Obituary Notice
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Fr. Romuald McConnell (1903-1984) atler & long and lddrour Wtness Bat FR Atéed festefully 4 Ans Tt was weet—Heia at lie, Ros : £4434: zhie—he FAM Where ih the Wbeadsher. da ft erie 4 Aen Ag _ : i : : ° . nonastory after a long oud tadtous 4idasee” Yet "itdness" is perhaps an inortrect description of FriRomuald's condition in the last months of his life. More properly it could be deacribed 468 4 rradval and, in the event, a lonre-dratm-onut fading aways From 15th March when he celebrated Wass for the last time, he was confined to his room, leavitig it only to attend Sunday Mase in our dom atic chanel and some- times to be pushed in his wheel-cair slong the corridor ~ ayhanse which he thorougly enjoyed: Some six or seven weeks net ho became too frail even for that, and was finally cofifined to bed, From that time it seemed impossible that he could live more thah a few days, But to the consternotion of all, iancludinne doctors and nurses, he lingered on and on and on - without pain, thank God, but with daily increasing weakness until at last God called him to HWimeélf, FriRomuald was born in our Passionist parish of St sthinmo ' ay Glascow, in 1°03 He received his early education at the parish school and,StiAloysius Jesuit Collere in Glasgows In 1920 he entered the Passionist novitiate in Enniskillen, Co. Fermanagh, where he was profesced on the feast of the Epiphany 1921, Less than 6 years later he was ordained priest at our monastery in Sutton, Bt Ne lens on IP Sep 42t His first assignment after ordination wae to Ilrley in Yorke. , where he was priest-in-charge of the nearby village of Addingham, (then under our care) until 1932, ‘Then, at the comparatively early age of 29 he Was arpointed Vicar tii the novitiate hottse in Broadway, Worcs: And for the next 30 years he held office es superior in the Province, bhing succesritely Rector of Sutton, Herne Bay and fred a I 2 Harborne, Birmingham, and finally is 1956, Vicar here in Highgate where he remained for the rest of his life, During all those yearn FrsRontald was enmared in the parochial ministry, and at the sane time pave many missions and re reats ~ a work he “as well svited for. His preaching was’ not marked by the robust oratory of the more fatove missioners of his tine, but his sermonr and inetritctions tere clear, consise and to the point, In 1963 at th: age of 60 when many men after ge many years of responsible and demanding work might rightly consider themselves justified in semi-reirement, Frikom took on new and equally demanding work on the etaff of the matrimonial lribunal of the Westminster Archdiotese, He was succescively. Defender of the Bond of Hatrimony and Atiditor in matrimonial cases. For 15 years he travelled: daily to the Tribunal offices, and then hia work time was reduced to three afternoons a weeks It was otly in 1982 at the are of 79 that he finally re- tired from this important apostolate, On his retirement he received a pervonal. letter of thanks from Cardinal Hume in which he ways "Both C-rdinal Heenan and myself have every reason to be mrateftl to you."
Such in bare outline are the éxternal facts of his life, What kind of man was he ? Well, I'd like to quote from a letter written by Fr.Brockie (Vice Officialis of the Archdiocese) on his receipt of the news of Fr,Rom's death: "When I first joined the Tribunal," he writes, "I sat in considerable awe as Fr,komuald examined a petitioner in a rather complicated matrimonial case. and impeccable handwriting. He was an example to me then of how such an examination should be conducteds As I got to know him better, I raw in him a preat example of priestly humility and fidelity." That letter is not only « tribute to Fr.Romuald's skill at his work, but tells us much of the kind of man we, his brethren, knew him to be: rentile, kindly, courteous and devoted to duty - qualities he brourhtto everything he did. There was no doubt that he regretted the vassine of many of the older customs and usages of the Church and of our Passionist Conrreration consequent on the Renewal after the Second Vatican Cotncil, But neither in private nor in community meetings was he known to pass adverse judgment on the new order of things, or to engage in acrimonious or destructive criticiam. That was a measure of his loyalty and sense of obedience to the Church, Fr.,Romuald was not a paragon of all the virtues any more than any of us are, and it would be a disservice to his memory to present him as such, Ile had the foibles and failings all of us are subjeat to - and no one was more conscious of his faults,;than fr ,Rom himsé@é@f, But in truth they were outweisched by his charity and affability. He was very much a community man. He did not theorise about "Community"; he simply liked being with his brethren, On the few occasions in the past years when he had to spend a few days in hosnital, his one concern was to get back to his brethren as soon as poscible: and on his retwrn he would touch the walls of the monastery and say, with evident satisfaction, "Good old Sts Joseph's," When any of us returned from any apostolic work, we cottld always be sure of a warm and samiline welcome from Ir, Rom; and he never failed to ask "How did you pet on ?" It was no idle question, but one prompted by a genvtine interrst it the work of his brothers,
Source: Obituary Notices, Provincial Archive, St Joseph's Province. Passionist Congregation.