Columban Fr Seán J. McGrath RIP

Fr Seán J. McGrath

(15 June 1930 - 27 April 2018)

Seán Joseph McGrath was born on 15 June 1930 at Killen, Coalisland, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. Educated at Aughamullan Public Elementary School and St Patrick's College, Armagh, he entered St Columban's, Dalgan Park, County Meath, Ireland, in September 1948. He was ordained priest on 21 December 1954.

Main Street, Killen [Wikipedia]

Father Seán's first twenty years were spent in pastoral work in Mindanao, Philippines. He worked mainly in Ozamiz City and in Iligan City. In the latter he established the new parish of Corpsu Christi in Rosario Heights, Tubod, and built a huge, modern church there. In his years in Iligan he displayed his extraordinary creativity. He was always open to trying new ways of in volving his parishioners and had a particular gift for raising funds for the many projects of the parish.

Corpus Christ Church, Iligan City [Parish FB]

After twenty years in the Philippines there followed ten years of promotion work in the District of Britain. Fr McGrath was in charge of the London house and in 1979 became Superior of the District. He was always a cheerful extrovert who made friends easily, remembered names and was a gifted fundraiser. All these qualities helped make him very effective in promoting mission.

St Ignatius Church, Belize City [Parish FB]

When the Columbans opened a new English-speaking mission to Belize in 1986 Father Seán was one of the first to volunteer. His companions elected him as spokesperson of the mission unit. Conditions were difficult but he was happy to be back in a new environment, working out of St Ignatius Church in Belize City. He organised raffles in order to raise funds for the parish projects including the building of a new rectory. The mission to Belize ended in 1996 when the Columbans lacked manpower to continue there and Father Seán was assigned to the USA.

National Flag of Belize [Wikipedia]

In the United States Fr McGrath's gifts were employed very successfully on behalf of projects in the Columban Region of the Philippines. He was delighted to be back working with Filipinos and he encouraged them to help with the education of our new Filipinos seminarians and with other projects. He worked happily in the USA until his health began to deteriorate and he returned to Ireland and to the nursing home at St Columban's, Dalgan Park, in 2014.

Always full of energy, good humour and creativity, Father Seán will be remembered among Columbans and his numerous friends in so many different countries.

May he rest in peace.

St Columban's Cemetery, Dalgan Park

[Obituary by Fr Cyril Lovett]

Logo of the Tyrone Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA)

Fr McGrath was an outstanding Gaelic footballer in his youth and played midfield for the Tyrone minors when they won the All-Ireland Championship in 1947 and 1948. The following tribute appears on the Tyrone GAA Facebook:

‘Anocht is Uaigneach Tír Eoghain … Tonight Tyrone is Lonely’

The death of Fr Sean McGrath draws the curtain on the exceptional life journey of an exceptional Tyrone man. Fr Sean was in so many ways a person apart, an All-Ireland Minor double-winner for us in 1947 and 1948, (that group of young men whose significance within the Tyrone GAA story can never be underestimated), and then with the Columban Fathers a man who improved the lot of humankind not just in Ireland but in Belize, Britain, The Philippines and the USA. Most of us aspire to great things in life: Fr Sean lived them and delivered them.

The deepest sympathy of Gaelic Tyrone goes to his wide family connection – personal, Columban and Clonoe O’Rahillys.

‘Luímse le Dia agus luífidh Dia liom: Éireoidh mé le Dia agus éireoidh Dia liom. I lie with God and God will lie with me: I will rise with God and God will rise with me.’

Logo of Clonoe O'Rahillys GAA Club

Clonoe O'Rahillys was the local Gaelic football club of which Father Seán was a member. The club carries this tribute from a relative on its Facebook:

Father Seán loved Irish music and during his long, lingering illness another Columban, Fr Bernard Mulkerins, often sang for him in his room in the Columban nursing home. This was Father Seán's favourite song.

Columban Fr Thomas Parker RIP

Fr Thomas Parker

(28 March 1924 - 31 January 2017)

Thomas Parker was born in Glasson, County Westmeath, Ireland, on 28 March 1924. He was educated at Glasson National School and St Finian’s College, Mullingar. 

Glasson, County Westmeath [Wikipedia]

He entered St Columban's, Dalgan Park, Navan, in September 1941 and was a member of the first class of Probationers in the new building. He was ordained priest on 21 December 1947. Due to the accidental death of one of his brothers in March 1948, he was not sent immediately to the missions but was assigned for a year to pastoral work in the Cathedral Parish in Galway. He was then assigned to Korea.

Kimiidera, Wakayama City, Japan [Wikipedia]

He arrived in Korea on June 1950, but with the onset of the Korean War he and other colleagues were assigned to Japan later that year. Those were very difficult years in Japan: parish congregations were tiny and huge efforts were made to reach out to people who had little interest in Christianity. For the next 17 years Tom served in Fukuoka, in Gobo, in Hashimoto, in Montana, in Kamogawa, in Shingu and in Wakayama City where he was Area Superior.

Supper at Emmaus, Hendrick Terbrugghen [Web Gallery of Art]

But they urged him strongly, saying, ‘Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.’ So he went in to stay with them (Luke 24: 29). 

'Father Tom was an excellent host . . .'

In January 1977, he was assigned to the USA and to the General Mission Office in Omaha, Nebraska. Over the following twenty years he served in many of our houses including Quincy, MA, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Father Tom was an excellent host wherever he was assigned, and his friendly, open personality made him very effective on promotion work. When his health deteriorated he returned to Ireland, and entered the Dalgan Retirement Home in 2008.

Man Praying, Vincent van Gogh [Web Gallery of Art]

Father Tom was a dedicated missionary priest. Asked in an interview what kept him going over the years he replied, 'Well, I suppose saying one’s prayers, and all the prayers offered for us by people at home and in many other places . . . you can’t explain what kept you going . . . a miracle, really, when you look back at it now'.

Father Tom died peacefully on 31 January 2017. He is survived by one brother, Brother Colman Parker, a Marist Brother. His funeral will take place on Friday 3 February in Dalgan Park.

May he rest in peace.

Hamabe no uta 浜辺の歌  Song of the Seashore

Composed by Tamezō Narita

Text by Fr Cyril Lovett, slightly edited here.

Columban Fr Edward Quinn RIP

Fr Edward Quinn

(25 June 1928 - 12 July 2016)

After a brief illness, Fr Edward Quinn ('55) died peacefully at the Bellevue Medical Center in Nebraska on the evening of 12 July.

Fr Ed Quinn was born on 25 June 25 in Minneapolis, MN, USA.  His parents were Edward I. Quinn and Mary Frances Graham.

In his early elementary school years he attended public schools in Iowa. From the sixth through eighth grades he studied at Our Lady of Lourdes School, Omaha, NE, 1939-42. His high school years were spent at Creighton Prep 1942-46, Omaha, NE. For college he studied at Creighton University, Omaha, NE, 1946-50 where he received a Bachelor of Science in Biology. He was a gifted athlete who played on the basketball and track teams at Creighton Prep and Creighton University.

St John's Church, Creighton University [Wikipedia]

He studied for the priesthood at the Columban seminaries at St Columbans, NE, Bristol, RI, and at Milton, MA. Father Ed was ordained to the priesthood on 17 December 1955 in the Milton seminary chapel.

Fr Quinn in Korea, c. 1960

'This article, circa 1960, is about my uncle caring for those in leper colonies in South Korea. He lived in Korea until 1972. He then worked in Fiji until he returned to Omaha about a decade ago. He did much good for humanity in his 88 years.' [From Facebook of Fr Quinn's nephew, also Edward Quinn.]

He served in Korea from 1956 to 1968 doing parish work.

Later in 1968 Father Ed was assigned to the USA for vocation work in Chicago. While there he started the Korean Catholic Center.

Fr Quinn in Fiji

In 1973 he was assigned to Fiji where he did parish work for ten years. While he mainly served in Fijian-speaking parishes, Father Ed also spoke Hindi which he used in Indian-Fijian parishes. While Regional Director in Fiji 1983-87 he periodically visited and spent several months in Vanuatu, where the Columban Region of Fiji had a mission at that time. From 1987 onwards he  served variously in formation, vocations, hospital chaplaincy and parish work before starting the Lay Missionary program in Fiji. 

Father Ed with Korean Columban Lay Missionaries Yean Sin, Bok Ja and Yean Han in Fiji, 1994

Yean Sin died of hepatitis in Fiji on 4 November 1994.

In addition, he was Regional Bursar from 1987 to 1991 and House Bursar/Manager from 1990 to 2007. He was periodically elected as a Regional Councilor throughout his years in Fiji.

From 2007 to the present, he was assigned to St Columbans, Omaha, NE. While he was still able to drive, he chose to be a chauffeur for many Columbans on trips to and from the local airport. He had a low key, unassuming way about him with a wry sense of humor. He is sorely missed.

Crucifix, St Columbans, Nebraska

Obituary by Fr Tim Mulroy, Columban Regional Director, USA.

Christ JyotiAshram - Christ the Light Ashram

Near Nadi, in western Viti Levu

The only time I met Fr Ed Quinn was two or three weeks after Easter 1990 when I paid my only visit to Fiji. The late Fr Martin Dobey met me at Nadi International Airport and took me to the Ashram above where the Columbans were on retreat. They greeted me with the traditional yaqona (kava) ceremony. I spent two nights there, as far as I can recall, and then travelled with Father Ed in his vehicle to Suva, a journey of about two hours. Fr Mulroy's description of him above: He had a low key, unassuming way about him with a wry sense of humor, is how I remember him. As a fellow Columban missionary priest I was inspired by his quiet, joyful presence. 

Coral reef below the Ashram

An abiding memory I have of my stay in the Ashram is the sound of the waves breaking on the coral reef in the photo above, a sound that brought a sense of peace.

May Father Ed rest in the eternal life-filled peace that Jesus has promised to those who follow him and do the will of the Father.

'The child in my womb leaped for joy.' Sunday Reflections, 4th Sunday of Advent, Year C

Master of the Hours of Maréchal de Boucicaut

Book of Hours of Maréchal de Boucicaut, 1405-08 

Musée Jacquemart-André, Paris [Web Gallery of Art]

Readings (New American Bible: Philippines, USA)

Readings (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, India [optional], Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland, South Africa)

Gospel Luke 1:39-45 (New Revised Standard Version – Catholic Edition, Canada) 

In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.”

The Visitation, El Greco, 1610-13 

Dumbarton Oaks, Washington DC [Web Gallery of Art]

About eight years ago I celebrated Mass on the Feast of the Visitation in a home for girls where most come from a background of abuse. One girl of 16, whom I'll call 'Gloria', was pregnant. She was from another part of the Philippines and had been working in a restaurant and said that one of her co-workers was responsible. I wasn't quite sure to what extent the cause of the pregnancy had been consensual or whether the young man had taken advantage of the young woman. Perhaps there was an element of both.

Gloria was very angry and would not accept the baby she was carrying who was by this time around six months, as I recall. I invited her at the end of the Mass to come forward for a blessing for herself and her child. She agreed. I placed my hand gently on her stomach, as Elizabeth is about to do in the painting on parchment from the Book of Hours at the top and as both she and Mary do in the painting below, while I prayed. 

The Visitation, Rogier van der Weyden, c.1445 

Museum der Bildenden Künste, Leipzig [Web Gallery of Art]

Gloria told me afterwards that she could feel the baby moving as I blessed them both - and she had a smile on her face. She was able to go home to her own place some time later where she gave birth.

The French miniaturist of the Book of Hours of Maréchal de Boucicaut and Rogier van der Weyden both capture the sacredness of the lives of the unborn Jesus and John the Baptist. El Greco captures the swirl of a dance of life, the flowing blue robes suggesting the joy of the two pregnant mothers, Mary and Elizabeth.

Today's gospel has particular relevance in the context of ongoing public debates in a number of countries about abortion, including Ireland and the USA.

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One of a number of ministries to both women and men who have been directly affected by abortion is Rachel's Vineyard. I have connections with Rachel's Vineyard, Ireland, which has brought its healing retreat to such places as the Faroe Islands, South Korea and Lebanon.

Del Verbo Divino

San Juan de la Cruz

Del Verbo divino

la Virgen preñada

viene de camino:

¡ si les dais posada !

Concerning the Divine Word

St John of the Cross

With the divinest Word, the Virgin

Made pregnant, down the road

Comes walking, if you'll grant her

A room in your abode. 

Translation by Roy Campbell

Posada is a Spanish word meaning 'lodging' or 'accommodation'. In some Spanish-speaking countries, especially Mexico, Las Posadas is a nine-day preparation for Christmas.

Do Obama's 'closest allies' use 'Mitts' to 'punch above their weight'?

It would seem that many of the 'strongest allies' of the USA 'punch above their weight', as a Danish TV station noticed. Is this because the head of government of each wears a good pair of 'Mitts'? Or is it President Obama and his scriptwriters who need such? 

Meanwhile, and on a much more serious level, four years ago when Mr Obama was campaigning for the presidency of the USA, his opponent had no difficulty giving a simple, straight answer to a simple question. But Mr Obama found the same question 'above my pay grade'.

'I am the bread of life.' Sunday Reflections, 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B

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The Charity of St Lawrence, Bernardo Strozzi, painted 1639-40

Readings (New American Bible: Philippines, USA)

Readings(Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, India [optional], Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland, South Africa) 

Gospel John 6:41-51 (Revised Standard Version – Catholic Edition)

The Jews then murmured at Jesus, because he said, "I am the bread which came down from heaven." They said, "Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, 'I have come down from heaven'?" Jesus answered them, "Do not murmur among yourselves. No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the prophets, 'And they shall all be taught by God.' Every one who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. Not that any one has seen the Father except him who is from God; he has seen the Father. Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that a man may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh."

St Lawrence of Rome was martyred on the orders of the Emperor Valerian on 10 August 258, four days after St Sixtus II, Pope, and four deacons. According to tradition Lawrence, who was from Spain and was a deacon, was roasted on a gridiron. Some scholars say that he was probably beheaded, not roasted. But there's no doubt about his martyrdom and the great impression he made on the people of Rome, especially on the poor. When he was asked to bring the Church's treasures he said he would have them in a matter of days. he distributed the Church's goods to the poor, as in Strozzi's painting above, and then brought the people before the authorities saying, 'These are the Church's treasures'.

Basilica of St Lawrence Outside the Walls in Rome

While being roasted he told his executioners, according to the story that has come down, that they could now turn him over as he was done on one side. Whether this actually happened or not, the story shows us that the people of Rome remembered Lawrence as a man full of loving joy, as the video above shows. I'm almost certain that I've read or heard somewhere, though I can't find anything online to back this up, that those present at the saint's martyrdom smelled the aroma of bread baking as he was being grilled. For those of us who eat bread there is hardly a more pleasant sensation.

I'm writing this on the feast of St Lawrence - technically it's a memorial in the Church's liturgical calendar but has some of the trappings of a feast - and I see this saint as an embodiment of what Jesus is teaching us in the gospel for this Sunday. St Lawrence believed absolutely in the promise of eternal life given by Jesus. His faith was nourished by the Bread of Life that he received when taking part in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. This gave him the strength to give himself as 'bread of life' to the poor of Rome, in his great love for the poor and in his willingness to lay down his life.

Pope Benedict XV, Giacomo della Chiesa (1854-1922)

St Lawrence's life was one that integrated the Mass with service to the people, especially the poor. A few years ago I was accosted after Mass outside a cathedral in England where I was doing a mission appeal on behalf of the Columbans by a young man who kept insisting that the Church sell all its buildings and so on in order to help the poor. I'm afraid that after about ten minutes of this my patience gave way somewhat. But St Lawrence did precisely that, though the Church was still a persecuted one and , at the time as far as I know, didn't have too much in the way of buildings. And in more modern times Pope Benedict XV (1914-1922) did exactly the same with money at his disposal, both his own and that beloning to the Church in Rome. When he died there was only US$19,000 left in the Vatican treasury.

Interior of Basilica of St Lawrence Outside the Walls, Rome

When the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass if offered in the basilica of St Lawrence, as in every other church, the bread and wine brought to the altar at the offertory become the Body and Blood of Christ. They're not 'symbols' of this. They are the Body and Blood of the Risen Lord Jesus. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church, No 33, puts it, At the heart of the Eucharistic celebration are the bread and wine that, by the words of Christ and the invocation of the Holy Spirit, become Christ's Body and Blood. 

Many walked away from Jesus because they couldn't accept his words, I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh.

Fr William Morton, a Columban priest who grew up in a strongly Catholic family in Philadelphia, tells how he lost the faith and re-discovered it while discovering his call to the priesthood. I've highlighted some parts. [By this time he had become part of a 'Born Again' group, which brought him back to Jesus Christ].

Q. What then brought you back to the Catholic Church?

A. Though I agreed with and experienced personally this relationship with Jesus, certain behaviours like smoking, drinking and swearing were stressed as litmus tests of Christian life. There was a lot of quoting of Scripture and arguments about who was saved and who was not. I began to think of the Catholics I knew who didn't quote much Scripture, who smoked or drank, but who were also generous, compassionate and non-judgmental people.

I asked myself: ‘If Jesus came back whose butt would he be kicking?' I concluded that it would more likely be my own, because of my self-righteousness, rather than the man on the street with his bottle.

I was madly in love with one of the girls who sang in our Christian rock group. She had been raised Protestant and one day she asked if we could go to a Catholic Mass. We went to a Saturday evening Mass at St Mary's and it was a lively celebration with guitars and songs and a young, Irish priest who preached with fervour and humour. Though still very much a member of the Church of the Open Bible I had a fleeting ‘I could do that’ thought about the priest.

My girlfriend enjoyed the visit and so we began to go each Saturday evening and then to the Open Bible on Sunday morning.

My mother had also written me a very challenging letter, quoting John 6, and asking me how those who claim to interpret the Bible literally understand the Eucharist. I didn't get any convincing answers and began to hunger to receive again in the Catholic way.

Though I had always disliked confession as a youth I began to long too to hear those words of pardon and absolution and finally made up my mind to seek out a priest. Around this time my girlfriend suggested that we break off for a while to get things into perspective. This upset me at first but thoughts of priesthood and mission continued to float around in my head.

Fr Bill Morton, once an air traffic controller, is now working in the Columban mission in El Paso, Texas / Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, the latter one of the most violent cities in the world because of drug wars. Fr Kevin Mullins, a Columban from Brisbane, Australia, is in charge of the Columban parish in Ciudad Juarez.

St Lawrence of Rome enabled the poor there to get bread to keep body and soul together. With the Christians there he took part every Sunday in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, despite the danger. It was from the Bread of Life that he and they got the strength and courage to lay down their own lives.

It was the curiosity of his 'Born Again' girlfriend about the Mass and the clear challenge of his mother about today's gospel that brought the young Bill Morton back to the Church and eventually to the priesthood.

It is the Bread of Life who gives himself to the people of the Columban parish in Ciudad Juarez as they celebrate the Eucharist every Sunday that gives them the courage to live with hope in the midst of awful violence. When Father Kevin went there first only a few came. Now the church is full.

St Lawrence and the poor of Rome in 258, Fr Kevin Mullins and the poor of Ciudad Juarez in 2012, each a place of danger and violence, each a place where people take Jesus at his word: I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh.