28 October 2018

Columban Fr Robert O'Rourke RIP

Fr Robert I. O'Rourke
13 June 1932 - 3 October 2018


Fr Robert I. O’Rourke died on 3 October 2018 at St Elizabeth Manor, Bristol, Rhode Island, USA. Born on 13 June 1932 he was the son of the late Eugene Joseph O’Rourke and Mary Bridget (O'Connor) O’Rourke. He was the brother of the late Joseph, Timothy, Richard, Eugene, Br Terrance O’Rourke of Glenmary Home Missions, Margaret Baffoe and Loretta Coogan.  He is survived by many nieces and nephews. 

Chapel of St James
Archbishop Quigley Preparatory Seminary, Chicago [Wikipedia]

Young Bob attended St Ailbe's Grade School and Archbishop Quigley Preparatory Seminary, Chicago. He later attended St. Mary of the Lake Seminary and after spiritual year at St Columban's,, Silver Creek, New York,  he went to St Columban's Major Seminary in Milton, Massachusetts.  He was ordained on 20 December 20, 1958 in the Seminary Chapel by Bishop Eric MacKenzie, auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Boston.

In the summer of 1959 Father Bob did a course in Social Science in Antigonish, Nova Scotia and in December 1959 he was appointed to Burma (now Myanmar).

St Columban's Cathedral, Myitkyina, Myanmar [Wikipedia]

In November 1962 he arrived in Myitkyina and began language study in Tingsing. The following November Father Bob was assistant in Makawkzup in the Myitkyina diocese and in October 1965 he opened up a new parish in Kamaing about 65 miles west of Myitkyina.  In September 1966 the Burmese government compelled Father Bob to leave Burma before the end of that year due to new visa restrictions.

After returning to the United States he was appointed to do vocation work in Los Angeles in March 1967. He was appointed superior of the Los Angeles house in 1969.

In 1975 Father Bob was assigned to Lima Peru. Starting in May 1977 he began serving in Tahuantinsuyo where there was a charismatic ministry, youth groups and a catechumenate.  In December 1983 he was assigned to Huasahuasi.

Cathedral of St John the Evangelist, Lima, Peru [Wikipedia]

Fr Bob O’Rourke and Fr Michael Donnelly were the first resident priests in the parish for some time. Until leaving there in December1989, they worked a pastoral programme catering to the varied needs of the widespread parish. The majority of the people were potato farmers. During those years Tarma and adjoining areas were the scene of escalating terrorist violence on the part of the Maoist- Leninist group Sendero Luminoso, 'The Shining Path'. Many towns were without police or other civil authority. Fathers Bob and Michael continued to carry out their pastoral work while the terrorists became more audacious and brutal, generating an atmosphere of fear and tension throughout the country, especially in isolated zones such as Huasahuasi. When the priests were told by a reliable person that they were on a death-list and that the terrorists were coming to the town at Christmas, Fathers Bob and Michael prudently decided to go to Lima and left within days for their respective countries where they recuperated from the stress.

In January 1990 Father Bob was assigned to US Region of the Columbans. He became associate editor of Columban Mission magazine and at Easter 1991 he became Editor of the Regional Newsletter.

In August 1992 Father Bob began work with the Spanish Apostolate at Immaculate Conception Church in Grand Prairie, Texas. The people there appreciated his homilies for their stories and brevity. In 1998 he returned to Omaha as house bursar and presided over the 47th and final Annual Columban Festival there.  The Festival was the last of a successful cycle that at its peak, in the early 1970s, drew over 20,000 people to St Columban’s on a summer weekend and raised over $80,000 for the Society.  Father Bob noted that the Festival was less about funding than connecting with the local community. In October 2001 he was elected as Chairman of the Regional Reconciliation Board.

Father Bob retired to St Columban's, Bristol, Rhode Island, in March, 2004 where he resided in retirement, participating actively in community life for the last 14 years.

Fr O'Rourke was buried in St Mary's Cemetery, Bristol, RI, after the funeral Mass in the chapel at St Columban's. May he rest in peace.

St Columban, Bristol, RI, USA


Fr Bob O'Rourke served in Peru from 1975 till 1989.




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