was to be my abode for the next eleven years.” He responded very courageously to this challenge and was instrumental in developing a syllabus which, with minor modifications, is still in use today.
Sadly, Tom was not fully aware in the final years of his life how significant his work for RE in Zambia had been. What led to this was as a result of an attack by a thief which left him brain injured at his home in Lusaka, in January 2011. He was later repatriated to Ireland in September 2011 for more specialised investigations and care. Despite being away from his beloved Zambia where he had lived for most of his life, he showed much gratitude to everybody who stretched out a hand to help him. And it was in Cherryfield that, following a fairly short illness, he handed over his great self to God.
Furthermore, Tom had three great characteristics: his smile, his loyalty and his open childlike nature. In some ways he was the incarnation of a smile. It seemed to be there always, even when he had to reprimand or correct, as those who had him as a prefect of discipline can well recall. He loved a good joke – and he loved to repeat back to you any good joke you might have told him! Maybe it was because he was born on Christmas Eve that he had such a good sense of humour, such a realisation that there was plenty to smile about in life, even if there were also sad and disturbing things.
As for loyalty, Tom’s was almost legendary: loyalty to the Church, loyalty to the Society, loyalty to his companions and friends, loyalty to Zambia. If Tom was on your side, you were safe. He would never let you down. This loyalty showed itself in a very special way when he set out to do something on behalf of religious Sisters: if one of them let it be known that she had a problem, Tom would be off his mark at once, seeing what he could do to help.
And Tom always embodied in his person the words of Jesus, “Unless you become like little children you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven.” He was always a child and had all the loveableness of a child. When somebody would produce some sweets or a piece of chocolate, Tom would stand there, eyes opening wide, expectant like a child. Indeed, jokingly it was sometimes said of him that he showed himself, less as a man among boys but more as a boy among boys!
Finally, Tom was a great inspiration and model for all of his Jesuit brethren. He was the kind of Jesuit St. Ignatius of Loyola would have wanted him to be, the kind of person God had in mind when He created him. Like Nathanael in the Gospel, he was a person in whom there was no guile, a most lovable, kind, cheerful man. We in Zambia are poorer without him. The world is poorer without him, but heaven is better off for having him. Ar dheis láimh Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

◆ Irish Jesuit Missions : https://www.jesuitmissions.ie/news/518-irish-men-behind-the-missions-fr-tom-mcgivern-sj-rip

IRISH MEN BEHIND THE MISSIONS: FR TOM MCGIVERN SJ RIP
Fr Tom McGivern SJ passed on to his final reward on the 14th January 2017 in his 90th year. Encouraged by his friends and family, he had completed his biography in January 2011.The following excerpts are drawn from ‘As I Remember’ as Tom relates his life story weaving into it references to some of the momentous historical events of the 20th century.

Family values and Catholic education
Born on Christmas Eve 1927 into a family of two boys and two girls, Tom went to the Jesuit primary school ‘The Jez’ in Galway and then to Clongowes Wood College for second level education. He went to train for the priesthood in the Society of Jesus in County Laois, then known as 'Queen's County'. After his ordination in 1959, he went on to spend most of his life in Zambia.
In his biography, Tom comes across as a modest, straight talking and honest man. His parents Eileen and Edward, while very understanding, expected nothing less than the truth from their children. When young Tom was caught out in a lie about a visit to the local cinema, he was grounded and his punishment was to write out 100 times: ‘No lie can be lawful or innocent and no motive however good can excuse a lie, because a lie is always sinful and bad in itself.’
This Catholic catechism definition and punishment left a lifelong impression on him!

Into the silence
World War II had just ended when Tom began his Jesuit novitiate at the age of 18. A new life opened characterised by study, silence and prayer into which the ‘outside world’ only occasionally intruded.
Tom remembers Fr Frank Browne SJ, made famous for his rare photos of the Titanic when he sailed at the beginning of the ship’s only voyage from England to Ireland in 1912. An old man by the time Tom stumbled, covered in embarrassment, across his path in the chapel, Fr Browne had served as a Chaplain in the trenches during WW I.
The novitiate came to an end after two years with the taking of perpetual vows of poverty, chastity and obedience.

On to university life in Dublin
As the newly arrived students at university, the young Juniors were given the oldest bikes to cycle from their seminary to the University. It was a punishing five miles each way. Rationing was still in place after WW II and the young men were given a tin of sugar lumps each month, used for sweetening the tea and as money for playing poker!
During this time, the Free State of Ireland left the Commonwealth and ushered in the birth of the Irish Republic.
A primary Arts degree was followed by a further three years of Philosophy—taken to acquire critical and precise thinking. The ‘how’ and ‘why’ of life were often on his mind. It reveals something of Tom’s twinkling humour bubbling up throughout his biography, that one assignment submitted was entitled ‘Man, the Laughing Animal’.

‘Go South, young man’
It was 1953 and the young Queen Elizabeth had ascended the throne. The Irish Province had been assigned to send men to Northern Rhodesia as the Polish Jesuits who usually served there, were now unable to travel after the fall of the Iron Curtain that divided post WW II Europe. Tom had volunteered to go on mission to Alaska but was instructed to travel south of the Equator instead to Zambia—then Northern Rhodesia, a colony of the British Empire.
Zambia is about nine times the size of Ireland and Chikuni Mission where Tom went to live, is roughly the same as the island of Ireland. Tom’s first task was to learn Chitonga, the language of the Southern Province.
Being understood wasn’t always easy. In class, teaching about the Holy Trinity and the four gospels, Tom once asked the students how many persons were in the Trinity. “ Four” they said, “ Matteo, Marko, Luka and Johanne”. He admitted he had a lot to learn about teaching but little did he know he was to spend 40 years in education (http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/WgSDS2KHccxNSESQi9xb/full)!
The building of Chikuni mission was slow but steady in every sense of the word—from moulding bricks in the sun to bringing a meaningful understanding of Christ and religion to the people.
Following a period away from Chikuni and a one year Tertianship in Ireland and England in 1960, Tom returned to immerse himself in education. During that period he taught English, French, Geography, Geology, Literature, Mathematics and Religious Education.

‘The reluctant hero’
Across the years, Tom McGivern lived through the civil and political unrest preceding Zambian independence, rolled up his sleeves in the building of a fledgling nation and devoted his life to its growth along with his Jesuit brethren and members of other religious organisations.

https://www.jesuitmissions.ie/news/520-michael-j-kelly-sj-and-the-man-with-the-beaming-smile

MICHAEL J KELLY SJ AND THE MAN WITH THE WELCOMING SMILE
Father Tom McGivern, S.J. Memorial Mass, St. Ignatius 28th January 2017
Fr Michael J Kelly SJ and a large number of priests concelebrated a Memorial Mass in Lusaka, Zambia for their friend and colleague Tom McGivern SJ. Presided over by Fr Emmanual Mumba SJ, Provincial of the Zambia-Malawi Province and attended by over 130 people including the Irish Ambassador Séamus O'Grady and his wife, a large part of the congregation were former students from four decades of Tom's teaching and religious sisters with whom he had worked.
The Homily given by Michael J Kelly SJ expresses the deep appreciation of Fr Tom's work and comradeship across the many years he served in Zambia.

Homily by Fr Michael J Kelly SJ
Friends, I welcome all of you very warmly to this memorial Mass for Father Tom McGivern who died in Ireland two weeks ago today. And as we remember Tom and celebrate his life, we think lovingly of his sister Mary and brother Eddie in Canada; of his nieces, nephews, relatives and their families in Ireland, Canada, and Switzerland; and of the thousands of people here in Zambia and elsewhere in whose lives he made such a difference for good. To all of them we extend our sincere sympathy. They have lost a great brother, a great uncle and a great friend, but they can be absolutely certain that Tom continues in his love for them and his concern that all should go well with them in every aspect of their lives.
It’s more than seventy years since Tom and I first met. The occasion was my arrival at the Jesuit novitiate in Ireland where Tom had already completed his first year. I remember it so well. It was five past four, the afternoon of Saturday, September 6th 1946, and Tom was the first Jesuit novice that I met. He immediately stretched out his hand – his hairy hand, I might say – and gave me a very warm welcoming smile, telling me that if he had stuck it out this long, then I should be able to do the same! That was the beginning of a friendship that lasted literally a lifetime and that was stronger than the brutal assault Tom experienced six years ago this very month, stronger than the death that took him from us two weeks ago today.
Most of us know what happened to Tom that fateful night in Chula House on the Airport Road - how when he was locking the security gate into the house a thief sprang on him and with an iron bar gave him a few hefty blows on the head. Because of his strong physique and the great care he got in hospital and subsequently in Chula House, Tom recovered to the extent that his life was no longer in danger. But damage had been done to his brain and as the months passed it became clear that he needed more specialised investigations and care. So it was that in September 2011 he was repatriated to Ireland, to Cherryfield, the Nursing Home there for elderly and infirm Jesuits. There he received the wonderful love and care that enabled him to live peacefully for the final years of his life, generally in reasonable physical health but with his mind gradually slipping away from him all the time. And it was there that, following a fairly short illness, he handed over his great self to God at half-past-ten in the morning on Saturday 14th January.
These were difficult years for Tom when he was away from Zambia and the people he loved, and when he could no longer remember people or events and needed nursing assistance in looking after himself. But some things remained with him: his great, broad beaming smile; his graciousness; his sense of fun; his gratitude to everybody who stretched out a hand to help him. And occasionally in the early days of his handicapped existence back in Ireland, I even heard Tom express this gratitude in Chitonga, as his faltering memory brought up words from the past: “Eh-hee. Mbubo.Twa lumba1.” Zambia was where he had lived for most of his life and Zambia was close to his heart up to the very end. And it was truly fitting that, although he did not die in Zambia, one of his many Zambian friends, Mable Chilenga, was with him, holding his hand when the time came for him to go home to God. Thank you, Mable, for being there at that time.
Here in Zambia we find it hard to think of Tom as being enfeebled, having difficulty in speaking, not being able to recognise people, weary and tired. That was not the Tom we knew. The Tom we knew was a vigorous active man; a great Jesuit and a wonderful priest; a loyal friend and delightful companion; a man of heart-warming kindness and immense concern for anybody in need, especially if that person was a religious Sister; always bright and cheerful; steadfastly loyal, true and trustworthy. And for more than fifty years he put all of these great qualities at the service of the people of Zambia, principally through education but also and more strikingly through the kind of person he was.
Tom spent almost twenty of his early years in Zambia at Canisius College in the Southern Province, as teacher, prefect, headmaster and Rector. Those who came under his influence there will always remember how he formed them into being persons of integrity and character, hard-working, honest, and fired with concern for others. It was he who established the Cadet Force at Canisius several months before Independence. As Captain the Reverend Thomas McGivern he had the privilege in September 1964 of marshalling these into a Guard of Honour for inspection by Kenneth Kaunda, who was then Prime Minister of what was still Northern Rhodesia, the very first Guard of Honour that the future President of Zambia ever inspected. And in later years, under Tom’s dynamic leadership, the Canisius Cadets won the top awards at army camps held at Arakan Barracks.
When Tom left Canisius he brought his vitality, practicality and deeply religious Christian spirit to his work at Mpima Minor Seminary and later at Mukasa in Choma. Through his life and work in both places he inspired many youthful would-be seminarians to commit themselves to following the Lord who had called them, wherever He might go. In this way, Tom played a significant role in bringing it about that today we have so many good Zambian priests. I don’t think he could have left us a finer legacy.
The next phase of Tom’s apostolic life (https://www.jesuitmissions.ie/news/517-fr-tom-mcgivern-sj- may-he-rest-in-peace)saw him breaking altogether new ground, both for himself as a person and for Zambia as a country. This was when he launched out into the field of Religious Education. He has the distinction of being the country’s first Inspector of Religious Education and through his dedication in this area over a period of more than ten years, he established RE on a sound footing within the Ministry of Education, raised it to a status comparable with that of other school subjects, and gave the teaching of it a tremendous boost in the schools across the country. Moreover, with the help of a group of very dedicated people, lay and religious, he also developed a syllabus for RE that has stood the test of time. Given that his own academic and teaching backgrounds were in English and Geography, all of this was a tremendous achievement on Tom’s part. What for somebody else would have been the work of a lifetime, he just took in his stride, seeing this as his way of serving God at the moment.
From the Ministry of Education Tom moved to the Zambia Episcopal Conference where for a number of years he put his long experience as teacher, administrator and inspector of schools at the service of the Church as its Education Secretary General. During these years he consolidated much that he had initiated in the field of Religious Education and made good use of his understanding of the workings of the Education Ministry to help the Catholic education system adopt and adapt to emerging education policies and new directives.

Three of Tom’s great characteristics were his smile, his loyalty and his open childlike nature. In some ways he was the incarnation of a smile. It seemed to be there always, even when he had to reprimand or correct, as those who had him as a prefect of discipline can well recall. He loved a good joke – and loved to repeat back to you any good joke you might have told him! Maybe it was because he was born on Christmas Eve that he had such a good sense of humour, such a realisation that there was plenty to smile about in life, even if there were also sad and disturbing things.
As for loyalty, Tom’s was almost legendary. Loyalty to the Church, loyalty to the Jesuits, loyalty to his companions and friends, loyalty to Zambia. If Tom was on your side, you were safe. He would never let you down. He was always that way, but this became even more characteristic of him as he grew older. And this loyalty showed itself in a very special way when he set out to do something on behalf of religious Sisters. Sometimes you hear somebody like Mother Teresa being referred to as the saint of the poor. I think Tom will always be remembered as the saint of the Sisters, whether those at the Marian Shrine, or the Sisters of Charity in Kabwata or Roma, or Sisters wherever: if one of them let it be known that she had a problem, Tom would be off his mark at once, seeing what he could do to help, even to the extent of pestering you or somebody else to come to her help. Ever loyal, ever faithful, ever energetic on the Sisters’ behalf.
And Tom always embodied in his person the words of Jesus, “Unless you become like little children you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven.” He was surely one of the children to whom our Father in heaven revealed the mysteries of the kingdom, as we heard in the Gospel today. Tom was always a child and had all the loveableness of a child. I can still see his eyes opening wide when somebody would produce some sweets or a piece of chocolate, wide-eyed and expectant like a child. Indeed, we Jesuits sometimes joked among ourselves that at Canisius and elsewhere Tom always showed himself, not so much as a man among boys but more as a boy among boys! Again, maybe he had this most endearing trait because his birthday was Christmas Eve when God gave him to the world 89 years ago as a most delightful Christmas present.
And underlying all this and giving it life were Tom’s deep faith and his total Christian commitment. Always and everywhere he was a man of God and a man of prayer; a man who endeavoured to praise, reverence and serve God in everything he turned his hand to; a man consumed in very practical ways by the love of God and who was always concerned that he should let that love have its full way with him.
Friends, I could go on forever talking about Tom, a man who was such an inspiration and model for all of us Jesuits, the kind of Jesuit St. Ignatius of Loyola would have wanted him to be, the kind of person our heavenly Father had in mind when He created him. But let me end by going back to my first meeting with Tom and that warm welcoming hand extended to me nearly 71 years ago. It is my earnest hope and prayer that when I too am called to our Father’s home Tom will be there with his lovely smile, stretching out to me the same hand, welcoming me home, and both of us hearing the reassuring words of the Lord Jesus, “In my Father’s house there are many places to live in. Your place is now ready for you. That’s why I am taking you to myself, so that where I am you also may be.”
Two weeks ago today, after a long and faithful life, Tom’s place was ready and the Lord Jesus came to take him to himself, so that where Jesus is Tom also might be. That is our assurance. That is our faith. And we express it in a short prayer in the Irish language, a language Tom knew and loved so well: “Ar dheis laimh De go raibh a anam dilis,” words which mean “may his lovely soul always be there at God’s right hand”.
Mu zyina lya Taata, ilya Mwana, ilya Muya Musaante2. Amen Author: Fr Michael J. Kelly, SJ

https://www.jesuitmissions.ie/news/517-fr-tom-mcgivern-sj-may-he-rest-in-peace

HOMILY FOR FR TOM MCGIVERN SJ BY JOE HAYES SJ

When I think of you Tom the image that comes to my mind is that of the reluctant hero reluctant because you are the last to realize that in so many of our eyes you are a hero. You spent your life as part of critical movements you did not initiate but which you did your best to move forward. You are a very private man about your inner dreams but I suspect that privacy didn't come from shyness alone but from a sense that the second reading is trying to communicate. "We are earthenware vessels, doing the best we can, but always appreciating we are part of a deeper movement, the movement of our transcendent God."
I found Tom in the midst of what I call the Chikuni/Canisius movement, the movement to educate potential male and female leaders to be ready to play key roles in the emerging Zambian State. Young Tom helped pupils deepen their appreciation of nature through his Geography classes. He helped improve their communication skills through his English teaching. He modelled the virtues needed as the young Zambia took more control of its copper resources. This is also the period where one saw Tom leading his troop of cadets as he inspired the youth to value a career in the uniformed services.
Tom then switched to participate into the movement to educate and encourage young men to become priests so that the emerging Christian communities would be served by their own people.
From there Tom was invited to help oversee the teaching of religious education in schools and from there to oversee the overall participation of the Christian Churches in their partnership with government in providing formal education for Zambian Children.
While here, Tom was drawn into another movement, the movement by Zambian women to claim their dignity and move towards a partnership with men that respected the unique qualities of each gender. Key players in this movement were the young members of women's religious orders.There Tom made many special friends and it was so nice to hear that one of those special friends was with him as the time clock ran out. Thank you Mable.
For the past few years Tom has been more consciously invited into the most important movement within which all the other movements get their meaning. To the eyes of mere experience we have seen the cruel assault, the movement into dementia, the loneliness of leaving behind his work and friends, the dying away from the place where he would have loved to have died. To the eyes of faith that invitation is one into the paschal mystery of Christ as the Gospel reading hints. "God working to make all people appreciate they are his friends, doing it Christ's way. Not focusing on our sins, our failure to live up to our potential but inviting us to be his ambassadors of reconciliation so that all will know they are God's friends."
I would imagine there were times that Tom, with Christ asked the question of God "My God, why have you forsaken me." But we sense too that many times he prayed with Christ "Father into your hands I commend my Spirit." Tom gave us glimpses that he was singing that deeper song when, amid the darkness, we experienced his smile, that smile that said a special thank you to those who visited, to those who cared for him in Cherryfield. A special thank you to his family and to those in the mission office.
Tom, you have walked the walk. Thank you for being a mentor, an inspiration, a friend

Born: 03 April 1891, Donegall Street, Belfast, County Antrimyes born hist edu
Entered: 07 September 1909, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 31 July 1923, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1931, Clongowes Wood College SJ
Died: 13 August 1966, Warrenpoint, County Down

Part of the Clongowes Wood College, Naas, County Kildare community at the time of death.

Father is a restaurant proprietor and wine merchant. Mother died in 1904. Father remarried in 1906.

Eldest of seven, five girls and two boys. On the death of his uncle, his family was left to Kevin’s, and they became a family of thirteen. They resided at Fort Breda Park, Ormeau Road, Belfast.

Early education was under a governess and four years at a College in Belfast he went to Clongowes Wood College SJ

Had studied for a BA in Arts at UCD before entry.

by 1914 at Valkenburg Netherlands (GER) studying
by 1915 at Stonyhurst England (ANG) studying
1925-1926 Tertianshiup at Exaeten

◆ Fr Edmund Hogan SJ “Catalogica Chronologica” :
Loose leaf note in CatChrn : Entitled “Left Stonyhurst for Castle Brown”
23 Oct 1815

◆ Irish Province News

Irish Province News 42nd Year No 1 1967

Obituary :

Fr Patrick McGlade SJ (1891-1965)

Father Patrick McGlade was born in Belfast on April 3rd, 1891. He spent some years at St. Malachy's College, Belfast, before going to Clongowes where he spent five years as a boy. He entered the Society on September 7th, 1909. He studied as a Junior in Milltown Park. His philosophy was divided between Valkenburg (1913-14) and Stoneyhurst (1914-16). He returned to Clongowes for his regency from 1916-1921-filling the posts of Gallery Prefect and Lower Line Prefect the latter from 1917-21. He then went to Milltown Park for his theology and was ordained on July 31st, 1923. Tertianship was in Holland. The remainder of his life is divided as follows :
Clongowes : Prefect of Studies 1926-27, Prefect of Lower Line 1927-31. Crescent : Teaching 1931-33. Emo Park : Retreat Staff. 1933-34. Clongowes : Teaching 1934-62.

I am glad to pay tribute to Father McGlade as a Line Prefect. As a young priest he was an extremely effective Lower Line Prefect in Clongowes, able to maintain the confident control which they need and like over boys of fifteen or sixteen, This was done without excessive severity, because his aim was not to produce a cowed, regimented, submissiveness, which might have made life easy for him. Discipline was never an end in itself he had some thing to give. Notably he engendered enthusiasm for photography, good literature and music. Silence in the library was insisted upon because he rightly judged that many boys relished that quiet refuge from the harassments of mob life. He took pains to develop taste in music, not merely to pander to immature standards; his dramatic scratching of the key across a low-grade gramophone record left an indelible impression on my mind as well as on the particular song. At this period he taught English - as he did for many years afterwards and managed to convey to a rather restless group some appreciation of the beauty, and power, of words. His own sermons and “declamations” were delivered in an immensely impressive, softly booming tone, and with an exquisite choice of words. They were invariably enjoyed.
What about games? He created, or directed, keenness for high standards in rugby, cricket, tennis, hurling and hockey, etc.; this without ever, to my knowledge, kicking a ball or handling a racket or bat. One felt, in spite of this, that he was thoroughly, un questionably competent. His performance as a rugby referee was accurate and stylish. But he commanded from an eminence; no one expected him to come down into the melee, indeed they would have been embarrassed if he had; he was riot to be jostled, Here again one learnt by experience that games vigorously and skilfully played were the most enjoyable.
There was a certain fascination about him, partly because at times he seemed aloof and formidable, indeed occasionally unpredictable. He was colourful, with a touch of the unorthodox about him; something of a character. I think he commanded almost universal respect. This he may not have realised, for he had a nick-name which he abhorred; it clearly embarrassed and irritated him; in fact it had no hostile or contemptuous under currents at all; it sprang simply from his very dark and determined jowl. For a while he was more commonly known only as “Paul” ; this is fixed in my mind by the memory of the death of the crease horse, “Paulina”, who was named after him, and collapsed so dramatically from excitement on the day that Col. Russell landed his plane on the cricket crease, about 1929.
But of course what gave him his exceptional influence was his ability to feel, and show, genuine personal interest in the boys and their groups. He had on those occasions a quizzical and humorous approach, which, coming from such a majestic figure, gave him the advantage of tactical surprise. But he never presumed or demanded intimacy or confidences, nor did he ever betray them. I am inclined to think, now, that he never knew how much people liked him. He was probably far more diffident about his personal relations than any boy ever suspected. He was an artist working in a rather difficult temperamental and emotional medium, always a hair's breadth away from disaster. He lived interiorly under strain; externally he presented an impregnable front. One sensed that he really delighted to see someone developing their own personality; he did not want to impose uniformity, nor did he want to know what everyone was doing all the time, above all he did not presume to think that if you were not enjoying yourself in the way he had organised for you, you could not be enjoying yourself at all; he did not intrude. He welcomed the signs of coming maturity, neither resenting the departure of childish charm nor expecting adult solemnity. God be thanked for his vital influence.
MICHAEL SWEETMAN

Born: 23 December 1919, Deerpark, Castlecomer, County Kilkenny
Entered: 07 September 1937, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Died: 08 November 2003, County Dublin

Left Society of Jesus: 05 February 1938

Father, John, was Barrack foreman of works at Portobello. Mother was Anne (Brennan), Family then resided at North Circular Road, Dublin from 1923

Older of two boys with three sisters.

Early education at a Convent school and then at Westland Row CBS. He then went to O’Connells School until 1937

Baptised at Church of the Immaculate Conception, Kilkenny Street, Castlecomer, County Kilkenny, 24/12/1919
Confirmed at St Andrew’s Church, Westland Row, Dublin, 20/02/1930

https://www.dib.ie/biography/mcgough-joseph-christopher-joe-a9334

McGough, Joseph Christopher (Joe)
Contributed by
Clavin, Terry

McGough, Joseph Christopher (Joe) (1919–2003), army officer, barrister and businessman, was born 23 December 1919 at Castlecomer, Co. Kilkenny, the fourth child and first son of John McGough, originally of Co. Clare, and his wife Ann (née Brennan). His father, having served as a lieutenant in the Royal Engineers, joined the Irish army on the formation of the Irish Free State (1922). In 1923, he was transferred to Beggars Bush barracks in Dublin, settling with his family on the North Circular Road; Joseph attended the nearby O’Connell’s CBS. In 1938, he commenced an arts degree at UCD, but switched to law a year later. At secondary school he had organised sporting events and he was similarly active at college; a member of the UCD rowing club, he also served as secretary of the Students’ Representative Council.

Army and law He enlisted in the Defence Forces on 29 June 1940. A member of the Army Signal Corps, he was commissioned a second lieutenant within two months, and was subsequently promoted first lieutenant (1942) and captain (1946). During the 1940s, he completed a course in electronics in Kevin Street College of Technology. He served throughout the country, including service with the Irish‐speaking Céad Cath battalion in Galway. On 1 August 1945 he married Dr Ann Frances (Nancy) Hanratty, a psychologist, daughter of John Hanratty of Parnell Square, Dublin. They had a son and a daughter. From 1948 the family lived in an impressive Georgian house – later a listed building – in Rathfarnham, Co. Dublin. Attached (as a member of the Signal Corps) to the Army Air Corp at Baldonnell, Co. Dublin, he enrolled at King’s Inns in 1947, qualifying as a barrister in 1951; he was called to the English Bar six years later. He served as staff officer to the director of signals at Army HQ from 1949 to 1955, when he was appointed one of two judge advocates on the staff of the adjutant general; he was promoted commandant soon after.

By 1960 his pension entitlement was sufficiently generous to permit him to retire from the army and practise at the bar. While sick with influenza in early 1962, he applied (apparently on a whim) for three jobs advertised in the newspapers. All three applications were successful and he elected to become the secretary of An Bord Bainne (the milk board), a newly established state agency. This career change was facilitated by his service in a part‐time capacity during 1960–62 as secretary to the Irish Exporters Association through which he obtained in autumn 1961 a scholarship for a twelve‐week marketing course in Harvard.

Kerrygold With his newly acquired marketing knowledge, and possessing administrative expertise and an understanding of the civil service mindset, McGough was suitably qualified for the daunting task at hand. Irish dairy was geared towards self‐sufficiency and hobbled by a surfeit of small, inefficient creameries which, like the dairy farmers, were resistant to change and unwilling to consider the good of the industry over their own interests. Bord Bainne effectively provided a minimum price for farmers’ milk by buying dairy products for export from the creameries at a guaranteed price with two‐thirds of any resulting loss being absorbed by the Exchequer – the remainder was passed back to the dairy farmer in the form of a levy.

With McGough as his right‐hand man, the Bord Bainne general manager Tony O’Reilly sought to cajole a faction‐ridden board into supporting an export drive. McGough established an immediate rapport with the youthful O’Reilly with whom he shared a sharp sense of humour. In his reminiscences, O’Reilly emerges as eager to lead the modernisation of Irish economic life and inwardly exasperated by the incomprehension and hostility with which farmers and dairy producers greeted his strictures. Older and more inclined to accept the world as it was, McGough’s diplomacy complemented O’Reilly’s zeal; so too did his ability to defuse a tense situation with a well‐timed quip. Their first and most important initiative was the launch of Kerrygold, the first ever branded Irish butter made specifically for the British market. The campaign, which began in October 1962, proved a resounding success by utilising modern marketing techniques in promoting a very traditional view of Ireland as an unspoilt Arcadia. Both McGough and O’Reilly worked frenetically on the campaign and it was the making of them.

Bord Bainne head McGough became assistant to the general manager in April 1965 before succeeding O’Reilly in late 1966. A fluent and witty speaker (much in demand for speaking engagements) he showed a particular flair for dealing with the media, which combined with the goodwill generated by the success of Kerrygold guaranteed him a largely adoring press, who portrayed him as the archetypal Lemass‐era business leader driving the country’s renewed engagement with modernity and the wider world through the medium of commerce.

Nonetheless the Bord Bainne ‘success story’ did elicit more cynical responses in some sections of the press and among the wider public who were subsidizing dairy export losses while having to pay higher prices for domestic dairy products. In particular Bord Bainne’s failure to produce fully transparent financial statements drew adverse comment. Undoubtedly very good at marketing Irish dairy products abroad, he also excelled at promoting the heavily subsidized dairy sector and the marketing skills of both Bord Bainne and himself to the non‐farming Irish public. A consummate insider, his urbane manner and relentless optimism made it easy to caricature him as an overly complacent member of the state sector aristocracy.

Pre‐EEC McGough promoted the ongoing diversification of Irish dairy manufacturing into products that were less reliant or not at all reliant on subsidies, such as cheese, skimmed milk powder, fresh creams and chocolate crumb, although butter remained predominant because it absorbed the most milk. In the UK he focused on developing a market for quality Irish cheeses, which culminated in the launch of Kerrygold cheese in 1969. The quota system imposed on Irish dairy products imported into the UK led him to continue the policy of orderly marketing whereby a demand was first created for a product thereby strengthening Ireland’s efforts to have import quotas increased.

His early years as general manager were spent grappling with Ireland’s ballooning exportable milk surplus, which rose from 120 million gallons in 1962 to some 340 million gallons in 1970. With the UK only gradually lifting its import quotas and with Ireland shut out of the most important continental markets by the EEC, McGough was obliged to seek more far‐flung outlets, leading him to travel 245,646 miles between 1 January 1967 and 31 March 1970. Bord Bainne in 1969 invested £12 million in a plant in the Philippines for reconstituting Irish skimmed milk to accord with regional preferences. But during 1968–9 the global overproduction of milk precipitated a collapse in world dairy prices and this meant that some 10% of Ireland’s milk output could not be disposed of in a remotely economical fashion. Unsurprisingly McGough and Bord Bainne came in for much knee‐jerk criticism, although an independent economic survey conducted in 1970 found that Bord Bainne was performing well given the circumstances.

The advent of the EEC’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) intensified Ireland’s reliance on the UK dairy market and the failure in 1970–71 of Bord Bainne’s Filipino venture was another blow to non‐UK exports. In early 1972 McGough used the capital salvaged from the Philippines failure to establish Bord Bainne’s own distribution network in the UK by acquiring Adams Foods, a UK butter and packaging company, with a view to diversifying into marketing and distributing a wide range of foodstuffs including dairy produce sold by Ireland’s competitors within the UK. This alarmed Irish dairy interests, but McGough’s success in building Adams Foods into a profitable foodstuffs company that made Kerrygold products available throughout the UK silenced his detractors.

Inside the EEC Concerns about continental competition within the Irish market once Ireland and the UK joined the EEC helped McGough to persuade the co‐ops to accept the introduction of the Kerrygold brand into Ireland on a restricted basis in 1972. Following Ireland’s accession to EEC membership in 1973 McGough was praised for his foresight, for the manner in which Bord Bainne was skillfully exploiting CAP regulations to sell in non‐EEC markets, and for the speed with which it moved into continental markets, particularly the Ruhr valley in West Germany.

He also handled with assurance the transformation of Bord Bainne from a semi-state institution into a cooperative (more precisely an export cooperative of all the Irish dairy cooperatives) so as to comply with EEC anti‐monopoly regulations. Under the new dispensation Bord Bainne, with McGough as managing director, served as a proxy for the EEC’s intervention authority by buying dairy products for export from the cooperatives at or near intervention price and by distributing any profit achieved evenly among the cooperatives. Bord Bainne as a cooperative enjoyed a privileged relationship with the state, which pledged to underwrite its borrowings up to £5 million; a guarantee that rose to £40 million by 1977. But one happy consequence for McGough of Bord Bainne’s new status was its freedom from public sector pay restrictions; this facilitated a rise in McGough’s own yearly salary from £6,000 in 1973 to £26,000 in 1977, comfortably outstripping inflation.

McGough’s policy was to use intervention only as a last resort and he noted proudly that he sold no butter into intervention, a strategy considered eccentric in other EEC countries, and by some Irish dairy manufacturers. McGough justified it as designed to strengthen Ireland’s hand in EEC negotiations; more pertinently, sales into intervention might lead to questions about the Irish dairy industry’s need for a central marketing agency.

Entry into the EEC removed the burden of guaranteeing milk prices from the Irish taxpayer and the EEC more than trebled the price of milk per gallon by 1977. Nonetheless, smarting from their experiences in the late 1960s Irish farmers were reluctant to recommit themselves to dairying, and milk production fell in 1974 after a severe winter. McGough launched a well‐publicised ‘More milk’ campaign, yielding a dramatic rise in production from 590 million gallons in 1974 to 735 million gallons in 1977.

Problems However, the workings of the EEC also had the effect of restricting and undermining Bord Bainne’s role. In particular, by providing a guaranteed price only for butter and skimmed milk powder, the EEC subverted the board’s longstanding policy of diversification. Ignoring McGough’s protests, the Irish creameries took the immediate profits available, and by 1976 seventy‐five per cent of Ireland’s exportable milk was going into butter. The EEC had been expected to eliminate Australia and New Zealand from the UK dairy market, but the UK secured special trading rights for New Zealand; combined with a fall in butter consumption in the UK, this made the 1970s a challenging period for Kerrygold sales. The UK’s forbearance towards New Zealand and refusal to countenance EEC levies on dairy substitutes frustrated McGough, who condemned what he saw as the excessively consumerist orientation of British food policy. In one of his last public pronouncements as managing director of Bord Bainne, he criticized the UK for negotiating in bad faith in EEC talks, and urged the Irish government to adopt a similarly ruthless attitude to negotiations.

EEC membership also precluded McGough from compelling cooperatives to export through Bord Bainne. More fundamentally, the sense of urgency and unity instilled into the industry by the adverse trading climate of the 1960s dissipated once Ireland joined a large and lavishly protected agricultural market. The larger cooperatives increasingly sought to export independently when prices were high and only relied on Bord Bainne when they believed they could do no better. McGough threatened to expel wayward cooperatives from the Bord Bainne fold but settled for preserving the appearance of central marketing. It was also reported that he was obliged to grant the most powerful cooperatives a larger share of Bord Bainne’s profits.

During the mid 1970s McGough harboured ambitions to establish a central marketing organization for all Irish food exports. His appointment in July 1974 as chairman of the Pigs and Bacon Commission (which essentially performed the same role as Bord Bainne for pig and bacon exports) was seen as part of this process. In the event, his three‐year term of office was marred by his sanctioning in August 1975 of the purchase of the British firm Bearfield Stratfield, already the commission’s main British distributor, which he hoped to use as a vehicle for distributing bacon under a national brand. But by summer 1976 it was clear that this attempt to recreate the success of Adams Foods had miscarried disastrously. When McGough failed to persuade the pig farmers and processors to provide necessary further capital for Bearfield Stratfield, which had recorded substantial losses, the company had to be wound up. Furthermore, in 1977, Adams Foods experienced temporary difficulties after a failed expansion into frozen foods. These setbacks encouraged a reaction against McGough’s empire‐building within Irish political and agri‐business circles.

During 1976–7 the government considered reducing or even ending its underwriting of Bord Bainne’s borrowings which were reaching alarming proportions arising from the breakneck growth of the dairy industry from 1973. The industry’s growing stock requirements and seasonality – the overwhelming majority of milk produced was sent to the dairies in the summer – obliged Bord Bainne to become one of the larger borrowers on the London money markets from the late 1960s and to cope with increasingly troublesome cash flow and interest charge conundrums, which the introduction of a capital levy in 1977 was but a first step towards resolving. In 1977, peak seasonal borrowings were £131 million. Despite these difficulties, McGough maintained a good reputation, benefiting by association from the subsidy‐fuelled increase in dairy farming incomes and in milk output that occurred after 1973. This was borne out by his appointment in 1976 to head a commission established by the International Dairy Federation to examine the marketing of milk and dairy produce, and by the decision of Business and Finance magazine to make him their Irish business executive of the year for 1976.

Final years Aware that challenging times beckoned, he left Bord Bainne in February 1978 to resume his practice as a barrister. Thereafter he divided his work time between the bar – he became a senior counsel in 1982 – and his rapidly accumulating company directorships; by 1984 he was a director of eighteen companies (ten as chairman) involving him in a diverse range of business sectors. Throughout his career he showed his public spiritedness in membership of many societies, charities and commerce‐ or export‐related bodies, and he was able to devote more time to these after leaving Bord Bainne. In 1978 he was appointed chairman of the newly established Co‐operation North which had been founded to improve relations between the Republic and Northern Ireland, a priority for McGough ever since the unionist community in Northern Ireland had effectively boycotted Kerrygold products (for being so identifiable with the Republic) following the outbreak of the Troubles in 1969. He was appointed chairman of Gorta in 1979 and of the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) in 1981. Under his direction the ASA drew up the first code of practice for the Irish advertising industry. He was also a director of the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin and chairman of the Salvation Army Advisory Board. In 1987 he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Ulster. Easing into a new role as the avuncular elder statesman of the Irish business scene, he appeared frequently on RTÉ television and radio throughout the 1980s, reminiscing (often humorously) about his business and army experiences. Effortlessly debonair, always immaculately attired and deeply cultured, McGough enjoyed literature, theatre and ballet, serving as president of the Irish ballet society in his army days. He died in Dublin on 8 November 2003 and was buried at Kilmashogue cemetery on 11 November. In the 1970s he wrote a draft autobiography, which was not published.

In his belief in close cooperation between the state and certain economically significant corporations and in his belief that these quasi‐state corporations were obliged to consider not just the profit motive but also the impact of their actions on society, McGough was of his time. Such paternalism could engender a sense of impunity and collusion between vested interests that ill served the interests of the consumer and taxpayer. Similarly his demanding clients in rural Ireland often contended that he and Bord Bainne favoured the big farmer over the small. These complaints failed to take account of Bord Bainne’s important, politically necessary but largely unacknowledged role in mitigating and retarding – in the interests of social stability – the inevitable dissolution of Ireland’s small‐farming social structure. As the dynamic figurehead of Ireland’s burgeoning agri‐welfare complex McGough played a pivotal role in the management of this fraught transition.

Sources
GRO (marriage and death certificates); Ir. Times, 9 Sept. 1940; 7 July 1945; 6 Nov. 1946; 31 Oct. 1960; 30 Sept. 1967; 14 Mar., 24 June, 24 Oct. 1968; 2 Jan., 13 Mar., 18 Sept., 31 Oct., 1969; 21 Jan., 10 Sept., 17 Dec., 18 Dec., 1970; 31 Dec. 1971; 25 May, 11 Nov. 1972; 7 July 1973; 23 Mar., 16 May, 22 June, 25 July, 26 Oct., 7 Nov., 4 Dec. 1974; 27 Mar., 24 May, 29 May, 5 June, 18 Sept. 1975; 29 Apr., 26 May, 14 June, 16 June, 24 June, 1 July, 22 Oct., 10 Dec. 1976; 4 Jan., 29 Jan., 21 Feb., 21 Apr., 4 May, 23 May, 4 Nov., 20 Dec. 1977; 19 Jan., 13 Feb., 25 Feb., 2 Mar., 2 Oct. 1978; 31 Jan. 1980; 4 Dec. 1982; 10 Feb. 2000; 22 Nov. 2003; Ir. Independent, 2 Oct. 1940; 8 July 1942; 12 May 1967; 10 Dec. 1968; 8 May, 18 Sept. 1969; 16 Dec. 1971; 26 May, 20 July, 5 Aug. 1972; 1 Sept. 1973; 9 Jan., 5 Apr., 12 June, 25 July 1974; 28 Mar., 15 Apr., 18 Apr. 1975; 19 Mar., 3 Apr., 16 Oct. 1976; 5 Jan., 29 Jan. 1977; 28 Oct. 1982; 31 Aug. 1989; Sunday Independent, 4 Sept. 1960; 10 May, 2 Aug. 1970; 17 Dec. 1995; Irish Farmers' Journal, 17 Apr. 1965; 14 Dec. 1968; 17 May 1969; 5 May, 14 July, 18 Aug., 8 Sept., 15 Sept. 1973; 12 Jan., 9 Feb., 9 Mar., 4 May, 27 July, 12 Oct. 1974; 3 May, 24 May, 20 Sept. 1975; 2 Oct. 1976; 19 Mar., 9 Apr., 16 Apr., 21 May, 18 June, 5 Nov. 1977; 21 Jan., 4 Mar., 25 Mar. 1978; ITWW (1973); Business and Finance, 14. Mar, 29 May, 19 Oct. 1974; 6 Jan., 14 Apr. 1977; 8 Apr. 1982; Irish Business, Sept. 1975; May, July 1978; June 1979; Thom’s Commercial Directory (1983), 869; C. H. Walsh, Oh really, O’Reilly (1992); I. Fallon, The player (1994)

Born: 18 November 1895, Mount Sydney, Wellington Place, Ballsbridge Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 06 October St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 31 July 1927, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1931, Rathfarnham Castle, Dublin
Died: 02 January 1988, St Ignatius, Lower Leeson Street, Dublin

Early education at Belvedere College & Clongowes Wood College SJ

Studied for a BA in French and German as a Junior

by 1918 at Stonyhurst, England (ANG) studying
by 1929 at Valkenburg, Limburg, Netherlands (GER I) making Tertianship
by 1945 at Campion Hall, Oxford (ANG) studying
by 1949 Fordham, NY USA (NEB) making Tertianship

Irish Province News 1st Year No 1 1925
We may mention here a school story recently published – “The Last Lap.” Its author is Mr. Fergal McGrath, SJ. The book, which was mostly written while the author was a scholastic in Clongowes, has had an enthusiastic reception. The Reviewer in the " Ecclesiastical Review " writes of it : “It is a splendid boys' story. Probably neither Fr. Finn, or Fr. Spalding nor Fr. Boylan has told any better”.

Irish Province News 1st Year No 3 1926
Mr Fergal McGrath's “Last Lap” has been translated into Spanish. Much difficulty was experienced in finding Spanish equivalent for such phrases as : “getting his eye in”, “the calculating pig”, etc,

Irish Province News 10th Year No 2 1935
Works by Father Fergal McGrath SJ :

1. “The Last Lap” - Pub. Benziger Bros., N. York and the Talbot
2. “L'Ultima Tappa” - Italian translation of the above by Father Celestine Testore, S.]., , pub. Marietta, Rome, 1929
3. “Adventure Island” - Pub. Benziger Bros., N. York and the Talbot Press, Dublin, 1952. School edition pub by Talbot Press, 1954, sanctioned by Board of Education for Higher Standards of Primary Schools.
4. “Un Drama en Irelande” - French translation of above by M du Bourg. Pub. Editions du Closer, Tours, 1934
5. “Christ in the World of To-day” - Pub. Gill & Son, 1933 (Lenten Lectures on the Sacred Heart)
6. “Mother Catherine McAuley” - (Biographical sketch contributed to The Irish Way) Pub. Sheed & Ward, 1932
7. “The Beefy Saint” - Pub. Irish Catholic Truth Society (a story for boys)
   Pamphlets
8. “Canon Hannigan’s Martyrdom: - Pub. Irish Messenger Series, (A story of Irish clerical life)
9. “The Catholic Church in Sweden” - (Edited) English C.T.S
10. “Stories of the Twelve Promises of the Sacred Heart” - (In collaboration) Irish Messenger Series, “Tenement Angel”.

Irish Province News 23rd Year No 4 1948
Fr. Fergal McGrath sailed from Cobh on 24th September for New York ; he will be lecturing in Fordham University in the coming year.

Irish Province News 63rd Year No 2 1988

Obituary

Fr Fergal McGrath (1895-1913-1988)

Born in Dublin [on 18th November 1895) and educated in Clongowes (1908 12], Fergal McGrath was so dedicated to the Society, which he joined in 1913 on 6th October, after taking First Arts in UCD), that it is impossible to imagine him in any other way of life. He was very proud of his family, particularly of the involvement of his father, Sir Joseph McGrath, in the development of Irish university education, and as he became in his turn the patriarch, his love for the younger generations was evident in the quiet, almost shy, allusions which he made to his nephews and nieces.
Having taken a BA at University College, Dublin [1917], and studied philosophy in both Stonyhurst (1917-'8] and Milltown Park (1920-'2], he taught in Belvedere (1918-'20] and Clongowes [1922-24] before beginning theology at Milltown in 1924. [He was ordained a priest on 31st July 1927.] Fr Fergal's tertianship was made at 's Heerenberg in the Netherlands, which was then a house of the Lower German Jesuit province. He found that tertianship dragged a bit towards the end and he was happy to return to Ireland and to Rathfarnham as Minister of Juniors in 1929. Fr Fergal became Rector of Clongowes in 1933, at a very important phase in the growth of the school, and remained in office until 1941, when he went to Gardiner street as Superior. Four years of study in Oxford, where he took a D. Phil., Occupied his years until 1948 and he spent a further year studying education at Fordham university in New York, Returning to Ireland, Fr Fergal was made Rector of St Ignatius, Galway, where he remained until 1953. Leaving the West, he moved to Leeson street as a writer and spiritual father, until he began his last superiorship as Rector of Rathfarnham in 1961. From 1967 to 1972, he lived at Loyola House. Leeson street was his final Jesuit home. Fr Fergal was Province Archivist from 1975 until 1986, but remained Custodian of the strongroom, dealing with researchers and with many written queries until he went to hospital early in December 1987. He died on 2nd January 1988.
Fergal McGrath was a writer, a Jesuit superior, a good friend to many people all over Ireland, with a vast correspondence and with an interest in everything. He could write scholarly books, short stories, novels of school life and many pamphlets and newspaper articles. He wrote with the same care and precision which he brought to everything he did.
There was no haste, but much prudence. He once said, rather unnecessarily, to somebody who knew him very well '”s you know, I'm a cautious man'” He gave himself heart and soul to any task assigned to him.
Blessed with a very strong constitution and with what seemed to be an inherent ability to avoid stress, Fr Fergal was remarkable in his adherence to a personal daily routine. He had great respect for his fellow Jesuits and found it hard to say anything even remotely harsh about anybody. Most of his experiences as a superior seemed to have been happy, but he never discussed any of the difficulties which must have cropped up in those years, such as the hardships incur red while building at Clongowes and the unease at being a superior in formation during what are known as the 'turbulent' 1960s. In a life which lasted for 92 years, there were obviously disappointments and 'might-have-beens', but Fr Fergal never referred to them. He was quite free from resentment and never wasted time by cultivating hurts. He recognised that the past had not been perfect and, with complete trust in the Lord, got on with the task in hand. This attitude made him a surprisingly free person, because first impressions could be of a man bound by many self-imposed rules.
It was this inner freedom, combined with his respect for others, which drew so many people to him. The person to whom he probably felt closest all his life was a man who died almost fifty-five years before he himself did - Fr John Sullivan. A biography was one sign of his devotion to Fr John's cause; another was his slide-show, of which there were both long and short versions. I remember a conversation in which he made an unconscious slip by referring to “St John Sullivan” and went on talking, unaware of how much he had revealed in that brief anticipation of the Church's judgement. He also did tremendous work for the Cause of Mother Mary Aikenhead.
Despite the long and very slow decline in his energies, Fr Fergal's last years in Leeson street were undoubtedly some of his happiest. As his long daily walk along the Stillorgan road was gradually reduced to a stroll in the back garden, as he became more and more grateful for the lift in the house, he gave the impression of great happiness, because he felt himself among a group of brothers in the Lord, who both cared for him and esteemed him. He lived to become the longest-serving member of the Province.
There were many changes in the Society which Fr Fergal accepted, but which he hardly understood and of which he did not fully approve, but here, once again, his obedience and his deep sense of commitment as a religious took him across hurdles at which he might have fallen. Fr Fergal was intelligent and was a liberal in the Edwardian sense of the word. Patience was one of his strongest suits and stood him in good stead on many an occasion when he might have been driven wild with exasperation, as when unpunctual scholars kept him waiting for hours after they were due to examine documents in the archives.
His radio was a prized and well-used object. Even at 92, Fr Fergal found that a session with his clarinet was a good way to relax and he never felt called to make major adjustments for the television era. His devotions took up an increasingly large part of his day and it was obvious that he was very close to the Lord. In somebody so accomplished, so well known that he received an honorary doctorate from UCD as recently as 1982, there was a profound vein of humility, as I discovered one morning when he amazed me by asking for my advice about some point in the Divine Office.
We worked together in the archives for several years. Having known many of the men whose papers are preserved in the Leeson Street strong-room, he was an invaluable source of advice. No question from me was made to seem silly, no letter from any enquirer was too demanding to merit his full attention.
I treasure casual remarks Fr Fergal made, such as “I don't remember Fr X, but I do recall the old men talking about him” or his stories about mishaps during a juniorate villa at Monkstown, Co Dublin, during the first world war. He spoke little about his own accomplishments, such as his classical learning and his good command of Irish, but he did pass on jocular pieces of advice, such as a piece of consolation he had been given in 1933, when somebody told him that “being a rector isn't too bad - there are even whole days when you'll forget that you're a rector at all”.
A quick glance around his room told the story of Fr Fergal's life better than any biography. His chimneypiece was lined with photographs of his family, of fellow Jesuits and of the present Pope. There was one small bookshelf and, piled beside it, boxes of papers relating to Fr John Sullivan. His wardrobe contained a few, well-worn clothes and his Jesuit gown hung on the back of his door. The attention of any visitor would be drawn to the most prominent object in the room: a desk, laden with letters from all over Ireland and abroad, with books which he was reading as possible material for the refectory and with a Latin Office-book placed close to his armchair.
Fr Fergal's last illness was mercifully brief. His sense of humour showed itself to the end, as he responded to a plea not to die in 1987 and thereby destroy the Province's death-free record for that year. When I last saw him, the day before his death, he was sleeping peace fully, his face serene. A well-lived life was drawing to its earthly close. It was a life in which many people were blessed with his friendship and I am very grateful for having been one of them.
Fergus O'Donoghue, SJ

Fr Fergal McGrath: Incomplete bibliography of his works
Fiction:
“Adventure Island “(Dublin and New York, 1932). “Tenement Angel and Other Stories “(Dublin, 1934). “The Last Lap “(Dublin, 1925; Italian translation “L'ultima Tappa”, Turin "and Rome, 1929; French translation “Au Dernier Tour”, Paris, (no date).
Education:
“The Consecration of Learning”: lectures on Newman's Idea of a university (Dublin and New York, 1962). “Education in Ancient and Mediaeval Ireland” (Dublin, 1979). “Newman's University: Idea and Reality” (Dublin, 1951). “The university question” in “A History of Irish Catholicism”, vol. V, pp. 84-142 (Dublin, 1971).
Christian doctrine: Christ in the world of today (Dublin, 1933). Life in Christ (Dublin, 1957).
Biography: Father John Sullivan, S.J. (Dublin, 1941).
Biographical articles:
“Catherine McAuley” in “The Irish Way”, edited by F.J. Sheed, pp. 244-'62 (London, 1932). “The conversion” in “A Tribute to Newman”, edited by Michael Tierney, pp. 57 83 (Dublin, 1945). “The Background to Newman's Idea of a University” in “The Month”, July-August 1945, vol. 181, no. 946, pp. 247-'58.
Pamphlets:
“Father John Sullivan SJ” (Dublin, 1942). “Newman in Dublin” (Dublin, 1969). “Youth Guidance” (Dublin, 1944). “James A Cullen SJ : A modern Apostle of the Sacred Heart” (Dublin, 1980).

◆ The Clongownian, 1988

Obituary

Father Fergal McGrath SJ

A life-span of ninety-two years, almost all of it in active life, would fill a long chronicle. Fergal McGrath’s was particularly full, not just because of his health and longevity, but more because of his talents and fidelity to his Jesuit priesthood.. His associations with Clongowes are especially strong, and the most important of them are almost impossible to chronicle, because they consist of friendships with hundreds of Clongownians, scattered across Ireland, Europe and beyond, who will remember this large, kindly, courteous and always interested friend as an important part of their lives.

A photograph of Fergal's father used to hang in the Rogues Gallery in Clongowes, a respectable Victorian figure: Sir Joseph McGrath. He had been a teacher in the old Tullabeg College, later became co-secretary with Sir James Creed Merridith of the Royal University of Ireland and subsequently of the National University of Ireland, and in this latter capacity he was knighted by what in retrospect can be seen as a dying British administration. Fergal did not often talk about his father, but his own identity was different. He was a strongly patriotic Irishman, committed to his country and its language, and without the animosities that could have marred another son of a knighted father. He took pains to learn Irish well, and used it when he could; so he was at his ease as Rector of an Irish-speaking school, Galway's Coláiste Iognáid, in the early 1950s.

He was educated at Belvedere and, from the age of 14, at Clongowes; after First Arts in University College, Dublin, he entered the Jesuit noviceship, and later studied modern languages, then philosophy, then theology. As soon as he finished his Jesuit training, with a tertianship in Germany, he was loaded with responsibility: the charge of Jesuit scholastics in Rathfarnham, then Rector of Clongowes, Superior of Gardiner Street Church and community, Rector of Coláiste Iognáid in Galway, and later of Rathfarnham Castle.

Fergal carried these burdens with a genial ease, but paid a price for them. He worried about his charges and spent endless energy preparing, planning and providing. It was as a prudent and promising young man that he was appointed to succeed Fr George Roche. The Clongowes he took over in 1933, and ruled for eight years, carried what then seemed a crippling debt. In the climate of the Economic War, money was short to a degree we can hardly imagine. Pupils, the main source of revenue, were scarce, and with World War II became scarcer. The contractor of the New Building had gone bankrupt. The college was not insured against this contingency, and had to take over the management of construction, and all through the thirties and early forties, suffered from a pressing and sometimes mounting debt to the banks which coloured all administrative decisions.

His last two years in Clongowes were overshadowed by the war in Europe, with all the fears and uncertainties it brought. Fergal organised (through the scholastics) a fire brigade for contingencies. He saw a tide of refugees from England rise and ebb, leaving him with many empty beds and financial worries.

He once remarked that he went to Clongowes full of enthusiasm as an educator, loving the scope that the job seemed to offer; but soon found that all his energies were used in surviving. He was a slim man of 37 when he went to Clongowes, but the burdens of responsibility and a sedentary job turned him into the portly figure we later knew. He tried in vain to reduce it. He was a modest eater, and well into his eighties he walked, and swam, and on holidays played consistent golf. His two splendid schoolboy stories, “The Last Lap” and “Adventure Island” show what an active, dreaming boy there was inside the adult frame. He wrote them in odd moments of enforced leisure, one in a convalescence from a long flu in the twenties, the other in spare moments when in charge of the Jesuit juniors. He relished the memory of a happy and carefree youth with its limited anxieties. Adult life as a Jesuit had for him few carefree moments.

Despite his worries, he was much appreciated in Clongowes, especially by the ten scholastics who constituted the most active and talented part of the teaching staff, and whom he supported and fathered in the kindest way. To the parents he was always accessible and understanding, generous in remitting fees in cases of bereavement or hardship, energetic in helping past pupils on their first steps in life. He never forgot Clongowes, though his last residence there ended nearly fifty years before his death. He would never miss a Clongownian funeral, and maintained an enormous correspondence with past pupils and parents who became his warm
friends.

Fergal's friendships were in many ways his greatest achievement - and he was a man of considerable achievements. He kept his friendships in good repair by visits and correspondence. They were planned, as every thing in his life was planned. He would delicately invite a fellow Jesuit to chaperone him on visits to widows or spinsters. He would bring his clarinet to play duets with an aging bachelor, a former colleague. When, in Galway, Bishop Michael Browne's mother died, Fergal agonised over whether it would be appropriate for him to approach the formidable old prelate with his sympathies. He made the move, and found that he was almost the only one to have ventured near the isolated and sorrowing bishop, who was deeply moved by Fergal's humanity. Here as elsewhere, Fergal's moves were for other people's sake, not for his own.

The others whom he befriended were from every part and condition in the country. Fergal knew the taste of poverty from his experiences of the thirties, and he responded positively, not just in individual acts of kindness, but interested himself too in the structures of society. He initiated the Social Study weekends which brought all sections of industrial and agricultural society to Clongowes for seminars of a high quality in the mid-thirties. He gave much energy to the Clongowes Housing Project, providing flats for the needy in Blackhall Place; and also to the Clongowes Boys' Club.

Apart from these concerns, Fergal gave innumerable retreats and lectures, many of the latter focussed on Fr John Sullivan, of whom he wrote the biography as well as a popular pamphlet. On coming to Clongowes he inherited the aura of John Sullivan, and he did more than perhaps any other man to convey to the public the impact of John's saintliness.

The public obituaries of Fergal spoke of him in that most ambiguous phrase, as “a distinguished educator”. He was indeed a sound scholar, well equipped for the task with languages, patience, a broad educational background in his youth, and an extraordinarily methodical approach to work. His study of Newman's University was a major work of lasting value, the fruit of four happy years of research in Champion Hall, Oxford, then in its palmiest days.

When Fr Tim Corcoran vacated the Chair of Education in UCD, Fergal's wide educational experience and high reputation made him a likely candidate for the position, It is said that Chancellor Eamonn De Valera, at the meeting to appoint the new professor, asked: “Is Father McGrath not interested?” But Fergal had withdrawn his interest rather than contest the chair with Tim Corcoran's assistant, W Williams, who he felt had prior claim on it, and whose late application was unexpected. Instead he spent a year as visiting professor in Fordham University, his only transatlantic excursion, but one that he remembered with warmth and happiness.

Fergal was a conservative and cautious man to the end. In 1987 he wrote to a friend marvelling at her word-processor, but preferring still to tap away at a typewriter he had bought secondhand in 1933. He did not enjoy the major changes in the Church and in Irish Jesuits in the last two decades. The disruption of traditions and the loss of vocations disturbed him - he was quite upset when the present writer grew a beard in the early seventies, and correspondingly relieved when the growth was shaved off. But he never became angry, bitter or vociferous. He reflected beautifully his master Newman's definition of a gentleman; one who never willingly inflicts pain. He was trusted to the end by all his brethren, whom he served to his ninety-third year as keeper of the Province archives. May one conjecture that what he must particularly enjoy in the Beatific Vision is “Deus Immutabilis”, in whom there is no shadow of change, who wipes all tears from our eyes, and has lifted all burdens and anxieties off Fergal's broad back.

PA

Born: 25 July 1799, Fenagh, County Kildare
Entered: 02 June 1836, Hodder, Stonyhurst, England - Angliae Province (ANG)
Final vows: 02 February 1850
Died: 28 July 1850, Stonyhurst, Lancashire, England - Angliae Province (ANG)

Older Brother of John - RIP 1876
HIB Menologies SJ :
James Gray - real name was McGrath
Brother of John

Born: 1 February 1872, Aglish, County Waterford
Entered: 22 August 1896, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 28 July 1907, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1915, Belvedere College SJ, Dublin
Died: 11 May 1946, Milltown Park, Dublin

Parents farmers. Eldest of five boys and two girls.

Eduated at NS Aglish, Clashmore and Villierstown and Mount Mellary. Then to St John’s Seminary, Waterford and St Patrick’s College, Maynooth

by 1899 in Vals France (LUGD) studying
by 1913 at Linz Austria (ASR) making Tertianship
by 1919 at Hastings, Sussex, England (LUGD) studying

◆ Fr Francis Finegan : Admissions 1859-1948 - Had studied for 5 years at St Patrick's College Maynooth before Entry

◆ Irish Province News

Irish Province News 1st Year No 3 1926

The Irish Sodality : This Sodality is directed by Fr Michael McGrath. It grew out of the first week-end retreat in Irish at Milltown Park in 1916. After the retreat, steps were taken with a view to the formation of an Irish-speaking Sodality for men. Success attended the effort, and the first meeting was held in Gardiner Street on Friday in Passion Week. The Sodality soon numbered 400 members. In 1917 a second Irish-speaking Sodality, exclusively for women, was established. In a short time it was found advisable to amalgamate the two branches. The Sodality is now in a flourishing condition, and has every prospect of a bright future before it. In addition to the Sodality, there is an annual “open” retreat given in Gardiner Street to Irish speakers. The first of these retreats was given in 1923 by Fr Coghlan, he also gave the second the following year. The third was given by Father Saul.

Irish Province News 21st Year No 3 1946

Obituary :

Fr. Michael McGrath (1872-1896-1946)

Fr. Michael McGrath was born at Aglish, Co. Waterford, on February 1st, 1872. Educated at Mount Melleray, then at St. John's College, Waterford, and lastly at Maynooth, he entered the Society at Tullabeg on August 22nd, 1896, and later went to Vals for philosophy. He taught in the Crescent 1901-5. He was ordained with Fr. William Doyle and Fr. John Sullivan in Milltown Park by Archbishop Walsh in 1907. He made his tertianship at Freienberg in Austria, and then taught for five years at Belvedere. A course of Canon Law under Pére Choupin at Ore Place, Hastings, completed his long formation, and the rest of his life was spent at Milltown Park, where he was Professor of Canon Law from 1920 to 1932, Lecturer in History of Philosophy from 1924 to 1930, Professor of Patrology, Christian Archaeology, Liturgy and Ascetics from 1932 to 1946. The Irish language always remained Fr. McGrath's favourite study. He established the Irish Sodality of the Blessed Virgin at Gardiner Street in 1916, and continued to direct it until 1935. His edition of Amhlaoibh Ua Suilleabháin's Irish Diary for the Irish Texts Society (1936-8) will be a lasting testimonial to his mastery of Irish and English. He was, at the time of his death, engaged on the preparation of many other Irish works, some of which were nearing completion. Among these were an Irish translation of the New Testament (apart from the Gospels and Acts of the Apostles) with a detailed commentary, the Irish Missal of O'Hickey brought up to date, the Life of St. Aloysius Gonzaga, and the Lives of Distinguished Celtic Scholars. During his long years in Milltown his encouragement and advice were highly appreciated by many a theologian, and his hard. work and cheerfulness were a model to all.

Fr. Garahy has kindly contributed the following personal appreciation :
My acquaintance with Michael McGrath began at Mount Melleray in 1888. He had been there a year or two before my arrival. We soon formed a friendship which lasted during the year and a half I spent in that romantic retreat at the foot of Knockmealdown Mountain. I left Melleray at the end of the Christmas term for Mungret College. Michael McGrath remained on for another couple of years and then passed to St. John's College, Waterford. Later still he was sent to Maynooth, having won a free place in the National College. He had finished two years of his theology course when, with the leave of his bishop, he offered bimself as a candidate for the Society in 1896.
In Melleray Michael McGrath was of the quiet type, rather shy and retiring, but a sincere friend when one had succeeded in breaking through his reserve. He was a painstaking student, eager to absorb all the knowledge offered us boys in classics, the sciences and history. One advantage he had over the rest of us he had a fair acquaintance with the Gaelic. It was spoken freely in his native townland of Aglish, Co. Waterford. It was also the language of the little mountaineers who attended the National School at Melleray. I used to envy Michael McGrath when I heard him exchanging jokes in Irish with those youngsters on their way home from school. Irish was not taught in the College in those days, though we were living in the heart of an Irish speaking district. Melleray was not singular in that matter. The Gaelic revival did not come till several years later. When it did come Michael McGrath threw himself with all the ardour of his soul into the movement.
He and I met again in the Crescent after fourteen years. I was so taken with his enthusiasm for the language that I accepted his offer of instruction and within a few months found myself appointed to teach the first couple of O'Growney's booklets to & class of small boys in the Crescent. During the year I spent with him in Limerick he held the office of Prefect of Studies although still a scholastic. His whole hearted devotion to the duties of his office during that year was to be expected of the Michael McGrath I knew at Melleray—with his passion for study and his earnestness of character. What I did not expect and what was always a wonder to me was his unsparing self-sacrifice in helping the more backward boys to succeed in the examinations. What this cost him in time and in strain on his nerves only himself knew. We, his fellow masters, knew that he regularly sacrificed the couple of hours so badly needed after a hard day's work in the school room to this work of charity; and the wonder was how he escaped a nervous collapse.
At the end of the year he and I left Limerick for Milltown Park to begin our theological studies. The Gaelic revival was then in full swing. Milltown Park had caught the infection ever before our arrival, Fr, Lambert McKenna, Fr. J. F. X. O'Brien and Mr. Tomás Ó Nualláin were, I think, the pioneers of the movement in Milltown. It was natural that those of us who were anxious to master the difficulties of the spoken language should turn to Mr. McGrath for help. He had what we all lacked, a rich sonorous Déisi blas. I well remember his patience in helping us to acquire the correct sounds of the broad and slender vowels. Fr. B. Coghlan, one of our really great Irish scholars to-day, was an enthusiastic pupil, and so was Fr. Dominick Kelly, now for many years a distinguished professor in Newman College, Melbourne.
When Fr. McGrath returned to Milltown as a professor, I had already been transferred to the Mission staff. From that time forth I had few opportunities of meeting him. May he rest in peace”.
It is hoped to include an account of Fr. McGrath's Milltown career in the October issue.

◆ James B Stephenson SJ Menologies 1973

Father Michael McGrath 1872-1946
Fr Michael McGrath, while yet a scholastic, was Prefect of Studies at Crescent from 1901-1905.

Born in Aglish County Waterford on February 1st 1872, he was educated at Mount Melleray. He passed on to Maynooth and from there entered the Society in 1896.

Having studied Canon Law for a period after his ordination, the rest of his life was spent in Milltown Park, as professor in various faculties, Canon Law, Patrology, Liturgy and Ascetics. Normally a most kindly and lovable man, he could be most vehement in argument. For example, as Professor of Ascetics, when lecturing on the vice of curiosity, especially in religious, he used to refer to a Father (unnamed) notorious for this fault, and would almost have a stroke, so vehement would be his effort to convey his scorn for such pettiness.

He was a great Irish scholar, with a vast enthusiasm for the revival of the language. He edited the Diary of Amhlaoimh O’Sullivan for the Irish Texts Society. At the time of his death he was engaged in a new translation of the Bible, an Irish Missal, a life of St Aloysius Gonzaga and the lives of distinguished Irish scholars. He founded the Irish Sodality in Gardiner Street in 1916, and he continued to direct it until 1935.

His retreats were famous, being based on John Oxenham “Bees in Amber”, and there was hardly a convert in Ireland that had not heard his opening words : “Yo every man there openeth, a high way and a low”.

He was a model of observance, kindly in advice both as professor and confessor, and many generations of Jesuits owe him a deep debt for his faithful and patient service in their formation. He died on May 11th 1946.

◆ The Crescent : Limerick Jesuit Centenary Record 1859-1959

Bonum Certamen ... A Biographical Index of Former Members of the Limerick Jesuit Community

Father Michael McGrath (1872-1946)

Was born at Aglish, Co. Waterford and educated at Mount Mellary. He was accepted by the Bishop of Waterford for his diocese and commenced his ecclesiastical studies at St John's, Waterford. From Waterford he was transferred to Maynooth where he completed two years' theology. With the permission of his bishop he applied for admission to the Society and began his noviceship at Tullabeg in 1896. His higher studies were made at Vals, Milltown Park and in Austria. He was ordained in Dublin in 1907. Father McGrath spent six years regency at the Crescent and was the first scholastic since Father Tom Finlay to be entrusted with the onerous duties of prefect of studies. After the completion of his studies, Father McGrath was employed in teaching for five years at Belvedere College, when his superiors bade him once more return to his own studies: he was sent off for higher studies in Canon Law to prepare him for a professor's chair at Milltown Park. He held the chair of Canon Law from 1920-32 but remained a member of the theological faculty until his death. He was a native Gaelic speaker and deeply learned in the language.

Born: 11 May 1887, Upper Gardiner Street, Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 07 September 1905, Tullabeg
Ordained: 15 August 1920, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1923, Clongowes Wood College SJ
Died: 05 September 1925, Dublin

Part of the Clongowes Wood College, Naas, Co Kildare community at the time of death

Father was a Pawnbroker who died in 1890. Mother is supported by the business.

Youngest of three sons (1 deceased) and two daughters

Early education at Belvedere College SJ.

by 1910 at Stonyhurst England (ANG) studying

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
Early education was at Belvedere - a conspicuous member of the gymnastics team which had won the Shield so often there.

After his Novitiate he did his Philosophy at Stonyhurst, then Regency at Clongowes, and then he went to Milltown for Theology.
After Ordination he went to Clongowes as Study Prefect. He was very devoted to his work, even in times when he was suffering much from his health.
He had been ill for a number of years and doctors had though an operation could be successful. Within a month he underwent three operations, all very severe, and he died 05/09/1925 at the early age of 38. his sufferings during his last illness were so acute that one of his nurses had to be withdrawn, being unable to witness such suffering. All through this he was very patient and resigned to the will of God.
He was a pious man and very devoted to Our Lady. He was simple, unostentatious, kindly and generous in making sacrifices for the convenience of others. He prepared very carefully for everything - which his careful copious notes show - and this brought him remarkable success as a Preacher and Director of Retreats.
On the 1925 status he had been appointed Minister at Mungret, a job which he would have done admirably. But before he could take up that post he became very ill and died.

◆ Irish Province News
Irish Province News 1st Year No 2 1926
Obituary :
Fr Thomas McGuinness

Fr T McGuinness had been ailing for about three years, and finally the doctors decided to attempt an operation. Within a month he underwent three operations, all extremely severe, and he died on September 5th, 1925, at the early age of 38 years. His sufferings during his last illness were so acute that one of his nurses had to be withdrawn, not being able to bear seeing him in such great pain. All through he was patient, and entirely resigned to the will of God.

He was Belvederian - as a boy he was a conspicuous member of the gymnastic team which won the Shield so often for the College. He did his philosophy at Stonyhurst, his teaching at Clongowes, his theology at Milltown. After the Tertianship he returned to Clongowes as Study Prefect. He was efficient and devoted to his duty, being often at his post when he was
suffering much.
He was very pious, especially toward Our Lady, very simple and unostentatious, kindly and generous in making sacrifices for the convenience of others. These qualities, coupled with careful preparation - how careful his copious notes show - brought him remarkable success as a preacher and director of retreats. On the last status he was appointed Minister at Mungret a post which he would have filled admirably. But before he entered on his duties there, God called him to his reward.

◆ James B Stephenson SJ Menologies 1973

Father Thomas McGuinness 1887-1925
Fr Thomas McGuinness had been ailing for three years, so, finally the doctors decided on an operation. Within a month he underwent three operations, all extremely severe, to no avail, and he died on September 5th 1925 at the early age of 38 years. His sufferings during his last illness were so acute that one of the nurses had to be withdrawn, not being able to endure seeing him in such pain. All through he was patient and resigned to the will of God.

He was a Belvederian, and as a boy was conspicuous as a member of the gymnastics team which won the Shield do often for the College. He entered the Society in 1905.

After his tertianship he was sent to Clongowes as Study prefect. He was very efficient and devoted to his monotonous duty, being often at his post when he was suffering a great deal.

He was deeply devoted to Our Lady, simple and unostentatious in manner, generous in making sacrifices for others.These qualities, coupled with careful preparation, his copious notes augured remarkable success for him as a preacher and director of retreats.

On the 1925 Status he was appointed Minister at Mungret, but before he entered on his duties there, God called him to his reward.

◆ The Clongownian, 1926

Obituary

Father Thomas McGuinness SJ

Tom McGuinness died in hospital after a series of severe operations. He had been in Clongowes for five years as a scholastic, and for five more of his short life as a priest he had presided in one of our study halls. As a Belvedere boy he was a wonderful athlete and gymnast, and to the last he was capable of marvellous feats, but those who knew him in the days when as a young man he coached the Gym, team and made runs freely for the Community, would scarcely have recognised the gay and light-hearted leader of boys in the worn and emaciated man years of terrible suffering made of him. Yet few knew what he suffered, for with characteristic pluck he concealed it all, and often he dragged himself to the Study when he could scarcely walk, And his natural gaiety and a kind of delight Tul simplicity of heart, school boyishness it seemed, complimenting schoolboys for such is the Kingdom of Heaven-never lessened. At the same time, there grew up in him in an evident way a stronger spirituality which made him, young but very carefully prepared as he was, a most valued giver of retreats from the very first. Small wonder, then, that the loss of such a personality, guessed at and felt rather than known though he was, left us all with a sense of deep and even irreparable loss.

Born:
Entered: 07 September 1809, Hodder, Stonyhurst College SJ, Lancashire, England (ANG)
Ordained: 1820

Left Society of Jesus: by 1826

1809-1811: Hodder, Stonyhurst College SJ, Lancashire, England (ANG), Novitiate

1816-1822: Clongowes Wood College SJ, Theology and Teaching

not in 1826 HIB Catalogue

Born: 10 April 1836, Monaghan Town, County Monaghan
Entered: 29 July 1865, Milltown Park, Dublin
Ordained: 17 May 1864 - pre Entry
Final Vows: 15 August 1875
Died: 13 April 1910, Mungret College SJ, Mungret, County Limerick

Educated at St Patrick’s College, Maynooth; Taught at Maynooth and then at St MacCartan’s Diocesan Seminary

Master of Novices 1874-1882

by 1872 at St Beuno’s Wales (ANG) studying
by 1873 at St Beuno’s Wales (ANG) teaching
by 1874 at Drongen France (FRA) making Tertianship

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
Brother of Msgr John McKenna, Dromore, County Tyrone

He made his priestly studies at Maynooth, and became a distinguished member of the Dunboyne Establishment (the original postgrad house of Maynooth). Some of his fellow students there were Dr William Walshe, Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Edward T O’Dwyer, Bishop of Limerick, and many other remarkable men.

After First Vows he was sent as a Teacher to Galway and then as a Teacher and Operarius at Limerick, as a form of Regency.
1872 He made further studies in Theology at St Beuno’s and became “Professor of the Shorts”.
1873-1874 He was sent to Drongen fr Tertianship.
1874-1882 He was appointed Master of Novices at Milltown.
1883 He was sent to Galway again as a Teacher.
1885 He spent time at Tullabeg caring for his health.
1891 At the opening of the Theologate at Milltown, he was appointed Professor of Logic and Moral Theology.
1908 He retired to Mungret in failing health. He attended the 1910 Provincial Congregation, and when he got back to Mungret he had a bad cold. This brought about his death with great speed, and he died there 13 April 1910.

◆ James B Stephenson SJ Menologies 1973

Father Charles McKenna SJ 1836-1910
Fr Charles McKenna was already a priest of the Clogher Diocese when he entered the Society in 1865. His career at Maynooth had been brilliant, his fellow students in the Dunboyne being the Archbishop Walsh of Dublin and Bishop O’Dwyer of Limerick.

He became Professor of the Short Course at Milltown and from 1874 to 1882 was Master of Novices in the same house. When Milltown Park was inaugurated as a Collegium Maximum in 1891, he was appointed professor of Logic and Moral Theology.

In 1908 he retired to Mungret in ill health, and he died there two years later on April 13th, having given 45 years of solid and outstanding service to the Province.

◆ The Mungret Annual, 1910

Obituary

Father Charles McKenna SJ

Within less than a year after the death of Walter Colgan, the Angel of Death has again visited Mungret, not now to call one of the boys, but one of the Fathers. Fr Charles McKenna, notwithstanding his advanced years, seemed to be in his usual health till about the 8th of April last when he had a weakness from which he appeared to recover, but which returned the same day. For some time he held his own, but finally we were grieved to hear that pneumonia had developed, and on the 13th he passed quietly away, having received the last sacraments. Fr McKenna was born in 1836 in Monaghan. Having entered Maynooth College he was ordained for the diocese of Clogher anal became a member of the Dunboyne Establishment. In 1865 he entered the Society of Jesus. Besides, holding other offices, he was for some years Professor of Moral Theology and Canon Law, and was much consulted for his opinion. His health becoming enfeebled, he was attached to this house about two years ago. Though his duties here did not relate directly to the school, his bright look and cheerful inanner were well known to all and will be missed for many a day. RIP

◆ The Crescent : Limerick Jesuit Centenary Record 1859-1959

Bonum Certamen ... A Biographical Index of Former Members of the Limerick Jesuit Community

Father Charles McKenna (1836-1910)

Was a secular priest of the Clogher diocese when he was admitted to the Society in 1865. After his noviceship, he came as master to the Crescent where he remained for four years. Father McKenna was a man of fine intellectual gifts and was in due course appointed to the chair of moral theology and canon law at Milltown Park, where he remained until the year before his death. He was a member of the Mungret community for the last few months of his life.

Born: 18 September 1929, Townsend Street, Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 01 October 1947, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Ordained: 31 July 1962, Milltown Park , Dublin
Final Vows: 08 December 1976, John Austin House, Dublin
Died: 21 January 2020, Cherryfield Lodge, Dublin

Part of the Milltown Park, Dublin community at the time of death.

Born In Leeson Street, Dublin

Son of Patrick Joseph Mckenna and Mary Dolan. Father was a retired Irish Army Officer, and is a licensed vintner.

Eldest of six boys.

Early education was at Stanhope Street Convent and then at O’Connell’s school

1949-1952 Rathfarnham - Studying Arts at UCD
1952-1955 Tullabeg - Studying Philosophy
1955-1956 Crescent College SJ, Limerick - Regency : Teacher
1956-1958 Clongowes Wood College SJ - Teacher; Studying CWC Cert in Education
1958-1962 Milltown Park - Studying Theology
1962-1963 Rathfarnham - Tertianship
1963-1964 Belvedere College SJ - Teacher; Chaplain Belvedere Newsboy’s Club
1964-1974 Rathfarnham - Teacher & Chaplain at Bolton St College of Technology, Dublin
1969 Sabbatical
1970 Province Social Survey
1974-2010 John Austin House - Teacher & Chaplain at Bolton Street College of Technology, Dublin
1987 Vice-Superior
1991 Bolton Trust - Development Director & Secretary; Sabbatical
1995 Vice-Superior
1997 Chair of Co-operative Development Society
2010-2014 Gardiner St - Chair of Co-operative Development Society; Vice-President of Bolton Trust; Writer
2014-2020 Milltown Park - Chair of Co-Op Development Society; Vice-President ‘The Bolton Trust’; Writer
2015 Researching Ecology
2018 Prays for the Church and the Society at Cherryfield Lodge

◆ Jesuits in Ireland : https://www.jesuit.ie/news/bolton-trust-at-25/
Dermot McKenna, just turning 84, is celebrating the silver jubilee of the Bolton Trust. He traces his interest in cooperatives to Maggie Thatcher. In 1987 Dermot was a chaplain in Bolton Street College of Technology,… and teaching management and industrial psychology to engineers, showing how people can achieve a lot if they organise in small groups.
In the terrible recession of the 1980s (not as bad as the one we are suffering now) he and his colleagues saw their graduates snatched off to jobs in the offshore island by interviewers sent over by English companies.
“After all our labours, off they went to work for Maggie Thatcher. A group of us used to meet over lunch, and eventually came up with the idea of setting up a kind of co-op, a company limited by guarantee. 25 years ago we formed the Bolton Trust which started in Bolton Street and spread to the other DIT colleges. Its mission is to foster entrepreneurship and grow sustainable indigenous enterprises. A lot of teachers joined in, salaried by the DIT but giving their services freely to the Trust. A key figure in the development was Rea O’Neill, who has put enormous work into it and is highly regarded in all the colleges.
“The ESB gave us an old hotel down on the docks where we could bring in people and they could set up their own companies. At first we used that as our centre – about 20,000 square feet, which was rather small. In 1999 the Bolton Trust took over the East Wall Enterprise Centre from the IDA, renamed it the Docklands Innovation Park (DIP) and formed a long-term plan to upgrade the extensive facilities and create a hub for enterprise and innovation.”
The DIP is now home to some 40 established companies, and it “incubates” a further 40 start-ups every year. Its tenants employ some 350 people. It is central, connected by road and rail in all directions, with excellent online and phone services in its modern and secure offices. It is well described as a dynamic entrepreneurial environment. In its meeting rooms you sense a buzz of young, technically sophisticated people whose horizon is the globe.
The Bolton Trustees still remember with gratitude the support of Dermot McKenna throughout its life (he is still Vice-President), and the financial help of the Irish Jesuit Province at a time when the DIP was just a bright idea, a sign of hope. It is an example of two of the three dimensions which Fr General seeks in our ministries: the promotion of justice and collaboration with others.

https://www.jesuit.ie/news/dermot-mckenna-sj-animated-by-vatican-ii/

Dermot McKenna SJ: animated by Vatican II
It was Vatican II above all that gave Dermot McKenna SJ, who passed away on 21 January, aged 90, the freedom to live out his Jesuit life fruitfully, according to Gerry O’Hanlon who gave the homily at the requiem Mass on 24 January.
The council brought with it “a retrieval of the mystical, more emotionally charged, and experiential version of Ignatian spirituality, the opening to finding God in all things and an understanding of the faith that does justice”. It was all of this that allowed Dermot to “breathe in a way that wasn’t so easy beforehand, despite his idealism, his love of God”.
Fired by this new spirit in the Church, Dermot became engaged in technical education, especially in Bolton Street College of Technology. According to Gerry, Dermot threw himself into “direct analysis and dialogue around the world of work and all it demanded”, studying urban sociology and social psychology. Eventually he set up the Bolton Trust to help fund and support the cooperative movement in Ireland, his great passion in life.
Dermot passed away on 21 January 2020. You can read Gerry O’Hanlon’s homily notes here » Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

https://www.jesuit.ie/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Dermot-McKenna-Homily-notes-GOH.pdf

REQUIEM MASS FOR DERMOT MCKENNA SJ 24 JANUARY 2020
Homily notes by Gerry O’Hanlon SJ
After they had eaten, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these others do?”
“Yes, Lord,” he answered, “you know that I love you.”
Jesus said to him, “Take care of my lambs.” A second time Jesus said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
“Yes, Lord,” he answered, “you know that I love you.”
Jesus said to him, “Take care of my sheep.” A third time Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
Peter became sad because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” and so he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you!”
Jesus said to him, “Take care of my sheep. When you were young, you used to get ready and go wherever you wanted to: but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will tie you up and take you where you don’t want to go’
— John 21: 15-18
You can sense Simon Peter a bit impatient and uneasy as Jesus asks him three times, do you love me? Well, those of you who knew Dermot so well can imagine how blunt he might have been in his reply!
But as we gather to celebrate and give thanks for him, to mourn his passing, I think those words of love and of being young and old say a lot about someone we have all known, will miss so much, and of whom we have our own particular memories.
When you were young: I think first of his time as a young Jesuit, joining in 1947 – not so easy: a pre-Vatican II church that saw the modern world as its enemy, a Society of Jesus that had a tough, of its time, emotionally illiterate formation, a spirituality that focussed on an ascetic reading of the Spiritual Exercises, and a notion of obedience that often bypassed consultation and discernment. The camaraderie that existed among the foot soldiers was often accompanied by an anti-authority hostility and even anger.
And then the climate changed. The Church in the modern World of Vatican II, a retrieval of the mystical, more emotionally charged, and experiential version of Ignatian spirituality, the opening to finding God in all things and an understanding of the faith that does justice
– all this meant that Dermot could breathe in a way that wasn’t so easy beforehand, despite his idealism, his love of God. He found Paddy Doyle in Rathfarnham to be a kindred spirit in the 60s and 70s, and he became engaged in the main apostolate of his life, Bolton Street College of Technology, later to become the Dublin Institute of Technology, now part of a University.
It’s almost as if those changes in title – reflecting a struggle for parity of esteem on behalf of technical education, taken for granted in continental Europe but always somewhat second-class till then in Ireland – mirrored the kind of project Dermot and his colleagues were engaged in. In retrospect it seems to me that he – and they, including Brendan Duddy who is still with us today – were kind of unsung heroes, in first touch with the secularisation and secularism which we take for granted in Ireland today but which then was new, with a group of students who were often viewed as second best by wider society, and, as priests, in a role was really very un-clerical, demanding new responses.
Dermot and his colleagues had different ways of going at this challenge. Some preferred a more traditional, chaplain and pastoral/sacramental role, while others, Dermot among them, preferred a more direct analysis and dialogue around the world of work and all it demanded. Dermot studied in urban sociology, in social psychology, and with apprentices, students of professions, trades and crafts, taught and ran groups which took into account their experience of the world about them and tried to point to the values they might otherwise have missed. Above all, with the help of many staff members, and through his study of the Mondragon Cooperative project in the Basque Country in Spain, he eventually set up the Bolton Trust to help fund and support the cooperative movement in Ireland, his great passion in life – more of this later in the mass.
He was a great walker, hill walker, as well, and he often joined staff and families on walks on weekends. And so, over decades, this often hidden work, took shape: a real option for the poor, with Catholic Social Teaching at its core, but always in the humble guise of service, for believer and unbeliever alike, far from the critique of clericalism and entitlement which Pope Francis sees as such an obstacle to the gospel proclamation in these days.
And so at the banquet at the end – see Isaiah (25: 6-9) – this unsung work, these seeds scattered without apparent much fruit – need to be celebrated and told about.
And his family: his five brothers, Kieran, Padraic, Gearoid and Tome, all of whom are here today, as well as John who is in Canada and whom I got to know through Dermot, with Pat his wife, both of them wonderful people who would love to be with us today – would be part of this celebration, with their wives and children, and their children, as well as his cousin Angela. Dermot was a quiet and thoughtful presence in his family – well, they will admit themselves that it’s sometimes hard to get a word in edgeways when they’re all in full flow! – but he enjoyed the banter and slagging, often spoke about them, was proud of their achievements.

I had an email from John and Pat in Hamilton, Ontario, last night in which they wrote that they are with us in spirit today and that “Dermot was a special person and we all have great memories of him. We saw him in November and said our goodbyes to him then. His caregivers in the nursing home were caring and compassionate and gentle with him”.

1. When you are older.... like many of us, Dermot found it hard to transition into older age, to leave his beloved NC road for Gardiner Street and then later Milltown and here in Cherryfield. As he said, close enough to his death, how come the birds outside Cherryfield were so happy and free and he was locked into his chair? He knew then, and also earlier in life, through his own insecurities and weaknesses, that he needed God’s mercy, the experience of the First Week of the Spiritual Exercises. He could be grumpy, stubborn, blunt, not mincing his words. One of my last conversations with him, familiar to many of you I’m sure, began with me asking how are you, and he replying, awful! But then, before too long, even with some confusion and fading memory, he was smiling and there was even the old familiar laugh. His traditional faith would have helped him: he did love Jesus, he knew that if God is for us nothing can be against us (Romans, 8: 31-35, 37-39). He knew, with Rahner, that all life is a giving-back to God of what God freely gives to us and that death is the last big gift we give, of our own life, like a little child jumping from a high wall into the arms of his mother or father.
2. Life is changed, not ended –
   Our great hope of course is the resurrection, based on our faith in Jesus Christ. This is where the sophisticated Athenians walked away from Paul at the Areopagus, the Public Square – this was too much to believe! And yet Paul himself says we are the most foolish of people as Christians if there is no resurrection. There is a natural human longing for life and its continuance. And so we speak of heaven, sometimes in terms of eternal life, sometimes as the beatific vision, and sometimes – as I prefer – beatific life, a changed life, the fullness of life, in communion with God and all those we love. And so Dermot, we hope with a sure hope, has gone before us into this new life, with his virtues celebrated and his weaknesses healed, enjoying a table of good food and wine, getting more than the odd word in!
   Conclusion:
   It was a kind of running joke between Dermot and myself that when we ran into one another (we had first met when he trained the U-16s rugby team of which I was a member in 1964 in Belvedere!) he would greet me with something like, “Do I know you?”, with a twinkle in the eye and the smile and then laugh. And so it requires no great leap of my imagination to see that scene between Jesus and Peter now unfolding between Jesus and Dermot, as Jesus asks “Do I know you” and Dermot smiles, at rest, seeing, sensing the fullness of life that is before him.
   Amen.

Born: 12 August 1921, Chivers Lodge, Ballybunion, County Kerry
Entered: 07 November 1939, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 31 July 1953, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1957, Catholic Workers College, Dublin
Died: 02 March 2013, Cherryfield Lodge, Dublin

Part of the St Francis Xavier's community, Upper Gardiner Street, Dublin at the time of death.

Family lived at The Square, Listowel, County Kerry

Younger of two boys with two sisters.

Early education at a private school, and then at age 10 sent to Kilashee Convent school. In 1933 he went to Clongowes Wood College SJ (1933-1939)

by 1970 at Southwell House, London (ANG) studying and the London School of Economics

◆ Jesuits in Ireland : https://www.jesuit.ie/news/fr-liam-mckenna-dies-at-91/

Fr Liam McKenna dies at 91
Fr Liam McKenna died on 2 March in Cherryfield, having moved there from his community in Gardiner Street five days earlier. He was 91, but was alert and engaged to the very end of a full and fruitful life. Liam (as he was known in his family – Jesuits tended to call him Bill, with which he was happy) was born in Ballybunion and grew up in Listowel, though with long periods away from home as a boarder first in Kilashee, then in Clongowes, where in his last year he was captain of the school.
He had an early interest in economics, but was put on for a classics degree in UCD. It was only after several false starts that he was launched into the work which was to occupy most of his life, as a mentor of trade unionists in public speaking and in negotiation – but a mentor who was himself learning every step of the way. In a rambunctious partnership with Fr Eddy Kent he helped to found and develop the Catholic Workers College. It was not an academic setting, though the team (McKenna, Kent, Hamilton, Kearns, Des Reid, Michael Moloney) included some of the brightest in the Province, who would spend their summers upgrading their expertise in European countries.
Back in Sandford Lodge, where money was scarce, they would spend their afternoons putting out the chairs and preparing the classrooms and canteen for the evening sessions. They gradually built up a trusting relationship with the unions, and a clientele of up to 2000 adult students. Bill spent 35 years training shop stewards and foremen in the sort of speaking and listening skills that would empower them for their work in the unions, shaping their own destiny.
In the mid-1970s Bill moved to work for the Province, then for the Centre of Concern, the conference of Religious, and the Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice. He paid the penalty for heavy smoking in a serious heart attack, but lived life to the full, aware that he could drop dead at any moment. In Gardiner Street he would join in concelebrated Masses twice a day. On 24 February he acknowledged his need for full-time care, and moved to Cherryfield, after arranging daily delivery of the Financial Times.
He was alert until shortly before his peaceful death, as his curious, questing mind moved to explore the ultimate mystery of God.

◆ Interfuse

Interfuse No 152 : Summer 2013

Obituary

Fr Bill (Liam) McKenna (1921-2013)

12 August 1921: Born in Ballybunion, Co. Kerry:
Early education in Kilashee Prep, and Clongowes Wood College
7 September 1939: Entered Society at Emo
8 September 1941: First Vows
1941 - 1944: Rathfarnham - Studied Arts at UCD
1944 - 1947: Tullabeg - Studied Philosophy
1947 - 1950: Mungret College - Teacher
1950 - 1954: Milltown Park - Studied Theology
31 July 1953: Ordained at Milltown Park, Dublin
1954 - 1955: Rathfarnham: Tertianship
1955 - 1969: College of Industrial Relations - Studied Economics / Sociology at UCD; Lectured in Sociology, Economics and Industrial Relations at CIR
2 February 1957: Final Vows
1969 - 1970: Tavistock Institute, London - Research
1970 - 1976: CIR – Lectured in Sociology, Economics and Industrial Relations
1976 - 1979: Loyola - Member of Special Secretariat
1979 - 1980: Milltown Park – “Centre of Concern' Office”, University Hall & Heythrop
1980 - 1982: Director “Centre of Concern” Office (moved to Liverpool Jan 1982)
1982 - 1984: Espinal - Secretary to Commission for Justice CMRS (Justice Desk)
1984 - 1989: Campion House - Secretary to Commission for Justice CMRS
1989 - 2005: Belvedere College
1989 - 2002: Assisting in Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice
2002 - 2003: Assistant Guestmaster
2003 - 2005: Assisted in SFX Church, Guestmaster
2005 - 2013: Gardiner Street: Assisted in SFX Church, Assistant Librarian (since 2011)

By mid-February, Bill was becoming weaker and eating very little. He was still concelebrating Mass twice daily in the church and in the house chapel. On Sunday 24" February, he agreed that he needed full time care, so he moved to Cherryfield Lodge the following day. Bill appreciated the care and was alert until very shortly before his peaceful death at 7.35pm on Saturday 2nd March.

Liam McKenna died only eleven days before the election of Pope Francis, having taken a great interest in the resignation of Pope Benedict. A Jesuit Pope would have provoked many a question from Liam and many a conversation. His mind remained lively until the very end of his long life, so his deep love of the Church and his commitment to prayer and to the Eucharist would have informed anything he might have said about having a Pope from his own Order. His breviary and missal were well used, and he had spare copies of each.

There is a photograph, taken in the mid-1920s, of Liam, as a very small boy, with his mother and his elder brother: Mrs McKenna is a slim, elegant and very well-dressed woman; Liam and Jack wear expensive clothes. The image is one of comfort and security, as might be expected from a very successful merchant family in a Kerry town, but Jack's health was so precarious that his mother sent him to Switzerland for a year; he is still in good health at 95. Liam became a Jesuit and his two sisters (who predeceased him) became Ursulines, so Jack was the only one of the four siblings to marry.

Listowel was not a town where Catholics were universally welcomed: one of Liam's sisters wanted to join the local tennis club, which was reserved for Protestants, so Mr McKenna was forced to enlist the unwilling help of the bank manager by the simple threat to move his account elsewhere. Liam's attitude to everything was influenced, and positively so, by being a younger brother all his life.
Liam (as he was known in his family - Jesuits tended to call him “Bill”, with which he was happy) was born in Ballybunion and grew up in Listowel; his Kerry roots remained very important throughout his life, despite long periods away from home as a boarder in County Kildare, first at Kilashee, and then at Clongowes, where he was captain of the school. Bill went to the noviceship at Emo just a few months after leaving school.

He had an early interest in economics, but was told that the topic was “of no use”, so he was sent for a classics degree in UCD. Bill followed the normal Jesuit formation of the period and, in a time of European war, it had to be entirely in Ireland, up to his completion of Tertianship at Rathfarnham in 1955. His formidable brain helped him to see that many aspects of Jesuit formation were outmoded, and over stylised. Bill emerged from Tertianship with a great love of the Society, a deep commitment to his priesthood and a great ability to recognise nonsense when he saw it.

Until that point, Bill's Jesuit career had been like many of his Jesuit contemporaries, until he was assigned to the Catholic Workers College in 1955. He was based there for twenty-one years. Bill had finally managed to study economics and sociology at UCD, so he lectured in sociology, economics and industrial relations. Significantly, Bill was launched into the work which was to occupy most of his life, as a mentor of trade unionists in public speaking and in negotiation - but a mentor who was interested in everything and who himself was learning every step of the way. In a rumbustious partnership with Fr Eddy Kent, he helped to found and develop the College. It was not an academic setting, though the team (Kent, Tim Hamilton, Lol Kearns, Des Reid and Michael Moloney) included some of the brightest in the Province, who would spend their summers upgrading their expertise in European countries. Back in Sandford Lodge, where money was scarce, they would spend their afternoons putting out the chairs and preparing the classrooms and canteen for the evening sessions.

They gradually built up a trusting relationship with the unions, and a clientele of up to 2000 adult students. Bill spent 35 years training shop stewards and foremen in the sort of speaking and listening skills that would empower them for their work in the unions, shaping their own destiny. The Catholic Workers College evolved into the National College of Industrial Relations and now, on a different site) is the National College of Ireland.

The three-man Special Secretariat was set up in 1972 following the McCarthy Report on Province Ministries. Liam joined it in 1976, when it was no longer quite so centered on Jesuit Province administration, leaving its members free to work elsewhere. Liam gave great help to the Holy Faith Sisters as they produced new Constitutions.

Liam's passion for social justice was based on calm analysis and passionate commitment. It was the focus of his work from 1979 until 2002, no matter where he was living, be that London, Liverpool, Gardiner Place, Hatch Street, Belvedere College or Gardiner Street. He helped set up, with Ray Helmick (New England) and Brian McClorry (Prov. Brit.), the Centre for Faith and Justice at Heythrop, then in Cavendish Square in London. The 1970s and early 1980s could fairly be described as 'strike-ridden'; in or about 1982, Liam and Dennis Chiles, Principal of Plater College, Oxford, were joint authors of a 91-page pamphlet Strikes and Social Justice: a Christian Perspective, but it may have been for private circulation.

In all those years of activity, Liam made many friends. He was especially kind to anybody who was ill, but very impatient if he detected excessive “self-absorption”. Liam's style of talk was unique, with every word well enunciated and with a regular, almost rhetorical, pause as he gathered himself to declare a supplementary opinion. Was he disappointed at never becoming superior of a Jesuit community? Being highly intelligent, he may have realised that his gifts would be wasted in such a role. Liam always admired those who did any job well; he was very proud of his niece who became a forensic scientist.

Liam gave the impression of being very serious, and he did some very serious reading, but there was a lighter side. He kept all the novels of Dick Francis; he had boxed DVD sets of every television series that starred John Thaw. Videos, DVDs and his own television entertained him when it was no longer easy for him to leave the house. Liam was the only member of the Gardiner Street community to have a small coffee bar in his room. He became a familiar figure on Dorset Street, as he walked briskly along, pushing his walking frame.

Liam paid the penalty for heavy smoking in a serious heart attack, but lived life to the full, aware that he could drop dead at any moment. In Gardiner Street be would join in concelebrated Masses twice a day (one in the church and the other in the house chapel). On 24 February 2012 he acknowledged his need for full-time care, and moved to Cherryfield Lodge, not permanently, after arranging daily delivery of the Financial Times. He was alert until shortly before his peaceful death five days later, as his curious, questing mind moved to explore the ultimate mystery of God.

Born: 06 February 1890, Ellesmere, Goulburn, Sydney, Australia
Entered: 20 June 1915, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 31 July 1924, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 15 August 1932
Died: 27 October 1945, St Ignatius College, Riverview, Sydney, Australia - Australiae Province

Transcribed HIB to ASL : 05 April 1931

Older brother of Colin - RIP 1964 and Cousin of Donald - RIP - 1925 and Saint Mary

Older brother of Colin - RIP 1964 and Cousin of Donald - RIP - 1925 and Saint Mary

Father was a doctor who died in 1910 and his mother died in 1911.

He has one sister and is the fifth eldest of eight sons (including two who died in infancy)

Early education was at St Patrick’s College, Goulburn. He then went to Riverview in 1904-1906) After Riverview he became articled to Solicitors in Goulburn, and specifically to a Mr Rankin of Newcastle, and then to Messers Norton Smith in Sydney. In 21912 he was admitted to the roll of Solicitors in New South Wales and continued at the practice in Sydney until 1914

by 1927 at St Andrew-on-Hudson, Poughkeepsie NY, USA (MARNEB) making Tertianship
by 1928 at Rome, Italy (ROM) studying

◆ David Strong SJ “The Australian Dictionary of Jesuit Biography 1848-2015”, 2nd Edition, Halstead Press, Ultimo NSW, Australia, 2017 - ISBN : 9781925043280
Kenneth McKillop, brother of Colin, studied and practised law as a solicitor after leaving Riverview, before he entered the Society at Tullabeg, Ireland, 20 June 1915. After his juniorate and philosophy at Milltown Park, 1918-21, regency was at Clongowes and theology at Milltown Park, 1922-26. Tertianship followed at Poughkeepsie, St Andrew of Hudson, 1926-27. He spent 1927-29 studying moral theology in Rome.
Returning to Australia in 1929, he professed moral theology at Corpus Christi College, Werribee, until 1941, after which he went to Riverview as spiritual father to the students. In 1937 he attended the Australian Plenary Council as canonist to the archbishop of Melbourne and was also secretary of one of the sub-committees.
He was a very big, genial, kind man - slightly scrupulous. He had ill health for some years, maybe breaking down from the strain on a rather sensitive person who had professed moral theology for so long. He felt the responsibility deeply He took very seriously whatever task his superiors asked him to undertake. He was most patient during his years of ill health.

◆ Fr Francis Finegan : Admissions 1859-1948 - Solicitor before entry

◆ Irish Province News

Irish Province News 21st Year No 1 1946

Obituary :

Fr. Kenneth McKillop (1890-1915-1945)

Fr. Kenneth McKillop made friends so easily and clove to them so loyally that nearly everyone who knew him here will feel his death as a personal bereavement.
He was born in Goulbourn, New South Wales, on 6th December, 1890. He was educated at Riverview and, after his qualification as a solicitor, practised for two years in Sydney. When he decided to join the Society, in order to gain a little travel experience he asked and obtained leave to come to Tullabeg for his noviceship. When he arrived here on 6th June, 1916, we novices were somewhat awe-stricken at the sight of this massively built postulant with the strong and intelligent features and the prestige of membership of one of the learned professions. But awe vanished when he became a novice and talked to us and we found only modesty, gentleness, and a love of fun. One story he told us illustrates the latter. He had been walking on a country road in Spain (I think) when he saw some men drinking around a table outside an inn. They had only one bottle with a thin spout to it, and each one in turn tilted it above his head without touching the spout and directed a stream of wine into his mouth. After a moment's pause Mr. McKillop took his place at the table and presently
had the bottle in his hands. But so unpractised was he that he split the wine all over his face and retired amid howls of laughter, theirs and his own. One needed to know him some time before one realised that his character was fully as strong and intelligent as his features declared. Often in conversation or public disputation his slight air of diffidence would cause one to overlook the acuteness of what he was saying. Later still one realised the deep earnestness of his spiritual life.

After his noviceship he spent one year at Rhetoric, and then went to Milltown Park for philosophy. Then he spent a year at Clongoves, where he proved, as anyone would expect, to be an outstanding success with boys. I remember him once at Greystones, at the request of two worshipping Clongowes youngsters, giving them an exhibition of his wonderful powers of swimming and diving. He returned to Milltown for theology and was ordained there in 1924 by Dr. Mulhern. Bishop of Dromore. He did his tertianship at Poughkeepsie, U.S.A. During it he was chosen with three other fathers to give an important mission at the Church of the Nativity of Our Lady in Philadelphia We heard (but not from him) that the mission was a great success. After his tertianship he went to the Gregorian University for a biennium in Moral Theology and Canon Law. There he won honour for this province just before his friend, our present Fr. Provincial, followed him to increase it. On his return to Australia he became Professor of Moral Theology and Canon Law at the Regional Seminary, Werribee, near Melbourne. After occupying this chair for eleven years the incurable heart trouble that caused his death made itself evident in him. He was then sent to his old school, Riverview, as spiritual father to the boys, where he spent three years before the end came. The end of his life was the crown of a great achievement. He had several distinguished relatives. His brother, Fr. Colin McKillop, is the Province Procurator in Australia. He was a close relative of the late Fr. Donald McKillop, S.J., a former superior of the Daly River Mission to the aborigines, and of the latter's sister, the far-famed Mother Mary McKillop, Foundress of the Sisters of St. Joseph, an Australian congregation that has done notable work for the Church. Fr. T. Walsh delivered the oration at the graveside of Fr. McKillop. A few days after Fr. McKillop's death his brother Archie, a doctor, died suddenly after an operation. He had been in good health and was present at Fr. Ken's funeral.

Born: 27 February 1934, Derry City, County Derry
Entered: 27 March 1956, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Final vows: 02 February 1966, Canisius College, Chikuni, Zambia
Died: 01 August 2023, Coptic Hospital, Lusaka, Zambia - Southern Africa Province (SAP)

Part of the John Chula House, Zambia Community at the time of death

Transcribed HIB to ZAM 03 December 1969

1956-1958 St Mary’s, Emo, County Laois
1958-1959 Milltown Park - Refectorian
1959-1960 Clongowes Wood College - works in school
1960-1962 Rathfarnham Castle - working in the community
1962-1963 Canisius College, Chikuni, Zambia - studying language, involved in buildings
1963-1964 Charles Lwanga, Chisekesi, Zambia - maintenance
1964-1966 St Ignatius Lusaka, Zambia - studying Art and Engineering
1966-1971 Canisius College, Chikuni, Zambia - Maintenance
1971-1972 Ireland
1972-1978 Canisius College, Chikuni, Zambia - Maintenance
1978-1980 St Ignatius, Lusaka, Zambia
1980-1986 Canisius College, Chikuni, Zambia - Maintenance
1986-1989 Luwisha House, Lusaka, Zambia
1989-199 Canisius College, Chikuni, Zambia - Maintenance

Final Vows 15 August 1966, Canisius College, Chikuni, Zambia

Southern Africa Province Province Obituary - sent 04 August 2023

Br Gabriel McKinney, S.J.

(1934-2023. In Zambia 1962-2023)

1 August 2023

He was 89 years old and 67 years in the Society of Jesus, 61 of those in Zambia.

Ort.................27 Feb 1934
Loc. Nat......... Derry, Co. Derry, N. Ireland, U.K.
Ingr. ............... 27 Mar 1956
Loc. Ingr. ....... Emo Park, Ireland
Tertianship.....Tullabeg, Co Offaly, Ireland
Transcribed..............HIB to SAP on 03 Dec 1969
Grad. ............. FF Dies.........02 Feb 1966
Loc. Grad....... Canisius, Chikuni Mission, Zambia
Defunc.. .........01 Aug 2023
Loc. Defunc....Coptic Hospital, Lusaka, Zambia

Gabriel McKinney was born on 27 February 1934 in Derry, Northern Ireland, of Thomas and Mary (née Crossan) McKinney. He went to primary school at St Eugenes and then finished off at St Columbus College. He always remained close to his family and would spend most of his home leave with them. One of his brothers, Anthony, became a Carmelite priest working in Dublin. In the time of The Troubles of the 1960s.1970s when there was so much social conflict in the North, Gabriel would have on display in Chikuni recreation room various memorabilia, including a rubber bullet fired by a British soldier.

He entered the Society at Emo in 1956. Afterwards he did some juniorate in Milltown Park before being missioned to Northern Rhodesia in 1962. He spent two years at St Ignatius, Lusaka gaining mechanical experience in a city garage and so preparing himself for his life’s work in the garage at Chikuni. He took his final vows in Chikuni in 1966 and later joined the newly founded Vice-Province of Zambia in 1969.

In Chikuni he took charge of the garage and of all matters connected with the functioning of a large and varied fleet of motor vehicles. These were absolutely essential in the pastoral activities that were carried out not only from Chikuni itself, but also from the more-or-less dependent parishes of Monze, Chivuna, Fumbo and Kasiya. In addition, there were the tractors and other machinery for the farm, as well as the pumps so necessary for the water supplied. Gabriel and his team were always there to keep them in good working condition, even if at times they had to coax some of them back to life after the daily wear and tear, an accident, or even neglect.

A noteworthy factor in all of Gabriel’s garage work was his success in transmitting his knowledge and skills to many local young men. Some of these stayed with him for years, working alongside him. Others left and went on to start small-scale mechanics business and fitness centers of their own. Gabriel may not always have been aware of it, but the work he has doing made a major contribution to the economic independence of the people and to their all-important food security.

He also served as a well-liked and effective house minister, for a year at St Ignatius, for two years at Luwisha House and for two separate periods at Chikuni (1979-1982; 1988-1990). He brought to this work the care for order and detail that characterized everything he did in the mechanical area. In addition, he developed a flair for vegetable growing and maintained a sizeable and productive garden in Chikuni, and also at Kizito’s near Monze during his brief stay there in 2002.

Having spent more than 50 years in Chikuni, Gabriel became almost the embodiment of that community, with its positive reputation for hospitality and for apostolic outreach to the nearby religious communities and the families of teachers, development personnel and workers living in the locality. He was a warm- hearted community man who enjoyed living and interacting with fellow-Jesuits from a variety of nationalities.

Those who lived with him, or knew him reasonably well, were much aware that what really kept Gabriel going, whether in the garage, in the community or in the garden, was his deep spiritual life. There was nothing ostentatious about this, but it was clearly the guiding principle of his whole existence.

https://jesuit.ie/news/remembering-brother-gabriel-mckinney/

Jesuit brother Gabriel McKinney SJ, who spent sixty years on mission in Africa, passed away on 1st August at the Coptic Hospital, Lusaka, Zambia, aged 89. Irish Jesuits International commemorated him recently with the essay below.

Go well, Brother Gabriel

From all the team at Irish Jesuits International we would like to send our thoughts and prayers to the family, friends and loved one’s of Brother Gabriel McKinney who departs this life leaving behind fond memories of his time and work in Zambia.

Gabriel McKinney was born on 27 February 1934 in Derry, Northern Ireland, of Thomas and Mary (née Crossan) McKinney. He went to primary school at St Eugenes and then later at St Columbus College.

He entered the Society at Emo in 1956. Afterwards he did some juniorate in Milltown Park before being missioned to Northern Rhodesia in 1962. He spent two years at St Ignatius, Lusaka gaining mechanical experience in a city garage preparing himself for his life’s work in the garage at Chikuni.

He took his final vows in Chikuni in 1966 and later joined the newly founded Vice-Province of Zambia in 1969. In Chikuni he took charge of the garage and all things regarding the up-keep and functioning of a large and varied fleet of motor vehicles. These were absolutely essential in the pastoral activities that were carried out not only from Chikuni itself, but also from the more-or-less dependent parishes of Monze, Chivuna, Fumbo and Kasiya.

In addition, there were the tractors and other machinery for the farm, as well as the pumps that crucial for the water irrigation. Gabriel and his team were always there to keep them in good working condition, even if at times they had to coax some of them back to life after the daily wear and tear.

A noteworthy factor in all of Gabriel’s garage work was his success in transmitting his knowledge and skills to many local young men. Some of these stayed with him for years, working alongside him. Others left and went on to start small-scale mechanics business and centres of their own. Gabriel may not always have been aware of it, but the work he was doing made a major contribution to the economic independence of the people and to their all-important food security.

Having spent more than 50 years in Chikuni, Gabriel became almost the embodiment of that community. He was a warm-hearted man who dedicated his life to making the lives of others better through his mechanic hands, upskilling and outreach to teachers and the wider parish community.

Go well, Brother Gabriel. Rest in Peace.

Posted on Irish Jesuit International August 8, 2023 by Joe Munnelly

Born: 25 October 1886, Clifden, County Galway/ New Ross, County Wexford
Entered: 07 September 1904, Tullabeg
Ordained: 15 August 1919, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 15 August 1922
Died: 12 June 1963, St Ignatius College, Riverview, Sydney, Australia - Australiae Province (ASL)

Transcribed HIB to ASL : 05 April 1931

Father was manager of the National Bank in Clifden and then in 1891 was transferred to New Ross, County Wexford, where he died in 1896.. His mother who is now provided for by private means now lives in London.

One of two sisters and three brothers.

Early education Convent of Mercy New Ross, and then went to the Christian Brothers there, followed by a time at the Augustinian College there. In January 1901 he went to Clongowes Wood College SJ

by 1909 at Leuven Belgium (BELG) studying
Came to Australia for Regency 1911
by 1918 at The Seminary, Kandy, Sri Lanka Mission (BELG) teaching at Seminary
by 1921 at Drongen Belgium (BELG) making Tertianship

◆ David Strong SJ “The Australian Dictionary of Jesuit Biography 1848-2015”, 2nd Edition, Halstead Press, Ultimo NSW, Australia, 2017 - ISBN : 9781925043280
Tom McLoughlin was educated at CBC Wexford until he went to Clongowes Wood, Dublin, 1901-04. He entered the Irish noviciate at Tullabeg, 7 September 1904, and continued with his juniorate studies at the same place, 1904-06. His philosophy was at Louvain, 1908-11, before regency at St Ignatius' College, Riverview, 1911-16, where he taught and was third prefect. He directed the junior debating and was master-in-charge of the library Theology followed at Kurseorag, Kandy, and Milltown Park, 1916-20. Tertianship was at Tronchiennes .
McLoughlin returned to Australia to teach and was first prefect and rowing master at Riverview, 1921-25. He was not suited to the office of first prefect because he was not the man to insist on discipline with the tact and authority of one more suited to that work. His only interest in games was that Riverview was playing, and he wanted them to win.
He was sent to St Patrick’s College, 1925-35, where he taught French. During this time he also edited the “Patrician”. He was considered a good teacher, making French easy and entertaining for students. His classes were delivered with an almost flippant spontaneity that concealed the careful preparation he put into them. There was always the atmosphere of friendliness and warmth to his classes. He could be strict, but liked incidents to be finished immediately He was a keen handball player and enjoyed a game with the boys. His contact with the Old Boys was much appreciated, and his memory of their activities was most impressive. He received many visits from them. He vigorously promoted the Old Collegians' Association.
From 1936 until his death he returned to teach at Riverview and to edit “Our Alma Mater”. He was also prefect of studies, 1937-50, and chaplain to the Old Boys from 1950.
He was one of the great institutions at Riverview, a much respected friend and patron of the Old Boys. He taught French with some success for many years. He was most thorough and painstaking in everything he undertook, yet he was not at all fussy, a good disciplinarian, very kind and understanding. He was a good influence on every boy he taught.
He showed concern for those in special need, teaching the lower classes by choice. Every night he corrected many French exercises and prepared live classes for the next day. His work on “Our Alma Mater” was also a nocturnal task. One edition had 2,000 names of Old Boys. He had no secretary. He was a great letter writer.
In his declining years he continued to look after the alumni, supervise a few study periods, hear confessions, and edit “Our Alma Mater”. Towards the end he sustained a heart attack from which he died. Over 1,000 attended his funeral Mass at St Mary's Church, North Sydney, some travelling hundreds of miles to he present. The 300 senior boys of Riverview lined the roadway at the cemetery.

Born: c 1784, Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 09 October 1821, Clongowes Wood College SJ, Naas, County Kildare and Hodder Place, Stonyhurst College, Clitheroe, Lancashire, England
Died: 09 September 1823, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly

Fr Edmund Hogan SJ “Catalogica Chronologica” :
Temporal Coadjutor (Irish)

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
He was a baker by trade. After his parents had died he went to live with his older brother.
He joined a Third Order community of Carmelites near Dublin, and he spent six or seven years with them.
When the Carmelite congregation was broken up for some reason, he applied to the Society.

He commenced the experiments of the novitiate under Robert St Leger. He was known to be remarkable for his meekness and piety as well as a great spirit of labour. Two years after entry, while the community were preparing for their annual Retreat, he became very unwell. He though his ailment was of no consequence, and so rose to do his daily work. He suffered a relapse, and while two fellow Brothers were at his bedside he declared able to get up, and then suddenly he lost consciousness. he died the following day.

Fr St Leger writes “Diem clausit Supremum hodie Frater Johannes McMahon. Coadj. temp. Novotius relicto post se bonum nominis et integrae vitae exemplo. Sepultus est in Cormiterio Publico Rahanensi die illa, Vespere. RIP”

The site of his grave is not marked by any monument, it is quite near the door of the old church, close to the wall.

◆ George Oliver Towards Illustrating the Biography of the Scotch, English and Irish Members SJ
MAC MAHON, JOHN, this pious lay-brother died at Tullabeg, on the 9th of September,1822.

Born: 17 June 1908, Cashel, County Tipperary
Entered: 05 April 1931, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois

Left Society of Jesus: 04 February 1943

1931-1933: St Mary's, Emo, Novitiate
1933-1940: Coláiste Iognáid, Galway, cook
1940-1941: Clongowes Wood College SJ, cook
1941-1942: Coláiste Iognáid, Galway, cook
1942-1943: St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, cook

Address 2000 & 1991: Belvedere College SJ, Great Denmark Street, Dublin City (worked and lived there)

Born: 14 April 1896, Forkhill, County Armagh
Entered: 29 March 1921, Manresa, Roehampton, London / St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 31 July 1933, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1936, Coláiste Iognáid, Galway
Died: 26 October 1981, Coláiste Iognáid, Galway

by 1935 at St Beuno’s, Wales (ANG) making Tertianship

Father was a Sergeant in the RIC, and later became a wine and spirit merchant.

Younger of two boys (the older one was reported missing during the Great War and presumed dead) and he has two sisters.

Early education was at Convent schools and the Christian Brothers in Omagh. He then went to the Christin Brothers in Belfast and St Malachy’s, also in Belfast. In 1912 he began as an accountant clerk until 1919. He then started applying to various seminaries, and received an encouraging reply from Father Lester SJ, and Campion House, Osterley, and he went there in 1919 for eighteen months, taking the London Matric.

He applied and was received by Father Wright SJ, Provincial of the English Province and began his noviceship at Manresa, Roehampton in March 1921. He continued his nnoviceship at Tullabeg in January 1922.

◆ Fr Francis Finegan : Admissions 1859-1948 - Clerk before Entry; Transcribed from ANG to HIB 05 January 1922

◆ Irish Province News
Irish Province News 57th Year No 1 1982
Obituary

Fr Francis McSwiggan (1896-1921-1981)

Born in Forkhill, Co Armagh, in 1896. Fr McSwiggan entered the Society at Manresa, Roehampton, on 29th March 1921, and came to Tullabeg during his noviceship. We (fellow-novices of his, who had entered on 31st August 1921) understood that he had been working in England, and so joined the Society there. As he was hoping to work in Ireland, the transfer to the Irish noviceship was arranged.
He was then 25 years old, while most of us, just out of school, were 16, 17 or 18. “Mac”, as we came to know him, was quiet, not talkative, with little sense of humour. He was not amused by the fiddle-faddles which sent young novices into fits of giggles.
Noviceships are normally uneventful, the one event of his noviceship which stands out in memory was his vow-day, Easter Sunday, 1923, when he could easily have been shot dead. We novices were out on a long-table day walk to Bellair hill some eight miles away. The road from Tullabeg to Ballycumber, after passing the Island chapel, crossed the railway line from Clara to Ferbane and Banagher. The hump-backed bridge over the line has since been demolished and the railway itself is closed.)
The Civil War was on at the time, and the “irregulars” (as those of the IRA who would not accept the Free State were called) had blown up a railway bridge over a stream about two hundred yards from where we crossed the line. They had set in motion a train from Clara, with no one on it, and when it came to the blown-up bridge, it overturned and rolled down the embankment.
On their walk, several novices went down the line to inspect the wreckage. It was guarded by Free State soldiers under a jittery young officer, who was highly suspicious of several groups of young men converging on him across the bog. Someone explained that we were clerical students out for a walk: but when he saw three more standing on the bridge staring down, he yelled and signalled to them to move off. Perhaps they did not hear him. They did not move, just stood staring; “Mac” in the middle, Fr Charlie Daly (Hong Kong) and if I remember aright Jock Finnegan who later left us. Seizing his rifle and taking aim, the officer announced in lurid language that he'd soon shift them to hell out of that. An older novice prevailed on him not to fire: they were only four fellows and hadn't heard him: he (the novice) would run up the line and get them to move on: which he did. Thus Fr “Mac” could easily have been shot dead on his vow-day.
Instead, a long life of faithful devoted work was opening before him. The 1923 Status sent him to Milltown for philosophy. In 1926 he went as Doc to Belvedere for four years, going on to theology in Milltown (1930-34, ordained 1933) and tertianship in St Beuno's (1934-35). Fr Geddes, the Instructor, asked the next year's tertians where those of the previous year had gone. “Wot?”, he exclaimed, “Fr McSwiggan, Prefect of Studies at Galway! Is he then supposed to be a very learned person?”
Whatever about that, he filled the post for five years before going to Clongowes for four years teaching, when he was a very popular confessor with the boys. In 1944 he moved to the big study in Mungret for two years, then back to Belvedere teaching till 1956, when he transferred to St Ignatius, Galway, as operarius, long in charge of the Apostleship of Prayer. Of those years, those who lived with him, All of us, however, who knew him are glad to think of him enjoying at the end his Master's welcome: Euge, serve bone et fidelis ... (Mt 25:21).

Mac, as he was known to those who lived with him, was a man of his period and his North of Ireland upbringing. He grew up in the faith of the minority, a minority that had to struggle for its rights and even its existence, and whose members were second-class citizens, for the most part poor and despised. Because of this a certain amount of iron and hardness had entered his soul, a certain intolerance and dogmatism, Everything in faith and morals as taught and interpreted in his upbringing, schooling and training became de fide definita, to be held rigidly: everything was either black or white; nothing was shaded or grey. He had a touch of bigotry in him, and if by chance he had been born into the other faith, he would have been a fundamentalist, an extremist.
His views were rigid, but in application to the individual and in giving direction tempered by his innate kindness, so it is easy to understand how he was a popular confessor to the boys in Clongowes and later from 1956 onwards, in the church in Galway, till deafness first and ill-health later forced him to give up church work. He carefully prepared his sermons, but his delivery was not the best: he was inclined to rush and elide words. He was assiduous in hearing confessions and indefatigable in bringing holy Communion to the sick and housebound.
For many years he was Director of the Apostleship of Prayer, which entailed the giving of the Holy Hour month after month. To increase the attendance he tried various ways: promise cards, handbills etc.; but berated those in attendance for the shortcomings of those who did not attend and who did not respond to his efforts and appeals. As Director he visited various schools in the city to promote devotion to the Sacred Heart and to increase the circulation of the Messenger. In his earlier years, as a priest teaching in the colleges, as well as giving retreats here and there around the country, he spent a good part of what was left of his summer holidays acting as chaplain to the staff and children of Sunshine House. Balbriggan. In later years when attached to the church he spent his villa period doing supply work in Liverpool. He was a man of zeal, a hard worker and a man of prayer.
He was very competent in Irish and keen on poetry. He even made some translations of Irish poetry into English, faithfully reproducing the metre, internal shyness, assonance and other features of the original in the translations. Unfortunately he wrote these (as he wrote his sermons) on odd scraps of paper or in already-used copybooks between the lines or in the margins, so few will have survived. In his last years, when he was more or less confined to his room, he became interested in puzzles, intellectual problems and short stories. He tried out his puzzles on his friends, and often spoilt the stories by enjoying their humour so much that he would break down with laughter before his hearers could see the point. He was fascinated by the universe and awed by its vastness and complexity, so he took an interest in astronomy and space exploration. To the end his mind remained clear and sharp and he kept it so with these interests.
Being a man of a fixed mould of mind, even more perhaps than others who had received similar formation and training, he found the post-Vatican II period disturbing and found it hard to accept some of the new thinking, new developments and adaptations: some of these he criticised quite openly, and his criticisms could be quite harsh! He was a keen observer and a sharp critic of the faults and failings of Ours, for he judged us all by the yardstick of his own self, and if we did not measure up to that, he let us know. Yet while his criticism was often sharp and hurt somewhat, because of some innate human quality in the man, no one ever resented it too much: all still had an affection for “old Mac”.
His death must have been the easiest event in his whole life. On 26th October 1981 he took his lunch in his room and lay down to rest, Shortly afterwards the good nun who looked after him came and found him on the point of passing away. She called the Minister, who anointed him, and before the end of the rite he had gone to his Lord and Master without stress or strain like a child dropping off to sleep. May he rest in peace.

Born: 01 May 1935, Abercromby Place, Fermoy, County Cork
Entered: 06 September 1952, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Died: 10 September 2020, Belfast, County Antrim

Left Society of Jesus: 12 November 1953

Father, Myles, was a doctor died in 1952 and Mother, Aideen (Magner) died in 1939. He and his younger brother went to live with an aunt (Mrs Buckley) at Leeson Park, Dublin.

1 younger Brother

Early education was at St Colman’s College Fermoy for two years and then at Clongowes Wood College for three years.

Baptised at St Patrick's Roman Catholic Church, Lower Glanmire Road, Montenotte, Cork City, 08/05/1935
Confirmed at St Patrick's Roman Catholic Church, Church Square, Fermoy, County Cork, by Dr Roche of Cloyne, 15/04/1945

https://notices.irishtimes.com/death/mcswiney-myles/57575278

McSWINEY, Myles: Death

McSWINEY Myles (Belfast, formerly Fermoy, Palo Alto and Brussels) passed away peacefully at home on September 10, 2020. Mourned by his wife Deirdre, relatives and friends. Due to government restrictions house and funeral private. Enquiries and messages may be given to Ken Gilmore Funeral Director, 13 The Square, Comber, Newtownards, Co. Down BT23 5DX. Tel :02891872949. From ROI Tel: 4428 91872949.

Born: 11 June 1861, Toomebridge, Creagh, County Antrim
Entered: 23 September 1891, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 19 June 1887
Final Vows: 15 August 1906, Mungret College SJ, Limerick
Died: 02 July 1950, Crescent College, Limerick

Early education at St Patrick’s College Armagh and St Patrick’s College Maynooth

◆ Irish Province News
Irish Province News 25th Year No 4 1950

Obituary

Fr. Patrick McWilliams (1861-1891-1950)

Father Patrick McWilliams was born on the 11th of June, 1861, at Creagh, Toomebridge. The third youngest of eight children, be went to his father's school for his primary education before proceeding to the seminary at Armagh. After a short period in the seminary he went to Maynooth in 1883 and, in 1887, was ordained there for the Archdiocese of Armagh. He entered the Society on the 23rd of September, 1891. He was sent to the Crescent in 1895, where, with the exception of one year (1901-02), when he was stationed in Tullabeg, he remained until his death.
In his early years at the Crescent he was a member of the Mission Staff. For a few years his name figured on the roll of the College Staff. From 1912-48 he was the Spiritual Director of the Ladies Sodality of the Children of Mary. From the beginning of his stay in the Crescent he was an operarius, and he carried out that role in full, without fail and to the end. His career in the Crescent was characterised not by spasmodic incident but by rigorous attention. to duty. For generations of Limerick people he was the model priest : serene of temperament, a patient listener, with admirable judgment, ever ready to help others, the trusted director of souls. Many people came long distances to consult him on some intricate problem. And yet, he who was the gifted confidant of so many adults, had also the unusual and well-remembered talent for hearing the confessions of little children. It has been said often since his death that “all Limerick must have made their first confession to Father McWilliams”.
Until the end he was unfailingly exact in his attention to his duties as confessor and preacher as well as to all the duties of community life. Until the end his well prepared sermons were delivered with a verve and resonance that made them heard even by the men standing at the back of the church. He grew old gracefully : he ever retained his handsome mien and upright carriage. He grew old gracefully, without angularity of character, without laying the burden of his duties on the shoulders of others, without complaint. And he died as he had lived - serene and without fuss.

Appreciation :
Nearly all his priestly life, was spent in the rather obscure work of preacher and confessor in a provincial town. But what a life! He became one of the landmarks of Limerick, known and revered and referenced by man, woman and child in the city. Thousands sought his solace in the confessional and parlours. He was a tower of strength to the weak. He poured consolation into the hearts of the depressed. He was ever ready to help the poor and the needy and to restore peace to the harassed soul. It is no exaggeration to say that there was hardly ever a priest in Limerick who wielded such influence and always for the greater glory of God. His thoroughness, his sincerity, his all embracing charity quarried for him a way to the hearts of all.
His sermons were models of lucidity and phraseology, always carefully prepared and always delivered with grace and dignity. He never preached a bad sermon in his life and of the thousands of sermons he preached one of the most eloquent was the one he preached a few weeks before his last illness - to be exact 25th March - a sermon that excited the admiration of many of his audience and - let us say - the envy of some members of the community who heard it. He did not, however, strive after effect. He had a message to deliver - the Master's Message - and he delivered it to his hearers in a way that pleased as well as instructed. The words of the poet may very well be applied to him:
“His preaching much but more his practice wrought
A burning sermon of the truths he taught
In manner simple, grave, sincere,
In doctrine incorrupt; in language plain
As well becomes a messenger of grace to sinful man”.
He united doctrine with exhortation and thus appealed to mind and heart. He strove to make his hearers not merely wise, but good. Conscious of his mission he was anxious that his audience should feel conscious, too, that life was no sluggard's paradise into which they had wandered by chance, but a battlefield from which there is no escape.
He was a very good moral theologian - of sound and ripe judgment and quick to grasp all sides of the question. When he had charge of the Cases of Conscience his summing up at the end was often a master piece of clarity and erudition.
His knowledge of people was phenomenal. He seemed to have contacts in the most remote villages of the country. Enquiries respecting him came from the most remote places. Priests and religious had the greatest confidence in him.. And no wonder! He was a true shepherd and no mercenary. He drew all towards Heaven by gentleness and good example,
Always kind and gentle when gentleness and kindness were demanded, he could be very severe on occasions and it must be said he did not suffer fools gladly. If he had to speak he spoke fearlessly and boldly. He didn't believe in doing things by halves. He was forthright in word and action. He had ever the calm and coolness of the truly courageous man. He did not shun the hives because the bees had stings. His devotion to duty was beyond all praise. Wherever he was supposed to be, whether in the pulpit or Box or at the Altar there he was to be found. He did not choose, Beau Brummell fashion, to be always late and therefore he never deserved the sharp admonition from an Abercorn. His work was perhaps of the humdrum type, but what more beautiful, what more satisfying than the calm and resolute determination of the priest to feed the flock entrusted to his care. No wonder his passing called forth such profound grief and sorrow in the city. The Church was packed with mourners for the Requiem Mass. His Lordship the Bishop presided and about fifty priests attended in the Choir. He has bequeathed to us all his example as a legacy. The consciousness of duty well-performed and the public voice of praise that honours virtue: all that was his
The virtues of those whose faces we shall see no more appear greater and more sacred when viewed through the medium of the grave. Irving it is who says the grave buries every error, covers every defect, extinguishes every resentment. It may be truly said of Fr. McWilliams that, "taken all in all, we shall not see his like again," Full of years and merit, mourned by all who knew him, he has passed on. God rest his soul.

◆ James B Stephenson SJ Menologies 1973

Father Patrick McWilliams SJ 1861-1950
The name of Fr Patrick McWilliams wil ever be associated with Limerick and the Crescent.

Born at Toomebridge in 1861, he entered the Society as a priest in 1891, For the whole of his long life, one year excepted, he worked as Operarius in the Church of the Sacred Heart, Limerick. He was known as a confessor and guide far and wide to both priests and layfolk. At the same time he was alo a favourite for children’s confessions. When he died on March 29th 1850, it was said of him “that all Limerick must have made their first Confession to Fr McWilliams”.

Shrewd, kindly, a keen and accurate judge of character, the Province lost in him one of its model priests and rare spiritual guides.

◆ The Crescent : Limerick Jesuit Centenary Record 1859-1959

Bonum Certamen ... A Biographical Index of Former Members of the Limerick Jesuit Community

Father Patrick McWilliams (1861-1950)

Was born on the 11th June, 1861, at Creagh, Toomebridge. He received his early education at his father's school and in St Patrick's College, Armagh. He was ordained, for the archdiocese of Armagh, in 1887 at Maynooth where he had done his higher studies. Four years later, on 23 September, he entered the Society. He joined the Crescent community in 1895 and, with the exception of one year, 1901-02, when he was stationed at Tullabeg, he remained in Limerick until his death. From the beginning of his assignment to Limerick up to the end, he laboured as confessor and preacher in the Sacred Heart Church. In his early years, however, at the Crescent, he was engaged also as a master in the school. Within the Society, Father McWilliams was one of the most revered Jesuits of his time. Throughout his long life he enjoyed the absolute trust of his superiors and the respect and affection of those privileged to live with him. He never became a superior in the Irish Province, not that he lacked the qualities necessary for government, but simply because he felt that in the position assigned him from the beginning he could labour most for the glory of God. It was an open secret some decades before his death that he had been appointed rector of one of the Society's houses in Ireland, but the letters patent of the General from Rome were never promulgated.

For generations of Limerick people, he was the model priest: serene of temperament, a patient listener, with admirable judgment, ever ready to help others, the trusted director of souls.

Born: 18 August 1911, Ratoath, County Meath
Entered: 14 September 1931, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Ordained: 31 July 1944, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 15 August 1968, Sacred Heart, Monze, Zambia
Died: 14 April 1980, Mater Hospital, Nairobi, Kenya - Zambia Province (ZAM)

Part of the Chivuna, Monze, Zambia community at the time of death.

Older brother of Paddy Meagher - RIP 2005
Cousin of John P Leonard - RIP 2006

Born in Dublin City

Father was a wine merchant.

Eldest of four boys with two sisters.

Early education was for two years at Belvedere College SJ, and then at St Mary’s Dundalk for two years and then at St Finian’s, Mullingar for over three years.

Mission Superior Lusaka Superior of the Poloniae Minoris Jesuit Mission to Lusaka Mission : (POL Mi) 11 August 1955
Superior of the Irish Jesuit Mission to Chikuni Mission: 01 January 1957

Transcribed HIB to ZAM : 03 December 1969

by 1951 at Chikuni, Chisekesi, N Rhodesia (POL Mi) working - third wave of Zambian Missioners
Mission Superior Lusaka (POL Mi) 11 August 1955
Mission Superior Chikuni (HIB) 01 January 1957

◆ Companions in Mission1880- Zambia-Malawi (ZAM) Obituaries :
‘Some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon them’ (Shakespeare, Twelfth Night). These words in some way could be applied to Fr Louis (nobody called him 'Daniel'). In human qualities Fr Louis was very ordinary. He saw himself as a great 'chancer' (his own word), meaning that he was willing to try his hand at anything, though not highly gifted for anything in particular. In fact, he found the studies in the Society extremely difficult but he realized that they were a preparation for the works of the Society like preaching and retreat giving. His tremendous determination and great sense of mission carried him through these difficulties so that at the end of his training he was better equipped to carry on apostolic works than many others more talented than he was. He had ‘greatness thrust upon him’ as he was appointed superior of the Irish Jesuits in Zambia a few years after arriving there.

He had come to Zambia in 1950, one of the original nine Irish Jesuits appointed to come to Chikuni Mission. The appointment came as a shock to Louis but he faced up to the situation as he had faced up to all the difficulties in his life. He was also appointed Vicar General of the Monze diocese where he was so highly appreciated by all.

After school at St Finians and Belvedere, he entered the Society at Emo in 1931. For regency he taught at Clongowes Wood College and then proceeded to Milltown Park where he was ordained in 1944. Afterwards he went to the Crescent, Limerick, to teach there until he came to Zambia in 1950.

In the early 60s, he began to suffer from rheumatoid arthritis which crippled him increasingly until his death. It was in this that Louis ‘achieved greatness’ in the way he bore his illness for nearly 20 years. He could laugh and talk as if he had not a care in the world. He was an 'Easter person' who by word and deed reflected the good news of the victory of the Cross and of the joyfulness of the Resurrection. It is possible to resign oneself to suffering but it is a very different thing to bring sunshine into the lives of others at the same time. This calls for great faith, hope and charity. Louis retained a warm and appreciative interest in everyone to such a degree that all considered themselves to hold a special place in his heart.
He had a happy interest in the life of the secondary school at Chivuna and helped the community there through his visiting, his counselling, his concern for each one's welfare, for their academic achievements as well as their prowess in sports.

Finally when arthritis made him almost unable to walk, he made the journey to Nairobi in Kenya to see if anything could be done for his feet. While there in hospital, he was anxious to get back to Chivuna for the opening of the school term. However, cardio-respiratory failure was the final cause of his death there at the age of 68.
His remains were flown to Zambia and he was buried at Chikuni on 14 April 1980. The most noticeable thing about Louis' funeral was the manner in which the ordinary Tonga people seemed very clearly to take over the burying of their priest. It would have been unthinkable to bury Louis elsewhere, he who had lived and worked among them for 30 years

◆ Irish Province News
Irish Province News 55th Year No 3 1980
Obituary
Fr D Louis Meagher (1911-1931-1980)
(The following piece, by Fr Socius, Zambia, is copied from the VPZ Newsletter:)
Normally I would ask someone else to write an obituary. But in this case I wish to do it myself; partly, I suppose, because my friendship with him goes as far back as 1948, when I was a schoolboy at the Crescent in Limerick.
Fr Louis died in the Mater hospital, Nairobi, on 14 April, 1980, having said Mass on the same day. Cardio-respiratory failure was the final cause of his death at the age of sixty-eight.
Requiem Mass was celebrated for the repose of his soul in the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Holy Family, Nairobi, with a cardinal and about 50 priests concelebrating. His remains were flown home to Zambia, and he was buried at Chikuni on 19 April. Though both Bishop Corboy and Bishop Munhandu conducted the funeral services, with nearly 50 fellow-priests concelebrating, I would say that the most noticeable fact of Louis’s funeral was the manner in which the ordinary Tonga people seemed very clearly to take over the burying of their own priest. It would have been unthinkable to bury Fr Louis elsewhere.
Ordained in 1944, Fr Louis taught for a while in the Crescent College and then came to Zambia in 1950, working principally in the Chikuni area till he was appointed Superior of the Jesuits of the Chikuni Mission in 1955. In the early 1960s he began to suffer from rheumatoid arthritis, which crippled him increasingly till his death. His work as Vicar-General of the Monze diocese was highly appreciated by all. In recent years, as chaplain to St. Joseph's secondary school, Chivuna, Louis was the friend and inspiration to all.
At a special requiem Mass at St Ignatius, Lusaka, I was asked to preach the homily, in which I tried to highlight three outstanding characteristics of Louis - in an attempt to learn the meaning of his life. I would like to repeat these briefly:
His undiminished interest in other people: You would excuse interest diminishing through age or sickness; but in him there was none of these. Louis retained a warm and appreciated interest in everyone, to such a degree that they all considered themselves to hold a special place in his heart. And of course this deep interest enabled Louis to converse with absolutely anyone - on any subject under the sun.
His humility and freedom from conceit: In human qualities Fr Louis was very ordinary. He saw himself as a great “chancer” (his own word), meaning that he was willing to try his hand at anything, though not highly gifted for anything in particular. He would never have considered himself outstanding - a gifted preacher, an intellectual, a specialist, a famous Jesuit (!) or a holy priest. In God’s own wisdom it was the way he bore his illness for nearly 20 years that made Louis extraordinary. To listen to him talk and laugh you could easily imagine he hadn't a worry in the world, though he was largely crippled with rheumatoid arthritis. Such inspiring acceptance indicated a very deep spirituality.
“Let there be sunshine in my world together with you” are the words of a popular song today. And they apply very much to Fr Louis. It is possible for people who suffer seriously over a long period of time to find solace in the mystery of the Cross; but often such people communicate a faith which stays at the Cross. Louis however was definitely an “Easter person”, who by both word and deed reflected the good news of the victory of the Cross and the joyfulness of the Resurrection. It is possible to resign oneself to suffering, but very difficult to bring sunshine also into the world of others; this calls for great faith, hope and charity.
I think it was Louis’s remarkable ability to proclaim charismatically “Praise the Lord” with his crippled body that was his outstanding gift to us all.
In his obituary notice on Louis Meagher, Fr Tom O'Brien has rightly emphasised Louis' courage and cheerfulness in his sickness and often painful suffering during the last twenty years of his life. I would like to add that this courage and determination was something which was built into Louis's character during his years of formation and his early work in the Society before bad health came upon him.
Louis found extremely difficult not only the studies in the Society but also the preparation for many of the works such as preaching and the giving of retreats. Study for him was always a real grind, but he had tremendous determination and a great sense of mission and this carried him through, so that at the end of his training he was better equipped to carry on the apostolic works of the Society than many others who were endowed with greater intelligence and other natural gifts.
There was however one gift with which Louis was endowed to an extraordinary degree, and that was a very attractive and cheerful personality. This natural charm enabled him to make friends with people of every, age and sex. It was quite an experience to see Louis meeting strangers (sometimes unfriendly strangers) and in no time
they were at ease and enjoying his company.
When Louis came to Zambia he needed all his courage and determination. A few years after his arrival he found himself saddled with the job of religious superior of the Irish Jesuits here and that of vicar-general of their section of the archdiocese of Lusaka. These were difficult times for Louis due to lack of finance and other circumstances beyond his control. The appointment came as a great shock to Louis. I can well remember that for once he looked really down in the mouth. However he faced up to the situation as he had faced up to all the difficulties in his years as a scholastic. To a large extent he concealed all his worries and anxieties and he surprised us all by his ability to lead and to govern during those difficult years.
I would like to single out one special virtue which was very evident to me in his administration of the Mission. I was closely associated with him as a consultor for most of those years, and I can honestly say that I don't think that he was ever influenced by self-interest in any of the decisions he made. His likes and dislikes of other people (and like any normal person he had his likes and dislikes) never influenced his decisions. When he made mistakes they could never be attributed to selfish motives.
When sickness and pain came upon Louis it was no surprise to me that he bore it with courage and unselfish cheerfulness to the end. Louis was only continuing to live his life as he had always lived it.

With Louis Meagher’s death, the communities at Civuna have lost a great friend and a loyal support. The mission at large will miss him for his great enthusiasm and inspiration; but as Christ said to the Apostles, one feels that it is better that he should go to his Father because now he will help us all the more and his spirit will continue to inspire us.
“I only want to complete the work the Lord Jesus gave me to do, which is to declare the good news about the grace of God”. In Louis’ last days in a Nairobi hospital he still had one great wish, namely to return to Civuna and continue his apostolate. That was not to be; but the tributes at his burial at Chikuni were a sign that not only at Civuna but in the diocese as a whole, his life and work made a lasting impact on the people. About 50 priests concelebrated Mass with our bishop, James Corboy, and the bishop of the neighbouring diocese of Livingstone, brothers, sisters and the ordinary people in great numbers.
Louis could have called a halt twenty years ago when he first developed arthritis and the doctors declared that he had only a few months to live. But that wasn’t Louis Meagher. He fought against his illness every day since then, never giving in and never complaining, but took all the medical attention he could get, including the hip operation. Finally, when the arthritis made him almost unable to walk, he made his journey to Nairobi to see if anything could be done for his feet.
As a community man he was always cheerful and available. He was interested in everything that was going on in the parish; the numbers at Mass in each centre, the leaders, the catechists, development work and the youth. He had a deep impact on the life of the Secondary school and helped to form both staff and pupils into a happy community through his visiting, his counselling, his interest in each one's welfare, the academic achievements of the girls and in sport. Probably one of the best tributes to his time in Civuna is the formation of the new diocesan congregation of sisters, the Sisters of the Holy Spirit, who celebrated their 10th anniversary on Pentecost weekend (24th-25th May). They now have 12 sisters, all past pupils of the school; four are teaching here and others are still in training for their future ministries. They always came to him for advice and help, and the encouragement they received is evident in the very pleasant family spirit which they have developed: each one's personality and talents are able to be brought together for the good of all.
I think if there is one single lesson that Louis's life teaches it is this, . to use whatever talents the Lord has given us, perfect them through developing them for the sake of others, until we all attain maturity, contributing to the completed growth of Christ. It is no coincidence that Louis took to the Charismatic Renewal in the Church as a fish takes to water, and in spite of his ill-health, attended the local and national conferences and inspired many people by his presence. The Spirit of the risen Lord was certainly evident in him, but it was a light shining from the daily cross of physical suffering. May he enjoy a rich reward for his life of faith and service to others and may he always inspire us to go and do the same.

Born: 17 March 1797, Ballybeg, Toomevara, County Tipperary
Entered: 02 December 1817, Hodder, Stonyhurst, England (ANG) / St Stainlaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 1819, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Died: 10 July 1829, Toomevara, County Tipperary

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
He was the thirteenth child of his parents, and, according to a custom in those parts for a thirteenth child, was known as “the piper”.
His brother John was PP of the local Parish for 44 years, and they are buried side by side in the Toomevara Church (St Joseph's), on the Epistle side of the altar.
He studied at Maynooth and was ordained Deacon there. At the same time his father died, and he felt called to the Society. He left home with that in mind, but without telling anyone. He subsequently sent his mother a book on the life of Francis Xavier, and suggested she read it and then understand what he was seeking. It is believed that this letter may have come from Tullabeg, though some say Hodder, where he made his first year of noviceship - he subsequently came to Tullabeg for second year Fr St Leger records his having taken Vows in Tullabeg on 03 December 1819. He was of very good abilities and very holy. His Ordination took place at Tullabeg after First Vows.
There was no public Church in Tullabeg at that time, but he was allowed by the local PP to say Mass and hear Confessions there. He developed a good reputation as a Confessor.
He eventually became ill, and though he recovered for a while, suffered a severe relapse, which the doctors were unable to treat. He never once complained.
He was sent to his brother’s house in Toomevara for a change of air, hoping he might recover, but he died six months or so later. His last instructions were that “no woman be allowed into the room where his remains were laid out until such time as they were in a coffin”.
He was buried with his brother, and a monument records “Hoc Monumentus fieri fecit, Reverendus Johannes Meagher PP, in Memoriam fratris ejus, Reverendi Patritii Meagher de Societate Jesu Presbyteri, qui obit anno MDCCCXXIX, Mense Julii, Aetatis Suae XXII. RIP

◆ James B Stephenson SJ Menologies 1973

Father Patrick Meagher 1797-1829
Fr Patrick Meagher belonged to one of the oldest families of the townland of Ballybeg, near Toomevara County Tipperary. He was born on St Patrick’s Day 1797, the thirteenth child of the family, and for that reason always known as “The Piper”, a name, according to local custom, always bestowed on the thirteenth child.

He studied Theology in Maynooth and was ordained deacon. He made up his mind to become a Jesuit and left home with that intention, without letting his mother know. From the noviceship he sent her a life of St Francis Xavier, and he told her to read it and she would know what kind of life he was aiming at.

There was no public Church at Tullabeg, so after his ordination with the permission of the Parish Priest, he used to hear confession and preach in the parish Church.

He fell ill with an incurable disease, and he was sent in 1828 to his brother’s house in Toomevara, where his brother was Parish Priest for 44 years. He only lived six or seven months. When hew saw the end was near he sent a message by hand to one of the Fathers at Tullabeg, asking him to come to him, that he “might not die except in the arms of one of the Society”. He died peacefully the next day, June 10th 1829, at the early age of 32. His last instructions regarding himself were “that no woman was to be allowed into the room where his remains were laid out, until they were enclosed in a coffin”.

He was buried in the Parish Church of Toomevara, side by side with his brother, who erected a monument over him, which can be seen to this day on the Epistle side of the altar.

◆ George Oliver Towards Illustrating the Biography of the Scotch, English and Irish Members SJ
MEAGHER, PATRICK. This Reverend Father died in Tipperary, June 1829.

Born: 21 July 1799, Newfoundland, Canada (Co Waterford)
Entered: 24 February 1828, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 29 September 1834, Marlborough Street, Dublin
Professed: 02 February 1846
Died: 17 April 1855, Belvedere College SJ, Dublin

Uncle of Thomas Francis Meagher.

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
Came to Stonyhurst for early education and studied Humanities. He was keen to be a barrister, and studied law for some years afterwards before Entry.

He joined HIB Vice-Province 24 February 1828
After First Vows he was sent as Prefect either to Clongowes or Tullabeg
He was ordained by Dr Murray, Archbishop of Dublin - who had also ordained him Deacon - in Marlborough St 29 September 1834.
1847 he had been nine years Minister in Belvedere, and 14 March 1847 he was appointed Rector. He died in office 1855. As well as his work in Belvedere, he was also a Spiritual Director to a community of Carmelite Nuns. At one stage he was ill for a while, and the esteem in which he was held is witnessed by the number of visitors that called daily to enquire after him. He was remarkable for his union with God and great prudence in business. He was a truly spiritual man, and he viewed everything with the eyes of faith. he was perfectly straightforward and a model of charity towards others. He was a model religious, and never did his virtues appear to better advantage than during the last months of his life: as he lay dying, suffering most intensely, he was most patient and never murmured. Father Frank Murphy assisted him in his last moments, and he died on 17 April 1855.

Born: 11 April 1917, Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 07 September 1935, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Ordained: 28 July 1948, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1981, Manresa House, Dollymount, Dublin
Died: 07 February 2005, Cherryfield Lodge Dublin

Part of the Manresa House, Dublin community at the time of death.

Younger brother of D Louis Meagher - RIP 1980
Cousin of John P Leonard - RIP 2006

◆ Fr Francis Finegan SJ : Admissions 1859-1948 - Born Ratoath, County Meath; St Finian’s Mullingar student

◆ Interfuse

Interfuse No 128 : Special Issue June 2006

Obituary

Patrick (Paddy) Meagher (1917-2005)

11th April 1917: Born in Dublin
Early education at the National School in Ratoath, Co. Meath and St. Finian's, Mullingar
7th September 1935: Entered the Society at Emo
8th September 1937: First Vows at Emo
1937 - 1940: Rathfarnham - Studied Classics at UCD
1940 - 1943: Tullabeg -Studied Philosophy
1943 - 1945: Mungret College, Limerick - Teacher (Regency)
1945 - 1949: Milltown Park - Studied Theology
28th July 1948: Ordained at Milltown Park
1949 - 1950: Tertianship at Rathfarnham
1950 - 1953: Clongowes - Teacher
1953 - 1956: Mungret College - Teacher
1956 - 1960: Gonzaga College - Teacher; Minister, Assistant Prefect of Studies
1960 - 1968: Mungret College - Teacher, Sub-Minister
1968 - 1972: Loyola - Socius to Provincial
1972 - 1973: Rathfarnham -Studied catechetics at Mt. Oliver, Dundalk
1973 - 1974: Manresa House -Assistant Director; Directed Spiritual Exercises
1974 - 1975: Belvedere College - Teacher
1975 - 2005: Manresa House -
1975 - 1985: Assistant Director, Directed Spiritual Exercises
2nd February 1981: Final Vows at Manresa
1985 - 1992: Socius to Director of Novices
1992 - 1996: Directed Spiritual Exercises
1996 - 2001: Rector's Admonitor, Spiritual Director
2001 - 2004: Spiritual Director (SJ)
2004 - 2005: Assisted in the community
7th February 2005 Died at Cherryfield Lodge, Dublin

Fr Meagher visited Cherryfield Lodge many times over the years for respite care. He was admitted in May 2004. He had become weak with chronic chest and circulatory problems. He was treated with antibiotic therapy and pain relief. In the last two weeks his condition weakened further and he died peacefully but unexpectedly in Cherryfield Lodge.

Paul Andrews writes:
Paddy was born in Ratoath, Co. Meath, the fourth child and second boy in a family of six. Three of the four boys became priests, and one of the girls a nun. They were blow-ins, not native to Meath. Paddy's father was from Templemore, his mother the child of a Co. Offaly farmer who had given up farming and moved to near Mulhuddert when the absentee landlord put up the rent. So strong was the anti-landlord feeling that when the family moved away from Offaly, the neighbours came in and knocked down all the buildings, Perhaps it was from this maternal grandfather that Paddy inherited the core of steel that could surprise strangers to this mild little man.

He was closer to his father, admired by neighbours and family as a gentleman of gentlemen, of small stature (all the children inherited this) and incapable of saying a rough word. Mother had the better business head, and thought her husband unsuited to the job of a Ratoath merchant, running a general store and pub. Too little interest in money, she said. He'd have been better in the bank.

Paddy was delicate as a young boy. After National School he went as a boarder to St Finian's in Mullingar. He was small like his father, and never shone at games, though he played Gaelic and carried the mark of a stray hurley in a scar under his eye. He was a bright student, and St Finian's gave him a good foundation in Greek and Latin.

His brother Louis had gone to Belvedere while lodging in Huntstown with his grandmother. There he had come under the influence of Fr Ernest Mackey, the assertive promoter of vocations (perhaps one reason why older Irish Jesuits shudder when Fr General urges us to be aggressive in our search for vocations). Ernest would dine with the Meaghers every Christmas, and exerted such an influence, first on Louis, then on Paddy, that when Tom, two years younger and less academic than Paddy, went to the Holy Ghosts, the local lads used ask him, Would the Js not take you?

Paddy followed Louis's footsteps to Emo. The parents were supportive of their multiple vocations (Maureen had become a Loreto sister). They visited Emo, and when Paddy walked tlırough the parlour door in his Jesuit gown, his mother cried, Oh, a saint! as she rushed to embrace him. That would not have been Paddy's style. He was uneasy with sensible devotion, cool-headed yet with a personal warmth that drew people to him; but the opposite of charismatic.

He eschewed scenes of high emotion. In the tempestuous seventies, the Grubb Institute led a group session for several days in Tullabeg, and explored the emotional sensitivities of the sometimes unwilling participants. Towards the end Paddy exploded: For the first time in 25 years you have made me lose my temper. No, said the Australian leader, For the first time in 25 years we have given you permission to lose your temper. Paddy did not like it.

When we were looking for a photo of Paddy for his memorial card, we wondered: What age are we in heaven – with what sort of a face? God gives you your eyes but you gradually make your own mouth. Earlier photos show Paddy's lips as judicial and stern. As a teacher he had to compensate in gravity of personality for a slight physical presence; and compensate he did. He was respected and liked, a most effective teacher in Mungret, Clongowes and (as one of the earliest staff) Gonzaga. In the councils of staff and community his voice was calm and reasonable. When Cecil McGarry became Provincial, he looked for Paddy as his Socius because he was wise and respected, easy to get on with and of good judgment.

So he was at the Provincial's side through those tumultuous years. The job suited him in many ways. He was an easy companion and could exercise independent discretion when needs be. When a rather forward Jesuit rang Loyola looking for an appointment with the Provincial, Paddy gave him a time in late morning. The visitor asked: Does that include an invitation to lunch? No, said Paddy quietly.

It was heart trouble that forced him to give up the job of Socius with its daily quota of serious business. Physically he may not have been able for high stress. When John Guiney brought him from Loyola to St Vincent's A and B with angina, they put him to bed quickly. A priest appeared and then two doctors. Paddy promptly responded by getting a heart attack. Over the years he became a model of how to live with a wacky heart. In early 2003 we worried about his stomach aneurysm which could not be mended because the operation might kill him. On the last day of 2003 he was anointed. Three days later Mary Rickard said he was sinking. Seven days later he asked about prayers for the dying. But he bounced back.

Coming from Loyola to Manresa did not mean an abdication of intelligence. Both within the community and with the many people he helped here, you could trust him to use his head, always sage, humane, insightful. The sisters seeking the Lord in Manresa liked him because he reflected assurance, a known way of proceeding, and a calm judgment. Many still remember his pithy, succinct homilies.

He did not sit lightly to the sillier aspects of media culture, such as pop music, designer stubble, or phrases like: Go with the feeling. His sense of irony carried him through such inanities – and through the bandying of religious jargon - without becoming grumpy; he could be teased about them. There were other changes which he accepted but suffered, such as the reshaping of the Manresa community chapel: he would have liked fewer windows, more pictures, a crucifix and sanctuary lamp. He did not relish the sharing of reflections and experiences at concelebrated Mass. But he was there every day.

In Cherryfield people remarked on Paddy's clarity of mind and the tenacity with which he held on to life. When one of the brethren brought over blue and orange shirts from his room, Paddy thanked him for the blue but queried the orange: I thought I mentioned a beige shirt. Up to the day of his death he was bubbling with enquiries about the Province and life outside.

In 2004 he left this note to his Rector, to be opened when I die:

Paul, I would wish that the homily at my funeral Mass be short, i.e. three and a half to four minutes - no more. I was a small man, so there is no need to make me seem bigger than I am (was). Just ask the SJs and people to thank God for whatever good I may have done, and ask his pardon for all my shortcomings.
And end with Cardinal Newman's prayer: May he support us all the day long...
Thanking you for all your caring for me in my last years. Paddy.

Alas, some of these wishes were not met, because the Rector was away when Paddy died, and the touching letter lay hidden in his safe. But Dermot Mansfield's homily at the funeral did justice to Paddy in Dermot's own way, and the back of his mortuary card carries the Cardinal's prayer.

What we miss is the smiling or laughing Paddy. It is no accident that in his reading he reverted to PGWodehouse and a light-hearted view of life. He showed how to shuffle off responsibilities in this passing life, and face the beatific vision with a contented and hopeful heart.

◆ The Clongownian, 2006

Obituary

Father Patrick Meagher SJ

Fr Patrick Meagher SJ who died at Cherryfield Lodge on 7th February 2005 at the age of 87, spent three years teaching in Clongowes from 1950-1953. Born in Dublin in 1917 he entered the Society at Emo where he took his first vows in 1935. He studied in Rathfarnham, Tullabeg and Milltown Park where he was ordained in 1948. As well as Clongowes, Fr Meagher taught in Mungret, Gonzaga and Belvedere College. He also served in Manresa House where he directed Spiritual Exercises and took his final vows in 1981. May he rest in peace.

Born: 27 September 1889, Raheen, County Limerick
Entered: 07 September 1906, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly
Ordained: 15 August 1921, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final vows: 02 February 1924
Died: 28 January 1955, St John’s Hospital, Limerick

Part of the Clongowes Wood College, County Kildare community at the time of death and was on a break at Crescent College, Limerick at the time of death

by 1911 at Stonyhurst England (ANG) studying
by 1913 at Leuven Belgium (BELG) studying

◆ Irish Province News
Irish Province News 30th Year No 2 1955

Obituary :

Father Michael Meaney

Fr. Michael Meaney died on January 29th, 1955, in St. John's Hospital in his native Limerick, and was buried from the Crescent, where he had been at school and where he had later laboured, in Church and College, for many years. He had gone to Limerick for a short rest, hoping to find relief from a skin affection, but almost at once he took ill, and after a few weeks died. His funeral, one of the largest seen at the Crescent Church, was a remarkable tribute to a man who had spent all his working life in the class-room or the school corridor.
His career in the Society was uneventful. He entered the Noviceship at Tullabeg in 1906, and did his philosophy at Stonyhurst and Louvain. As a scholastic he taught in Mungret and Clongowes, and after his Tertianship he became First Prefect in Mungret for a year, during which he made his solemn profession. Two years as Prefect of Studies in Clongowes followed, and one in the same post in Mungret. In 1928 he went to the Crescent and soon became a full-time worker in the Church, as well as teacher. In 1943 he was transferred to Clongowes where he remained until his death.
Fr. Meaney was exceptionally gifted both as a preacher and teacher, especially the latter. His own standards were high, and he exacted a high standard of work and achievement from his classes. Many boys found his insistence on hard work and accuracy a surprise, and then, for a while, a trial, before they recognised it, as almost all did in the end, as a blessing. He could be severe in his earlier years (and as Prefect of Studies he was probably too severe) and at times it required from him a considerable effort to suffer fools gladly : but, whatever his success in this, he never, even at his mellowest, could abide slovenly work or idleness. This salutary intolerance, added to his energy and extra ordinary clarity of mind, made him the phenomenally successful teacher that he was, and won for him the respect, and, in his later years, the affection of his boys. “I had studied Latin for three years before I came to Fr. Meaney's class”, said one who left school in recent years. “After three weeks with him I began to know what it was about, within four I was becoming good at it, and in less than three months I realised that here was a subject that would never cause me trouble”. Such boys learned more than Latin and English from Fr. Meaney and their mastery of difficulties with him was a lesson for life.
He was a happy, cheerful teacher, too. Although an exceptionally gifted man, he never felt any temptation to think, as he passed from class to class among the boys, that his talents were being left to rust in such work and that he was a martyr, damnatus ad bestias. Such temptations are not unknown but he found his happiness in using all his gifts splendidly in God's service in the colleges.
His literary gifts were seen to advantage in his retreats and sermons. And here also his high standards were evident. Every sermon was perfectly prepared, perfectly learned, and delivered with confidence and conviction. Some felt that occasional sermons suited him best and that his composition and style were above the ordinary congregation : this opinion could perhaps be defended, and it is certainly true that he was characteristically impatient of the criterion of “what the people like”. The best work of the Society was inspired, he thought, by a very different standard. And yet the people did appreciate his sermons greatly and admired him a preacher.
As a confessor he had much success with scrupulous penitents, and his clear, objective, sympathetic direction won him many friends who frequently returned to seek his help and advice outside confession. This, perhaps, is why he seemed to have more and closer friends among lay people than within the Society. They sought him out, but for himself he was a man of such self-reliance and strength of mind that he seldom felt the need of help from others. Yet he was an excellent community man and a splendid companion, especially on the golf-course. Here again his high standards were seen he played an excellent game and abhorred all that was slip-shod. He had no time for those who look on golf merely as an excuse for fresh air and exercise, and who are free and easy about the rules!
In the last years of his life he was called on to endure much more than most people suspected; for he never complained or spoke about himself. Very frequently he went to class after a night of sleepless suffering, and no one was ever the wiser, and his work continued at the same high level. At times it became clear that it would be dangerous for him to teach, and then it needed all the persuasion of Minister and doctor to induce him to take a rest from work. And after each recovery he worked on, sustained by his indefatigable spirit and simple piety, especially his devotion to the Rosary. It was thought he meditated daily on Our Lord's warning of the night when no man can work. But he dreaded too the evening of life when he might not be able to continue his service in the class-room. So, when God called him to his reward after a short illness, his friends saw in this a great mercy. And if any man had earned his rest, he had. May he rest in peace.

◆ The Clongownian, 1955

Obituary

Father Michael Meaney SJ

On January 29th Father Michael Meaney died in Limerick, where he bad gone for a short rest and change of air. By his death we lost one of the most remarkable teachers ever to stand in a Clongowes class-room, or indeed anywhere else.

His teaching career began in Mungret, and in 1915 he came as a scholastic to Clongowes, where he remained until 1919. He returned as Prefect of Studies for the years 1925-1927, and his third period here lasted from 1943 until his death,

Those who knew Father Meaney in his younger years will remember him as a teacher of extraordinary ability, but they will recall too a man who could be severe, and at times very severe. And if it is true that the large majority of those who studied under his ferule were most' grateful to him at examination times and in later life, even they in their mature years might be surprised at the great affection he inspired in his boys during the later period of his life. It was not that the passing years had taught him to suffer fools gladly - at all times that required on his part a heroic effort; it was not that he had lost his salutary intolerance of slip-shod work or any form of idleness; but his interests and affections had developed and broadened until they embraced completely the whole boy, and went far be yond the embryonic latinist or English scholar. Everything that concerned his pupils became of importance to him ; his ready laugh was heard more frequently on the galleries as well as in the class-room, and one had but to listen to him discuss the progress of some slower scholar, or meet him, blue with cold, returning from a Rugby match and hear his detailed commentary on the play afterwards, to realise how broad and deep his sympathies and affections were.

His success as a teacher was exceptional, and exceptional too the range of subjects he taught throughout the years. In one of his first classes in Clongowes a boy won the Medal for French in Junior Grade, in one of his last, another took first place in Latin and a scholarship in the University En rance; and in the intervening years he had taught English, History, Geography and Mathematics with like success. And this success was not limited to his cleverer pupils, who invariably acquitted themselves brilliantly; whole classes achieved extraord inarily high marks and occasionally classes whose ability was notoriously mediocre sur prised themselves and most others after a year or two with him. Nor was this suc cess confined to examinations : one had but to meet his boys to see that they had learned from him a real appreciation of the subjects he taught. But he imparted too something more important than this appreciation - the self-confidence that comes from difficulties faced and conquered and the sense of achievement and satisfaction that inevitably follows hard, honest work.

With his powerful mind, sharp and analytic, he had no time for catchwords and cant; and his vigorous character could not abide slovenliness or slip-shod work, or accept promise as a substitute for perform ance. “Catchwords and cant, slovenliness and sloppy work”_-how his slightly rasp ing voice would declaim the litany of what lie thought were the besetting evils of modern Irish life! And if any teacher sent out his boys well-armoured to meet them, it was he.

Towards the end of his life his health steadily grew worse. The broad athletic frame was as strong as ever, but the attacks of asthma from which he suffered becaine more frequent and painful. In class he was frequently seized with bouts of coughing that went on until it seemed that he must collapse. Physical effort became most difficult and the journey by stairs and galleries to the class-rooms and back was for him a via dolorosa that he steadfastly refused to shorten. “Poor Father Meaney!” a boy would say, as he came upon him, breathless and with bowed head, pausing to rest before the effort of the stairs that lead to the Serpentine.

Poor Father Meaney it is sad to think that the brave, hearty laugh is stilled, difficult to realise that his full, clear, accurate mind, so long at the service of his boys, is at rest. And how he merited that rest, and the contemplation of the Truth he loved and served so faithfully!

◆ The Crescent : Limerick Jesuit Centenary Record 1859-1959

Bonum Certamen ... A Biographical Index of Former Members of the Limerick Jesuit Commnnity

Father Michael Meaney (1889-1955)

Born at Raheen, Ballysheedy, Co Limerick and educated at Sacred Heart College, entered the Society in 1906. He pursued his higher studies in England, Louvain and Milltown Park. On the completion of his studies, he was appointed prefect at Mungret College and the following year prefect of studies at Clongowes. In 1928 he was appointed to Crescent College where he remained fifteen years. During his stay in Limerick, Crescent College was in the process of renewing, with ever increasing success, its prestige of the olden days. Father Meaney contributed to this success in no small way by his devotion to duty as an efficient teacher. At the same time, he earned for himself the reputation of a priest unselfishly devoted to the administration of the sacraments and preaching. By the early 1940's, he had begun to suffer much from asthma and was transferred to Clongowes. At Clongowes his teaching hours had to be shortened but during those years he continued to get brilliant results from his classes, especially in Latin. He died in Limerick after a brief illness during the vacation, on 29 January, 1955.

Born: 12 October 1817, England
Entered: 21 May 1846, Hodder, Stonyhurst, England - Angliae Province (ANG)
Ordained: 1853
Died: 24 September 1903, Brescia, Italy - Angliae Province (ANG)

Came to work at Clongowes Wood College, SJ 1878-1880

Born: 06 March 1900, County Cork
Entered: 31 August 1917, St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly

Left Society of Jesus: 27 February 1918 for health reasons

◆ Fr Francis Finegan : Admissions 1859-1948 - Clongowes student; LEFT due to bad health

Born: 02 August 1810,
Entered: 19 September 1825, Montrouge, Paris, France - Galliae Province (GALL)

Left Society of Jesus: 26 October 1835

Arthur Molloy in GALL and ROM Catalogues; Brian Molloy in HIB

1825-1827: Montrouge, Paris, France (GALL), Novitiate
1827-1828: St Acheol, Amiens, France (GALL), Rhetoric
1828-1831: Roman College, Rome Italy (ROM), Philosophy
1831-1833: St Stanislaus College SJ, Tullabeg, County Offaly, Regency
1833-1835: Clongowes Wood College SJ, Theology

Born: 26 January 1836, County Tipperary
Entered: 27 January 1858, Beaumont, England - Angliae Province (ANG)
Ordained; 1867
Final vows: 15 August 1872
Died: 18 April 1894, Collège du Sacre-Coeur, Charleroi, Belgium

by 1866 at Laval France (FRA) studying Theology 2
by 1867 at Vals France (TOLO studying
by 1868 at St Bueno’s Wales (ANG) studying
by 1870 at Drongen Belgium (BELG) making Tertianship
by 1875 at St Wilfred’s Preston (ANG) working
by 1876 at St George’s Bristol (ANG) working
by 1890 at Charleroi Belgium (BELG) teaching

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
He was a Teacher at Prefect at Clongowes and Tullabeg at different periods.
He studied Theology at Laval and Vals.
1869 He was sent as Minister to Galway.
He made his Tertianship at Drongen.
He worked on the Missionary Staff for a while and was based in Limerick.
1875-1876 He was working in the ANG parish at Bristol.
He then returned to Limerick where he excelled as a Confessor.
He was transferred variously to Milltown, Tullabeg and later to Dromore.
1888 He went to Belgium, and died there at the College in Charleroi 18 April 1894

◆ The Crescent : Limerick Jesuit Centenary Record 1859-1959

Bonum Certamen ... A Biographical Index of Former Members of the Limerick Jesuit Commnnity

Father Thomas Molloy (1836-1894)

Of Co. Tipperary, entered the Society in 1858. After his ordination, he was appointed to the mission staff and was a member of the Crescent community, as missioner, from 1872 to 1874. He returned to Limerick as member of the church staff and was prefect of the church from 1877 to 1882. He was sent on loan to the Belgian's Province's College of Charleroi in 1888 as assistant prefect and English master. Here, it may be remarked that other Irish Jesuits at the period held the same position in the same school. Father Molloy remained in Belgium until his death on 18 April, 1894.

Born: 16 July 1910, Harman Street, South Circular Road, Dublin City, County Dublin
Entered: 07 September 1931, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Ordained: 29 July 1943, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1946, Belvedere College SJ, Dublin
Died: 10 October 1985, Belvedere College SJ, Dublin

◆ Fr Francis Finegan : Admissions 1859-1948 - Clerk before entry

◆ Irish Province News 61st Year No 1 1986

Obituary
Fr James Moloney (1910-1931-1985)

Jim was born in Dublin in 1910. His vocation to the Society came indirectly from his decision to become a quantity surveyor. This brought him to Clongowes Wood in 1929 as clerk of works in the building operations that resulted in the large castellated addition to the College. While there he thought joining the Jesuits, sought advice from some of them and entered the noviceship at Emo in 1931.Then followed his degree course in Rathfarnham castle (1933-36); philosophy in Tullabeg (1936-39); a year's teaching in Belvedere; theology and ordination in Milltown Park (1940-44); finally, tertianship in Rathfarnham (1944-45). (Of the remaining 40 years of his life, 33 were spent in Belvedere; or, put in another way, 34 (including the regency year) out of his 54 years of religious life were devoted to Belvedere).
In summer 1945 he came to Belvedere as minister. The writer remembers hearing him murmur anxiously to himself: “Oh, these supplies”, as he surveyed the Mass tabella. Jim's anxiety was understandable; “supplies” called to mind the long and complicated Milltown list. However, as minister he worked smoothly and efficiently. In addition, he taught religion, which he liked, at the technical school in Parnell square. It was during these first years in Belvedere he made himself indispensable when social occasions involving ladies' committees had to be planned times when communities tend to skulk, Jim revelled in meeting people, and became widely popular This activity however always had its apostolic side, and kept on growing. In 1951, after classroom, still in Belvedere, until 1959,when he took up again for over a decade the more congenial duties of minister.
In 1970, the blow fell: Jim was a city man and felt keenly his transfer to Mungret as minister. He referred to his year there as his penitential season. His great kindness, however, is still remembered.
Much more to his taste were his six years in Manresa (1971-77). He was back in his beloved city, and so fond did he become of his new house that he had regrets about his last posting: to Belvedere as bursar (1977-'85). An obedient man, he applied himself diligently to learning the ropes. He liked his mid morning visit to the bank just opposite the Gate theatre. There was a certain brief-case-and-rolled-umbrella formality about this excursion. Another part of his daily routine was his snooze in a chair during the early afternoon, That hour was sacrosanct and medically advised for a recurrent cardiac flutter resulting from a heart attack some years before. This palpitation was premonitory: Jim knew that he was under a sentence. Those who had known him in earlier days noted that his fussiness had all but subsided, and that his occasional testiness had become rarer. His manner showed a new mellowness and contentment. At the beginning of September 1985 he went to Wexford for a holiday. Shortly after his arrival, he had a stroke, then another, a very serious one. Transferred to hospital in Dublin, he died on 10th October 1985, still unable to communicate.
Jim's life in the Society had its centre in the community, never elsewhere. A very private person, he seldom talked about himself, and then only in a passing way. At the opening of his Jubilee Mass he made known his wish to have no interventions: in these matters he was conservative. He rarely indulged in even mild disparagement of others, and remained loyal to the rectors under whom he served. He was orderly and kept to a routine: he always appeared d well-groomed. During his years of formation, his contemporaries referred to him as the Student Prince - the nickname was both descriptive and affectionate. After his death, one came to realise that, in his own unobtrusive way, he had indeed exercised an apostolate. May he rest in peace.

◆ The Belvederian, Dublin, 1986

Obituary

Father James Moloney SJ

Jim was born in Dublin in 1910. His vocation to the Society came indirectly from his decision to become a quantity Surveyor. This brought him to Clongowes Wood in 1929 as clerk of works in the building operations that resulted in the large castel lated addition to the College. While there he thought about joining the Jesuits, sought advice from some of them and entered the noviceship at Emo in 1931. Then followed his degree course in Rathfarnham Castle (1933-6); philosophy in Tullabeg (1936-'9); a year's teaching in Belvedere; theology and ordination in Milltown Park (1940 4); finally, tertianship in Rathfarnham (1944-25). [Of the remaining 40 years of his life, 33 were spent in Belvedere, or, to put it another way, 34 (includ ing the regency year) out of his 54 years of religious life were devoted to Belvedere).

In summer 1945 he came to Belvedere as minister. In addition, he taught religion, which he liked, at the technical school in Parnell Square. It was during these first years in Belvedere that he made himself indispensable when social occasions in volving ladies' committees had to be planned and hosted - times when communities tend to skulk. Jim revelled in meeting people, and became widely popular. This activity however always had its apostolic side, and kept on growing. In 1951, after six years as minister, he returned to the classroom, still in Belvedere, until 1959, when he took up again for over a decade the more congenial duties of minister.

In 1970, the blow fell: Jim was a city man and felt keenly his transfer to Murgret as minister. He referred to his year there as his penitential season. His great kindness, however, is still remembered.

Much more to his taste were his six years in Manresa (1971-77). He was back in his beloved city, and so fond did he become of his new house that he had regrets about his last posting: to Belvedere as bursar (1977-'85). An obedient man, he applied himself diligently to learning the ropes. Another part of his daily routine was his snooze in a chair during the early afternoon. That hour was sacrosanct and medically advised for a recurrent cardiac flutter resulting from a heart attack some years before. This palpitation was premonitory: Jim knew that he was under a sentence. Those who had known him in earlier days noted that his fussiness had all but subsided, and that his occasional testiness had become rarer. His manner showed a new mellowness and contentment,

At the beginning of September 1985 he went to Wexford for a holiday. Shortly after his arrival, he had a stroke, then another, a very serious one. Transferred to hospital in Dublin, he died on 10th October 1985, still unable to communicate.

Jim's life in the Society had its centre in the community, never elsewhere. A very private person, he seldom talked about himself, and then only in a passing way. At the opening of his Jubilee Mass he made known his wish to have no interventions: in these matters he was conservative. He rarely indulged in even mild disparagement of others, and remained loyal to the rectors under whom he served. He was orderly and kept to a routine: he always appeared well-groomed. During his years of formation, his contemporaries referred to him as the Student Prince - the nickname was both descriptive and affectionate. After his death, one came to realize that, in his own unobtrusive way, he had indeed exercised an apostolate.

May he rest in peace.

Born: 25 March 1913, New Street, Abbeyfeale, County Limerick
Entered: 07 September 1931, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Ordained: 31 July 1945, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1949, Belvedere College SJ, Dublin
Died: 05 June 1984, Cherryfield Lodge, Dublin - Zambiae Province (ZAM)

Part of the St Ignatius, Lusaka, Zambia community at the time of death.

Transcribed HIB to ZAM : 03 December 1969

Father was a cattle dealer.

Eldest of three boys with one sister.

Educated at a National school in Abbeyfeale and then at St Michael’s College, Listowel, and then for two years at Mungret College SJ

by 1965 at Loyola Watsonia, Australia (ASL) working

Born: 14 April 1931, National Bank, Magherafelt, County Derry
Entered: 07 September 1950, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Ordained: 31 July 1963, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1968, Chiesa del Gesù, Roma, Italia
Died: 26 January 2017, St Vincent’s Hospital, Dublin

Part of the Milltown Park, Dublin community at the time of death.

Son of Patrick Joseph Moloney and Eva Hogan. Father was a Bank Manager and the family lived at the National Bank, Magherafelt, County Derry.

Born in Belfast.

Younger of two boys with one sister.

Early Education at NS Magherafelt, Co Derry, Northern Ireland and then he went to Clongowes Wood College SJ for six years.

After school he studied at Queen’s University for one year before entry

1952-1954 Rathfarnham - Studying Arts at UCD
1954-1957 Tullabeg - Studying Philosophy
1957-1960 Crescent College SJ - Regency : Teacher
1960-1964 Milltown Park - Studying Theology
1964-1965 Paray-le-Monial, France - Tertianship at Maison La Colombière
1965-1967 Bellarmino, Rome, Italy - Studying Theology at Gregorian University
1967-1968 Trier, Germany - Diploma Course in Liturgy at German Liturgical Institute
1968-1984 Milltown Park - Teacher of Theological Dogma & Liturgy
1977 President of Milltown Institute
1983 Sabbatical
1984-1989 Nairobi, Kenya - Professor of Theology at Hekima College School of Theology
1989-2017 Milltown Park - Professor of Systematic Theology at Milltown Institute
1993 Director of Lonergan Centre
1996 Visiting Professor at Hekima College School of Theology
2001 Professor Emeritus of Theology at Milltown Institute; Director of Lonergan Centre; Writer
2015 Director of Lonergan Centre; Writer

by 1965 at Paray-le-Monial, France (GAL M) making Tertianship
by 1966 at Rome, Italy (ROM) studying
by 1968 at Trier, Germany (GER S) studying
by 1985 at Nairobi, Kenya (AOR) teaching - Hekima

◆ Jesuits in Ireland : https://www.jesuit.ie/news/fine-scholar-outstanding-lecturer/

‘Fine scholar, outstanding lecturer’
Jesuits, family and friends of the late Ray Moloney SJ packed into Milltown Chapel for his funeral mass celebrated by Bill Matthews SJ. Ray died on 26 January, aged 85. He was born in Belfast in 1931 and raised in Magherafelt, Co. Derry. At the age of 12 he went to Clongowes Wood College SJ and joined the Jesuits in 1950. Most of his life revolved around the Milltown Institute where he taught theology and liturgy. He spent five years on the missions in Kenya where he learnt Swahili so he could travel and celebrate Mass with the local people. He was the respected author of many theological books, and well known for his theology of the Eucharist.
Homilist Brian Grogan SJ noted that Ray’s writings on the Eucharist offered fleeting glimpses into his soul. Ray summarised his book Rediscovering the Eucharist not in terms of sacrifice, or obligation, or the Real Presence, but in terms of friendship. “In the Eucharist we already anticipate something of what our friendship with Christ will be when it comes to its full flowering in heaven. In the long run that friendship is all that matters,” he wrote.
Referring to his long academic ministry, Brian said that Ray was a “fine scholar and outstanding teacher.” This view was echoed widely by many of his former students who posted on the Irish Jesuits Facebook page. “Fond memories of learning theology from Ray Moloney. A scholar and a gentleman”, wrote Thomas Giblin. And US Jesuit James Pribek commented, “He combined fine scholarship with genuine humility and benevolence. In a group, he was usually on the edge, taking everything in and smiling. He radiated peace. May God be good to him”.
In his wide-ranging homily Brian spoke also about Ray’s life as a Jesuit, noting that his ministry in the intellectual apostolate was underpinned by a deep faith, committed prayer life and love of God. He said he lived an ascetic, almost monastic life, and a fitting symbol for that life was his breviary. “Ray leaned into the contrary wind and lived an orderly and predictable day. Some clerics, I have heard, sailed with the prevailing wind and eased up on the divine office, but not he... At the end his well-worn breviary was the only book beside his bed.”
Brian acknowledged that Ray held firmly to what some would call a more conservative theological position and was slow to relinquish beliefs that were dear to him. “But agree with him or not, he commanded your respect. He knew where he stood, and had a steely quality characteristic of his Northern Ireland roots.” He was also prepared to change and develop, something attested to in a few words from Provincial Leonard Moloney just before the final commendation. He said he had been speaking to Ray not too long before his death and Ray told him that his prayer had changed in recent times and was now much more affective than rational.
Speaking at the end of the Mass, Ray’s niece also told a revealing story about the man her family knew and loved. She remembered with fondness his visits to her home as a child and how he would let her put her feet on his shoes as he danced her round the room.
Brian concluded his homily with the following words: “In a little while we will say: ‘We shall become like God, for we shall see him as he is.’ Like Aquinas when asked by God ‘What do you want?’, Ray would have responded, ‘Teipsum, Domine. Yourself, Lord.’ ... Ray now sees God. He is enlightened, entranced, immortalised and divinised. Our Eucharist today is a thanksgiving for all that God has accomplished in our brother and friend, Ray Moloney”.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

Born: 28 August 1796, County Limerick
Entered: 01 May 1829, Avignon, France (GALL)
Ordained: 23 December 1820, Dublin - pre Entry
Final vows: 02 February 1846
Died: 29 September 1886, St Francis Xavier, Gardiner St, Dublin

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
Was already Ordained 23 December 1820 in Dublin, and had spent nine years as Priest in the Diocese, before Ent.

He Entered at Avignon, France under Father Renault.
He taught at Tullabeg and Clongowes at first.
1841-1846 He was sent to Belvedere to teach.
1846 he spent the next forty years at Gardiner St as Operarius, until his death there 29 September 1886.
He had a great reputation for sanctity, and was indefatigable in the Confessional.

Born: 22 April 1825, County Meath
Entered: 07 October 1860, Clongowes Wood College SJ, County Kildare
Died: 08 September 1865, St Francis Xavier's, Upper Gardiner Street, Dublin

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
He was a carpenter by trade.

Born: 26 November 1938, Hardwicke Street, Dublin
Entered: 06 April 1958, St Mary's , Emo, County Laois
Final Vows: 15 August 1971, Clongowes Wood College, County Kildare
Died: 29 May 2000, Gonzaga College SJ, Dublin

by 1991 at Toronto Canada (CAN S) Sabbatical

Born: 21 May 1829, Newcastle, County Limerick
Entered: 05 October 1852, Amiens France - Franciae Province (FRA)
Ordained: 1865, Rome, Italy
Final vows: 02 February 1872
Died: 15 September 1899, Manresa, Hawthorn, Melbourne, Australia

by 1855 in Montauban, France (TOLO) studying and teaching
by 1861 at Stonyhurst, England (ANG) studying Philosophy
by 1864 at St Beuno’s Wales (ANG) studying Theology 2
by 1865 at Rome, Italy (ROM) studying Theology 3
Early Australian Missioner 1866
by 1871 at Roehampton, London (ANG) making Tertianship
by 1877 at St Beuno’s, Wales (ANG) Min
by 1878 at St Ignatius, London (ANG) working
by 1883 at Stonyhurst, England (ANG) teaching Philosophy

◆ HIB Menologies SJ :
After First Vows he was sent to Clongowes for Regency. By 1858 he was First Prefect, and was the man responsible for introducing Cricket, much to the disappointment of some of the older members.
He was then sent to Stonyhurst for Philosophy and St Beuno’s for Theology, making his third and fourth years in Rome, where he was Ordained 1865.
1866 He accompanied Joseph Mulhall to Melbourne, and he was appointed Prefect of Studies at St Patrick’s Melbourne. In addition to this work, he Preached and gave Lectures in many parts of Australia.
1870 He was sent back to Europe and made Tertianship at St Beuno’s.
1871 He was sent to Crescent in Limerick, and for some years we Prefect of Studies there and then Operarius and Teacher. He worked very hard and attracted great crowds to hear his Preaching.
1876 He was sent to St Beuno’s to teach Church History and also be Minister for a while. He was then sent to the London Residence, where he was engaged in Preaching, and was greatly admired there.
1881 He became Prefect of Philosophers at Stonyhurst and was much liked by the Scholastics.
1885 he was appointed dean of Residence at UCD.
1886 He was sent to Gardiner St as Operarius.
1888 He went back to Australia, and was associated with the Richmond and Hawthorn Missions. he died at Hawthorn 15 September 1899, and the Melbourne Mission lost one of its most able and energetic men. For many years he suffered greatly from eczema. His final illness however arose from a heart complaint. He had an operation which at first seemed successful but in fact advanced the problem, so that the news of his death surprised everyone in Melbourne.
He was a ready speaker and thought very impressive. His Retreats to the boys at Clongowes and Tullabeg were not easily forgotten.

He distinguished himself very much on one memorable occasion - the opening of Armagh Cathedral. One of the Preachers of the day disappointed and Isaac Moore was summoned by the Provincial. Ever after the Primate Dr Daniel McGettigan was wont to refer to his great courage, and the splendid manner in which he acquitted himself, notwithstanding the shortness of notice. He used to say “I can never forget it to Father Moore”.

Some of his Lectures he gave on Catholic Socialism, which he delivered in Melbourne were published in “Argus” and in a special form at the expense of the Parishioner’s Committee.

He was a brilliant conversationalist, and was much sought after in London, Melbourne and Dublin.

◆ David Strong SJ “The Australian Dictionary of Jesuit Biography 1848-2015”, 2nd Edition, Halstead Press, Ultimo NSW, Australia, 2017 - ISBN : 9781925043280
Isaac Moore entered the Society at St Acheul, Amiens, France, 5 October 1852, and then spent some years teaching and prefecting at Clongowes Wood College in Ireland. Philosophy studies followed, 1860-1862 at Stonyhurst, and Theology at the Roman College, 1864-1866.
In 1867 he arrived in Melbourne and St Patrick’s College, where he was Prefect of Studies. In 1860 he was recalled to Ireland and completed his Tertianship at Roehampton, England, 1870-1871. He taught and was Prefect of Studies at Crescent College Limerick, 1871-1876, and lectured in Church History at St Beuno’s, 1876-1879.
For the next three years he was engaged in pastoral work in London, attached to the Jesuit Church at Farm Street. From 1881-1885 he was prefect of Philosophers, also teaching modern languages and political economy at Stonyhurst. From 1885-1886 he was Minister at University College Dublin, and was Prefect of schools. The following three years were spent in pastoral work at Gardiner Street.
Late in life he returned to Australia, and spent one year as Prefect of Studies at St Patrick’s College, and then for the rest of his life he was involved in parish work at Richmond and Hawthorn. He was a man of wide learning and famous in his day as a preacher. He lectured also on “Catholic Socialism” and similar subjects. His retreats to boys were reported to be remarkably good. As First Prefect in Clongowes, he was said to have introduced cricket.

Note from David McKiniry Entry
As McKiniry had not yet undertaken tertianship or taken final vows, his appointment in Australia was going to be short lived, and he left for Ireland on 11 September 1870 with Isaac Moore. He did tertianship at Roehampton 1871-72 and transferred to the New Orleans province.

◆ James B Stephenson SJ Menologies 1973

Father Isaac Moore 1829-1899
Fr Moore was born in Limerick on May 21st 1829. Even in his boyhood, his remarkable talents attracted attention. When only nineteen years of age he was elected President of the Catholic Young Men’s Association.

His priestly career was widely varied. He was appointed Prefect of Studies at St Patrick’s Melbourne in 1866. On his recall to Ireland he was assigned to the Crescent where he was in turn, Master, Prefect of Studies, Minister, Missioner and Operarius.

He was sent on loan to the English Province where he was Professor of Church History at St Beuno’s College, and later a popular preacher at Farm Street London. Having acted for some time as Prefect of Studies at Stonyhurst, he was recalled to Ireland as Dean of Residence of University College.

In 1888 he returned to Melbourne, where he laboured as lecturer and preacher till his death on September 15th 1899.

Fr Moore made his name on one very memorable occasion – the opening of Armagh Cathedral. The preacher already appointed was unable to attend. Fr Moore was summoned by the Provincial, and at very short notice undertook the task. The Primate, Dr McGettigan, ever after was wont to refer to his great courage and the splendid manner in which he acquitted himself. He used say “I can never forget it to Fr Moore”.

◆ The Crescent : Limerick Jesuit Centenary Record 1859-1959

Bonum Certamen ... A Biographical Index of Former Members of the Limerick Jesuit Commnnity

Father Isaac Moore (1829-1899)

Was born in Limerick and received into the Society at St Acheul in 1852. He made his higher studies in England and Rome where he was ordained in 1865. Even in his boyhood, his remarkable gifts had begun to attract attention. Thus, at the age of nineteen and three years before he entered the Society he was elected President of the Catholic Young Men's Society. His priestly career was widely varied: He was appointed prefect of studies at St. Patrick's, Melbourne in 1866. On his recall to Ireland, he was assigned to the Crescent, where from 1871 to 1876, he was in turn, master, prefect of studies, minister of the house, missioner or attached to the church staff. In 1876 he was sent on loan to the English Province where he was first professor of Church History in the English Jesuit theologate. From his professor's chair he was summoned to the residence at Farm St., London, where he confirmed his reputation as a preacher of rare merit at the Jesuit church. Later he was appointed prefect of studies at the English Province's house of philosophy. He was recalled to Dublin in 1882 to become dean of residence at University College, Dublin. In 1888, he returned once more to Melbourne where he was engaged in mission work and public lectures on Catholic apologetics until his death.

Born: 17 August 1932, Cois na hAibhne, Emmet Terrace, Ballina, County Mayo
Entered: 07 September 1951, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois
Ordained: 31 July 1964, Milltown Park, Dublin
Final Vows: 02 February 1967, Belvedere College SJ, Dublin
Died: 18 November 2016, Cherryfield Lodge, Dublin

Part of the St Ignatius, Lower Leeson Street, Dublin community at the time of death.

Son of James Moran and Mary McHale. Father died in the year of his birth was a commercial traveller, and his mother remarried becoming Mrs Durcan.

Two step-brothers.

Educated at Convent and National schools locally, at age thirteen he went to Mungret College SJ for five years.

by 1966 at Salamanca, Spain (LEG) making Tertianship
by 1978 at Wilmette IL, USA (CHG) studying
by 1984 at Palo Alto CA, USA (CAL) studying
by 1985 at Barrington IL, USA (CHG) studying
by 1987 at Menlo Park CA, USA (CAL) working
by 1992 at Chicago IL, USA (CHG) working

Early Education at NS Ballina, Co Mayo; Mungret College SJ

1954-1955 Rathfarnham - Studying at UCD
1955-1958 Tullabeg - Studying Philosophy
1958-1961 Crescent - Regency : Teacher
1961-1965 Milltown Park - Studying Theology
1965-1966 Salamanca, Spain - Tertianship at Collegio de San Estanislao
1966-1968 Belvedere - Teacher; Assistant Gamesmaster; Spiritual Father (3rd & 4th Years); “Newsboys Club”
1968-1969 Clongowes - Teacher; Lower Line Prefect; Studying CWC Cert in Education
1969-1974 Belvedere - Teacher; Assistant Gamesmaster; Spiritual Father; Career Guidance (5th & 6th Years)
1974-1976 Leeson St - Principal at University Hall, Hatch St, Dublin
1976-1977 University Hall - Community Minister
1977-1983 Chicago, IL, USA - Studies at Loyola University; St Joseph’s Parish, Wilmette, IL, USA
1982 Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Glenview, IL, USA
1983-1984 Palo Alto, CA, USA - Doctoral Studies at Palo Alto University; St Thomas Aquinas Church
1984-1986 Chicago, IL, USA - Studies at Loyola University; Parish work; Counsellor at St Anne’s Rectory, Barrington
1986-1991 Palo Alto, CA, USA - Post Graduate Training at Palo Alto University; St Raymond Catholic Church; Menlo Park
1988 Research in Family Therapy MRI at Palo Alto University
1987 Our Lady of the Rosary Rectory, Palo Alto
1991-1994 Chicago, IL, USA - Visiting Professor in Psychology at Loyola University; St William’s Church
1992 St Philip the Apostle Rectory, Northfield
1994-2016 Leeson St - Sabbatical (94-95); Lecturer in Education at Trinity College Dublin; Family Apostolate; Writer
1998 Vice-Superior
2002 Principal University Hall, Hatch St, Dublin
2003 Family Therapist
2015 Prays for the Church and the Society at Cherryfield Lodge

◆ Jesuits in Ireland : https://www.jesuit.ie/news/a-man-for-others/

A man for others
friends, and fellow Jesuits bade him a final farewell at his funeral Mass in Milltown Chapel on Monday 21 November.
Jim had a wide circle of friends associated with the various ventures he undertook as a Jesuit. They were active on Facebook when news of his death broke. Despite some bad health and a twice broken leg, Jim was quite an athlete. He had a passion for rugby, which he taught with gusto to many students down the years in various Jesuit schools. Ivan Morris, one of his former pupils, posted a photo of the rugby team Jim coached, a long time ago. He wrote: “55 years ago these old geezers were quite a decent rugby team! Sadly, our trainer Fr. Jim Moran passed away yesterday. We all owe him a lot. He instilled in us the ability to focus on our goals, gave us just about the right amount of confidence and enough back bone to last a lifetime.”
Similar sentiments have been echoed by many since his death. Preaching at his funeral Mass, his life-long friend Fr John Looby SJ recalled two stories that summed up Jim’s determination and desire to win, even though he would have roundly protested that ‘it wasn’t about the winning’. One concerned the handball games they used to play as novices. John said that although he himself was the better handball player, Jim worked out a strategy and a war of attrition that always resulted in Jim being the victor.
He recalled another occasion when Jim went off to Chicago to study and offered his rugby training services to a Jesuit school there, telling them of his winning accomplishments back in Ireland. His offer however was politely declined and he was told the school was already proficient at winning rugby games. So Jim took himself off to a neighbouring Jewish school where the same offer was gratefully accepted. Some time later his rugby team took on the Jesuit school that had spurned him and won.
Jim had a number of careers in his lifetime – teacher, coach, psychologist, family therapist, and finally lecturer in Trinity College Dublin. Wherever he went he made friends. “He never forgot his friends and I was to learn that his friends never forgot him,” said John, noting that this was especially true of his Jesuit brothers. John learnt in later years that Jim’s father had died before Jim was born, and his stepfather was instrumental in cultivating the talent he had for making lasting friendships. “Providentially his stepfather was a strong influence, setting an example that Jim copied for the remainder of his life. He was given great freedom and he confidently went out to meet new people and allow them into his life.”
The Gospel read at the Mass was that of the Good Samaritan, a fitting one for Jim who was, according to John and indeed all those who knew him well, “a man for others”. He was always quick to offer any help he could to those who crossed his path. Be it the mother in difficulty with her teenage son or the former student who needed some good advice. The music at the funeral was the work of the well known composer and musician Willie Hughes who played and sang in gratitude for the influence Jim had been on his life.
When he returned to Dublin from America in the ’90s, Jim was part of the Leeson St community. They had a large garden at the back-end of the large Georgian house, and Jim spent years lovingly and patiently transforming it. He planted trees and stunning rose bushes, and made arbours and boundaries out of bushes and flowers. It was a labour of love that to this day gives endless pleasure to those who visit the community house in the centre of Dublin.
John concluded by noting that Jim was a person who never saw events in life as mere chance but rather as due to “the providence of a loving God whom he loved and trusted in all his life”.
He served Him well. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

◆ The Belvederian, Dublin, 2017

Obituary

Father Jim Moran SJ

An Appreciation by Peter Thompson

dozen of us from the Rhetoric year of 1972, welcomed in by the open door of Belvedere House, manned by the great Mick Hickey, from the year of 1973and, like Ollie Campbell, one of our great Rugby players of that era, a man who had owed the nurturing of his sporting talents to the recently-deceased Jim Moran, in honour and memory of whom we had come to celebrate Mass in the Boys' Chapel. Mick had come a long way, literally, for the occasion, a testimony to Jim, certainly, for he now lives in Delaware, the beautiful peninsular State on the eastern shores of the United States.

I hadn't been in Belvedere at all since leaving the college over 40 years previously. In the Chapel, noticed immediately the absence of confession boxes, a sign (I hope) that the Sacrament of Reconciliation has moved on from its days as “Penance” to a more enlightened interpretation of what it means to feel oneself whole again after a period of mental and emotional stress.

Also different, and a most welcome difference it was too, was Leonard Moloney's model of celebration of the Mass, we old boys gathered around in a semi-circle before a simple altar table, with the Holy Communion administered in both Kinds, after a gentle invitation from Leonard that, if any of us felt awkward about receiving, We come forward anyway for a blessing.
This was an inclusiveness I was delighted to experience, after many years of alienation from the Church, and I for one was grateful indeed for it, for its sensitivity. It expressed for me also that ritual, much criticised today, has at its best a capacity to act as a means, a fuselage, a hull by which eternal truths of love are conveyed from one generation, one time as it were, to the next.
Another sensitivity was shown by the great Ollie, my childhood friend from north county Dublin, who, gentleman that he is and always has been, had gently touched my left elbow earlier in the quadrangle and asked me discreetly if I would do one of the Readings from Scripture - St Paul to the Ephesians, 1 think it was. I deeply appreciated that invitation, which I was happy to accept.

The name Jim Moran may not mean all that much to today's young Belvederians, if anything, but in a darker, much more formal time he was a beacon of warmth to his pupils and schoolboy rugby players, whom he coached to victory in the Leinster Schools' Senior Cup in 1972. It is fitting, in a serendipitous way, that in this year's edition of The Belvederian the present generation of pupils are celebrating yet another victory in that intensely competitive of sporting challenges for Leinster schools.

Jim had had earlier success in the Crescent College (now Comprehensive) in Limerick in 1961 where, as a scholastic, he coached its Junior team to success in the Munster Schools Junior Cup. After Belvedere, both Clongowes and UCD were also to benefit from his striking ability to relate to, and inspire, young people to sporting and perhaps also personal excellence. Jim was the sort of james who became jim, if my readers follow me. From the rural west of Ireland of the now so-remote 1950s, he was bereft of that bourgeois stiffness and aloofness with which, rightly or wrongly, our college was associated in the minds of many Dubliners in the past. He would have strongly approved of the wonderful example which Belvedere has shown to other private schools in recent years by the reservation of 10% of its pupil numbers to boys whose parents, for financial reasons, would never have dreamt of having one of their sons enter the portals of James Joyce's alma mater.

When last I met him, at the most recent 1972 re-union held in Portmarnock in 2012, I, trying my best with the best of intentions, invited him to have tea with me someday in the Shelbourne Hotel, around the corner from where he was then living at the Jesuit house in Lower Leeson St. to my dismay, but not, on reflection, to my surprise, he refused, saying he could not accept the offer, however sincerely made, of such a “luxury” as tea in Dublin's premier hotel. He was instructing me still, teaching again the values which I would like to think we all have in common, however we may express them now.

After Mass, the company - minus Leonard - moved on to the congeniality of the Dergvale Hotel in Gardiner Place, a very different hostelry from the Shelbourne, but a favourite watering hole of us early Seventies OBs, where I found myself in animated conversation with the said Mick Hickey about, of all things, Dublin Gaelic football, of which his distinguished medical brother David, with three Senior All Ireland Medals to his credit, was a great exemplar.

Now maybe Mick was pulling one of my legs, or indeed both of them, but he told me that David had developed a totally new strategy in Gaelic football, which is now used also, I believe, in Rugby. As a corner right forward, he would kick the ball, not towards the net, but into the right corner of the opposition, then race ahead, before the opposing defence had cottoned on. to the move, collect the ball, Garryowen-style, and lope it back into the goal mouth for a fellow teammate to collect and pummel into the net. David, apparently, developed this following on from an idea by his coach, the late Kevin Heffernan.

Mick and I were joined by another distinguished sportsman of our generation, Neil Murphy, formerly President of the Irish Sailing Association and helmsman of a Puppeteer at Howth Yacht Club. In discussing the emollient effects of the Mass we had all just experienced, Neil made a telling remark which has stayed, and will continue to stay with me. “Age gives you perspective”, he said, which I think is a piece of wisdom, deeper, much deeper than it might seem at first glance, which I wish to share particularly with the young Belvederians of today.

The mention of another great football coach brings me back of course to Jim. He lived long enough, as a man for others, always, to live in an age when, in some quarters today, that ideal, that nobility of spirit and of behaviour seems almost reviled. Yet he achieved so much, in obscurity, by practising it. I hope up there on the Fields of Elysium he will forgive me this notoriety I pen in his memory. In the best sense, he was Old School, all right