Fr Noel Connolly was part of the Plenary Council facilitation team 2020 - Photo: Missionary Society of St Columban
Fr Noel Connolly, a Queenslander, a Columban missionary priest for almost 51 years, a theologian, writer, teacher and administrator, died on June 6 at Concord Hospital in Sydney.
Writing on behalf of the Columbans in Australia, Fr Jim Mulroney said Fr Connolly “loved the world and loved people”.
“He believed in the bounty of the blessings received from investing in the truth and, above all, he loved God, the trace of whose finger in the arena of human affairs he spent a lifetime discerning,” Fr Mulroney said.
In 1988, Fr Connolly was elected vicar general of St Columbans Mission Society and during the following years travelled widely throughout areas of Columban commitment in the Americas, Asia, Europe and the Pacific region.
“Commitments to mission education and as regional director of the Columban region of Australia and New Zealand followed, in what transpired to be a build-up to what was arguably the biggest and most difficult challenge of his packed life – promoting a new paradigm for the Church in Australia (with Plenary Council 2020),” Fr Mulroney said. Fr Noel was a member of the Plenary Council 2020 facilitation team.
“He listened with patience during his many engagements in the spirit of the listening Church he believed in, and encouraged people to listen to what the Spirit is saying.
“Although he had been struggling against a cancer growing within his body for nearly two decades, he readily agreed to postpone retirement and take to the road as part of the preparation for Australia’s fifth plenary council.
“He listened with patience during his many engagements in the spirit of the listening Church he believed in, and encouraged people to listen to what the Spirit is saying.
“He spoke with enthusiasm of the ‘sense of faith’ possessed by the community of souls that make up the Church, quietly explaining the difference between the well-known Church that ‘teaches’ and the less-known, but more desirable one that ‘discerns’.
“It was a mission tailor-made for the storytelling missionary.”
Catholic Religious Australia (CRA) paid tribute to Fr Connolly on social media. “Noel has been a significant part of so many parts of our Church – he brought wisdom, enthusiasm, energy, compassion and warmth to many corners of our Church,” CRA said. “He will be sadly missed by so many people.”
May he rest in peace.
By Peter Bugden, The Catholic Leader - Source: Cath News
Columban Fr Noel Connolly set of three publications available for purchase online: https://bit.ly/37nokUG
