Msgr.
James P. Daly, pastor emeritus of Our Mother of Sorrows Parish, dies at
93
By
Christie L. Chicoine
CS&T Staff Writer
As pastor of Our Mother of Sorrows Parish in West Philadelphia, Msgr.
James P. Daly “radiated Christ” by giving those in need the
shoes off his feet and the coat off his back, by feeding the hungry and
by befriending those who had been imprisoned.
So said Missionary Servant of the Most Blessed Trinity Sister Catherine
Denny, who worked in parish social ministry at Sorrows during Msgr. Daly’s
tenure. “He was one of the greatest priests I’ve ever known,”
she said. “I worked with him for 13 years, and for one brief shining
moment there was Camelot.”
In the 1980s, with the help of his parish staff and parishioners, Msgr.
Daly served the hungry — 200 men and women a day — from 11:30
a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, at the rectory.
The charitable gesture blossomed after he answered knocks on the door
from the hungry who were seeking food.
Two rooms in the rectory served as the dining area. “They sat down
to elegant tables, with tablecloths and flowers, real dishes, real silverware,
piped-in music, low lights,” Sister Catherine recalled. “We
wanted to serve them with dignity and respect. We had a lot of help from
[the Archdiocese’s] Nutritional Development Services.”
On Fridays, those who were fed at Sorrows departed the rectory with bags
filled with food to tide them over for the weekend. In addition to a food
pantry, the rectory also had a clothing pantry.
“Father Daly always wanted to do more,” Sister Catherine said.
“He had a great love for the poor. He wanted them treated with dignity,
respect and love.”
Also in the 1980s, Msgr. Daly renovated the third floor of the rectory
to accommodate former prisoners — nine at a time — who belonged
to a transitional program to reacclimatize them to life outside prison.
He was also known to rattle the change in his pocket. The parochial schoolchildren
traditionally received a quarter on their birthday from the pastor.
Msgr. James P. Daly, who was 93 and the pastor emeritus of Our Mother
of Sorrows Parish in Philadelphia, died at Villa St. Joseph, Darby, Saturday,
April 1, 2006.
Msgr. Daly served as pastor of Our Mother of Sorrows for 27 years.
His parishioners loved him, as did anyone who knew him, Sister Catherine
said: “He radiated love. He radiated Christ.”
He was born Feb. 2, 1913, in Reading, the second of six children of the
late Stephen J. and Catherine (Sammin) Daly.
Msgr. Daly’s desire to help the poverty-stricken was born from experience.
He was raised in a poor family. When his family was forced to move, one
winter’s day, his baby sister, who was 2 years old, caught pneumonia
and died.
But because God was the center of the Daly family, they were rich in another
sense, and young Jim Daly quickly learned that one didn’t need money
to be happy — and that, in fact, if one made wealth the center of
one’s life, there was certain to be eternal disappointment.
“He really was an uncle … he was ‘Uncle Buddy,’”
said his niece, 46-year-old Mary Daly Bieber.
Among Daly Bieber’s cherished memories of her uncle is an incident
that took place at her son’s first Communion Mass five years ago.
As he held up the host, Msgr. Daly said to his great-nephew, who was then
8 years old: “Creighton, this is the greatest gift you’ll
ever receive.”
When her uncle was pastor of Our Mother of Sorrows, he painted the inside
of the church himself, as a cost-cutting measure. Daly Bieber recalled
marveling at the scaffolding he used to paint the ceiling.
“He was the most compassionate man,” his niece added. “You
could say anything to him — he was all-loving. He never said a cross
word. If you tried to rile him, he’d just give you a little laugh.”
She, too, recalled that he gave his belongings to those in need. “My
father and mother gave him a new winter coat three years in a row for
Christmas, and he just kept giving it away. He lived really simply.”
Her uncle was also an advocate of peace, she said: “Uncle Buddy
said if you love God and your neighbor, all our problems will be solved.”
No doubt influenced by his father and uncle, who worked for the Reading
Railroad, in younger years he built a train yard in the basement of the
Daly house, his niece said. He was also an avid golfer. In fact, when
Daly Bieber pictures her beloved uncle now, she pictures him “swinging
golf clubs in heaven.”
She added: “He had a twinkle in his eye and a smile on his face
most the time. He was good from the get-go. He was the most selfless man
I know. He was the kindest soul.”
Before entering St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood at age 16,
Msgr. Daly attended St. Joseph School and St. Margaret School in Reading,
and Reading Catholic High School.
“He was one of the finest men I’ve ever known,” said
one of his St. Charles Seminary classmates, Father Daniel J. Kehoe, 94,
who is pastor emeritus of Holy Spirit Parish in Sharon Hill.
At St. Charles, he was “an exemplary student,” Father Kehoe
recalled.
As a priest, “he was always available to anyone in need. He was
outspoken — he defended the people to whom he was appointed as pastor,
sometimes even against authority,” Father Kehoe added.
“He was the ideal priest,” Father Kehoe added of his longtime
friend. “The people loved him, and he served them quite well.”
He was ordained June 3, 1939, at the Cathedral of SS. Peter and Paul by
Cardinal Dennis Dougherty. On March 14, 1998, he was named a monsignor
by Pope John Paul II.
Assignments included parochial vicar, St. Canicus, Mahanoy City; and Our
Lady of Lourdes, St. Elizabeth and Saint Agatha-St. James, all in Philadelphia.
One day, while lying on his bed in his room at Our Lady of Lourdes, he
thought he saw a black figure move from the crucifix on the wall and come
toward him. He took it as a sign, and requested to work with the black
population in Philadelphia.
“Msgr. Daly was a true role model and inspiration for so many priests
who serve African American Catholics,” said Father Stephen D. Thorne,
director of the Archdiocese’s Office for Black Catholics. “His
quiet and humble, yet joyful manner, inspired two of our African American
priests to follow his footsteps [by answering the call to the priesthood.]”
From 1942 to 1946, Msgr. Daly served as a chaplain in the U.S. Army. His
duties took him to the South Pacific. He also survived malaria.
He was appointed pastor of Our Mother of Sorrows in 1961, and was named
pastor emeritus there upon his retirement in 1988.
At that time, Msgr. Daly moved to Villa St. Joseph, a residence for retired,
infirm and convalescent priests.
In a May 1, 2003 article in The Catholic Standard & Times,
Msgr. Daly, then 90, said he considered his years at “the beautiful
Villa” as a blessing. “It gives us time to think about what’s
important, and to raise our spirits to the fact that we’re on the
way where we were first intended to go,” he said. “We all
have the same ideas about working to get to our eternal reward —
and we encourage one another to do that.”
When a stroke prevented one of his fellow priests from caring for a garden
behind the Villa, Msgr. Daly took over the duties — with one caveat.
“I said I don’t mind trying to raise flowers, but I’m
not going to work on tomatoes,” he said. “They need too much
attention, and I didn’t have that kind of attention to give them.”
A rock garden eventually replaced the flowers. But even the rock garden
required some diligence on his part. Msgr. Daly recalled the effort behind
his search for a statue of St. Joseph to place in the garden. “It
took me a whole day, but I finally got one,” he said proudly.
Cardinal Justin Rigali celebrated Msgr. Daly’s funeral Mass Thursday,
April 6 at Our Mother of Sorrows Church.
Concelebrants included Retired Auxiliary Bishop Louis A. DeSimone and
Auxiliary Bishops Michael F. Burbidge, Joseph R. Cistone and Joseph P.
McFadden; Msgr. Francis X. Meehan, and Fathers Joseph J. Meehan and Daniel
M. Dooley, who was the homilist.
“I’ve done many dumb things in my life, but preaching over
a saint takes the cake,” Father Dooley said.
“Father Daly made Christ present wherever he was,” Father
Dooley added. “The hallmark of his ministry was ‘openness
to all’ — the hungry, the homeless … even the ostracized,
abandoned and rejected found a home here” at Our Mother of Sorrows.
If the Church were to give an award for the easiest confessor in the world,
Father Dooley continued, “Jim Daly would be the recipient —
hands down. A bruised reed he would not break.”
And he was prayerful. “Like Jesus praying to the Father on the mountain,
Jim Daly rose most mornings at 4 a.m. to pray,” Father Dooley said.
“Sheepishly, and with great humor and humility, he often said, ‘If
you get up at four to pray, you can do anything else the rest of the day
and people will forgive you.’”
Through Msgr. Daly’s faith and deep prayer life, by his grasp for
social justice and his love for all people, “Jesus was alive and
well here on 48th Street,” Father Dooley said. “Christ was
present.”
“The Gospel is easy to read, but difficult to live,” Father
Dooley continued. “Father Daly lived it better than anyone I ever
met.”
In addition to his niece, Mary Daly Bieber, Msgr. Daly is survived by
numerous other nieces and nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews, and
two sisters-in-law: Lenore Daly and Clare Daly.
In addition to his parents and baby sister Margaret, Msgr. Daly was preceded
in death by four brothers: Stephen, Joseph, John and Robert, and a nephew.
In the conclusion of his book, “The Great Reward: An Abundant Life,”
an autobiography published after his retirement, Msgr. Daly contemplated
his eternal reward — and seeing Christ face-to-face.
“My grateful thanks for all the wonderful people who have helped
me to prepare for my meeting with Jesus — priests, relatives, friends,
known and unknown,” Msgr. Daly said in his book.
“Without their love and prayers, I would be in a fearful position,
but now my departure will be a delightful, joyful and blessed one. I hope
I am not being presumptuous. Wow.”
Interment was at Cathedral Cemetery, Philadelphia.
CS&T Staff Writer Christie L. Chicoine can be reached at
(215) 587-2468 or cchicoin@adphila.org.
Father Michael McCleane dies at 58
By Lou Baldwin
CS&T Staff Writer
Father Michael J. McCleane, 58, a former pastor of Ascension of Our Lord
Parish, died March 30. He was on sick leave, in Ventnor, N.J., at the
time of his death.
Born in Atlantic City, he was the son of Dorothy I. Gill McLeane and the
late Michael J. McCleane, Sr. He attended Our Lady, Star of the Sea School
and Holy Spirit High School in Atlantic City, and St. Joseph’s University.
He entered St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, and was ordained May 16, 1981
by Cardinal John Krol at the Cathedral Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul.
“He had a heart of gold. [ He was] compassionate, and went out of
his way to take care of the needs of anyone, no matter what they did,”
said Father Michael J. Kelly, who was a year behind Father McCleane at
St. Charles and remained a lifelong friend. “He loved his heritage
and was committed to his Irish roots.”
Father McCleane’s assignments included serving as parochial vicar
at St. Philomena Parish in Lansdowne; Corpus Christi in Lansdale; Resurrection
of Our Lord; St. Eugene in Primos; Nativity BVM; the Cathedral Basilica
of SS. Peter and Paul; Our Lady of Calvary, and St. Bede in Holland. He
was pastor of Ascension of Our Lord from 1997 to 2001. He was also a former
chaplain at Lansdale Catholic High School, and a former member of the
archdiocesan Priest Personnel Board.
As pastor of Ascension during its centennial celebration, Father McCleane
was remembered for his cheerfulness, pleasant disposition, love of a good
time, and his pastoral concern, according to St. Joseph Sister Joan Riethmiller,
director of parish services. “He knew the school children, and was
aware of their family situations,” Sister Joan said. “Even
if they were in deep trouble, he would give them extra time and guidance.”
Father McCleane was a product of Catholic education from elementary school
through college — and one thing students of Catholic education learn
is the importance of making a difference, Marianist Father Terence Weik
said in the homily at Father McLeane’s funeral. “Michael certainly
practiced that,” he said.
Friends from their days at the Seminary, Fathers McLeane and Father Weik
had a two-decade tradition of getting together every New Year’s
Eve.
“He was definitely a ‘people person,’” Father
Weik said.
Father McCleane’s funeral Mass was celebrated by Cardinal Justin
Rigali at Our Lady Star of the Sea Church on April 5. Concelebrants included
Auxiliary Bishop Joseph P. McFadden, and Fathers Edward Heintzelman and
Thomas P. Kletzel as well as Father Kelly and Father Weik, who was the
homilist.
Father McCleane is survived by his mother, Dorothy I. McLeane; his sisters,
Patricia Kelly Schreiber and Karen Mullin; his brother , Dennis McLeane;
his aunt, Theresa Purri, and nieces and nephews.
Interment was at Holy Cross Cemetery in Mays Landing, N.J.
Lou Baldwin is a member of St. Leo Parish and a freelance writer.
Sister Kostka Brady
Sister Kostka Brady, S.S.J., the former Helen Marie Brady, died March
25, 2006. She was 92.
Born in Baltimore, Md., Sister Kostka entered the Sisters of St. Joseph
in 1932.
Sister Kostka served in the Philadelphia and Washington Archdioceses,
and the Allentown, Camden, Harrisburg and Wilmington Dioceses.
The funeral Mass was celebrated March 30 at St. Joseph Villa in Flourtown.
Burial was at the community cemetery.
Surviving are nieces, nephews and members of her congregation.
She was preceded in death by three brothers, Edward, Walter and Leo, and
a sister, Emma E. Brady.
Sister Mary Gillespie
Sister Mary Gillespie, S.S.J., formerly Sister Thomas Catherine Gillespie,
died March 24, 2006 at the age of 83.
Born in Philadelphia, Sister Mary Gillespie entered the Sisters of St.
Joseph in 1941.
She served in the Philadelphia and Washington Archdioceses, and the Harrisburg
Diocese.
The funeral Mass was celebrated March 28 at St. Joseph Villa in Flourtown.
Burial was at the community cemetery.
Surviving are three sisters, Anne O’Connor, Teresa Graver and Catherine
McLaughlin, and nieces, nephews and members of her congregation.
Lawrence Kieffer
Lawrence J. (Larry) Kieffer, 82, of Upper Gwynedd died March 29, 2006.
He was the husband of Clara Kieffer (born Oskiera).
Mr. Kieffer was a rower, and won three national championships while a
student at Roman Catholic High School. He graduated in 1943.
He also operated an appliance and tire store.
During World War II he served in the U.S. Navy.
The funeral Mass was celebrated April 3 at St. Rose of Lima Church in
North Wales. Burial was at George Washington Memorial Park, Lafayette
Hill.
He was the father of John, Janice Potts, Lawrence, Mary Ellen Suhadolnick
and Joseph.
Also survived by a brother, John J., and 13 grandchildren.
Rose Lorenzo
Rose M. Lorenzo, 94, of Dresher, wife of the late Angelo Lorenzo, died
March 23, 2006.
Mrs. Lorenzo operated the Lorenzo Farm Stand in Dresher for more than
30 years.
The funeral Mass was celebrated March 27 at Queen of Peace Church in Ardsley.
Burial was at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, Cheltenham.
Surviving are a daughter, Janet Santoro; three sons, John, Thomas and
Robert; 12 grandchildren, and 12 great-grandchildren.
Charles Nugent
Charles E. Nugent of Ardmore died March 26, 2006.
Mr. Nugent was retired from the White Motor Co.
During World War II he served in the U.S. Army.
The funeral Mass was celebrated April 1 at St. Colman Church in Ardmore.
Burial was at Calvary Cemetery. Conshohocken.
He was a brother of the late William J. Nugent, Father Vincent Nugent,
C.M., F. Raymond Nugent and Elizabeth McGuigan, and brother-in-law of
Frances T. Nugent, and Paul McGuigan.
Also surviving are cousins, nephews and nieces.
Sister Consilii Restante
Sister Consilii Restante, O.P., died March 24, 2006 at the age of 87.
Sister Mary Consilii was a member of the Dominican Congregation of St.
Catherine de Ricci in Elkins Park for 72 years.
She was engaged in retreat, residence and education ministries, and taught
in Cuba.
She also served at St. Mary Magdalen Parish in Media and taught for 18
years at Little Flower High School.
The funeral Mass was celebrated April 7 at St. Catherine Hall in Elkins
Park. Burial was at St. Agnes Cemetery, Albany, N.Y.
Sister Novella Wind
Sister Novella Wind, O.S.F., died March 29, 2006. She was 96, and a member
of the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia for 79 years.
The former Rose Mary Ward, Sister Novella was born in Allentown, Pa.
She ministered for 28 years in the Harrisburg Diocese, 20 years in the
Philadelphia Archdioces, 20 years in the Trenton Diocese and six years
in the Boston Archdiocese.
In 1996, Sister Novella moved to Assisi House in Aston.
The funeral Mass was celebrated April 3 at Assisi House. Burial was at
Our Lady of Angels Cemetery, Aston.
Surviving are nieces, nephews and members of her congregation.