Monday, 19 October 2015
October 16,
2015: Father Ciaràn Savage was born in 1926 in Killeary,
Co. Armagh (Ireland). He entered Roscrea in 1948, made his solemn profession in
1953 and was ordained a priest in 1955. Father was 90 years old, had been
in monastic vows for 65 years and 60 years a priest when the Lord
called him.
Homily
for Funeral Mass of Fr Ciaran
19th.
October 2015
 |
| Painting by Sara Kyne |
Yesterday,
Mission Sunday, had us thinking missionary, that when one of your family dies,
you realise that she/he has their mission accomplished. Fr Ciaran has been very
much a central figure in our family of Mount St Joseph for the last 67 years.
St Therese of the Child Jesus discovered to her delight that being love in the
heart of the Church was her mission. And she is now recognised as Patroness of
the Missions - though she never left her convent in Lisieux.
Fr
Ciaran has been love in the heart of the Church of Mount St Joseph all these 67
years. Way beyond any of us, he has been, in the Cistercian tradition, the
lover of the place, this place of Mount Saint Joseph, a lover of the Rule - the
Rule of St Benedict as applied in an Order, a lover of the brethren, of
everyone of us, no matter how insignificant we were. And in that love - his
heart extended to the entire Church. He has been for us the exemplar of how a
monk and indeed every Christian can and must be a missionary.
It
was this love, first learned and nurtured in the O'Sabhaois home in Lower
Killeavy, South Armagh, by his parents Patrick and Elizabeth, that set him on
his way in life. This love was of a multi-faceted nature, one of the most
outstanding sides of which was his love for his Country, its language, its
culture, its history, its faith. He was a gaelgoir of the highest order, and
yet without an ounce of bigotry. He prayed in Irish, he thought in Irish, he
kept his notes and diaries in Irish, he preferred to speak in Irish, but he
never embarrassed anyone else who might not be at ease with Irish.
Francis
K as he was then, did his primary education at Lissummon
School
and Secondary at CBS Newry from which he got first place in the 1942-3
University Scholarship. He picked U.C.D. rather-than Queens, Belfast, as he
would have had to sign his name in English if he chose the latter! Agricultural
Science was his subject. At this period he joined the Legion of Mary, an Irish
speaking praesidiurn and then another love appeared, this time for his girlfriend!
But part they had to - the greater love was for Christ - so all the way on his
bike from Dublin to Roscrea and back in the same day to fix his vocation.
This
morning Dom Richard phoned me, recalling a visit two years ago from Cardinal
Brady during which he told us how disgusted Ciaran's father was at his decision
- if he wanted to be a priest couldn't he be a right one like his brother Fr Tomas,
only to be told: "If you gave me a present of £1,000 I couldn't be a
priest like Tommy!"
So
in September 1948, Francis entered Mount Saint Joseph, becoming Claran,
professed in 1950 and ordained in 1955. While totally faithful to his monastic
life he was on the teaching staff in our College 1954-91, having been Dean of
Studies for the last decade of that period.
Ciaran
was much involved in the local praesidia of the Legion of Mary, in groups for
Mass Readers and Eucharistic Ministers, as well as in his Masses and homilies
for the people of our locality and also as a Confessor in our Public Church.
All
down his years we saw how "the love of God was poured into
his
heart by the Holy Spirit" and he shared this love with so many through his
publications in various magazines, thus in early 1960s Muniteor no Tire year
book - "Aoibhill Beatha and Feirrneona" in Cistercian Studies, An Fiolar,
CCR Review and of course Hallel, which he edited and which was never
the same without him.
It
was George Cunningham, our local historian, who reminded us of the above
adding: If He truly lived the Cistercian ideals all his life, a life
fruitful and joyous, always first a monk and then a scholar of the highest
integrity, bringing new meaning and personal insights to our Christian
heritage, while always reticent and humble about himself."
Some
years ago Ciaran, feeling that he should no longer be lecturing at the Roscrea
Conferences: "George, I must prepare for my death." Prepare he did -
with a long decline involving some hospital stays, but especially in our
monastery infirmary, where our nursing and caring staff showered care and love
upon him, while he responded with a smile of appreciation. We were all round
his bed on Friday night as he slipped away - the wheat grain that died, and
will yield a rich harvest for all of us - slipped away to a cead mile fai1te
from the good Lord and his Blessed Mother.
Fr.
Laurence, Prior, Roscrea
laurence.walsh@msjroscrea.ie
'Fail Bhrat Mhuire'
Mount Saint Joseph has three Lourdes Grottoes. An tAth
Ciaran picks the quietest and indeed the sunniest one for his lectio divina. But he is not the only one to choose
well. So does the little red squirrel who wants to be part of the scene, won't
disturb the monk in his engagement with the Word of God, or be disturbed by him,
who is absorbed in his listening to the Word. That's what lectio divina consists of.
Listen carefully, my child, to the master's
instructions, and attend to them with the ear of your heart.
This is advice from a father who loves you;
welcome it, and faithful0' put it into practice.
- (RULE OF ST BENEDlCT, PROL. 1)
|
In
the monastery garden
Lectio
In
the monastery garden
a
dog rose scrambles over
the
stone shrine. Arching
stems
lean
to inspire
the old monk's
meditations.
Meditatio
Absorbed in the Word of God
he
doesn't see
the
red squirrel flick
his tail
as
he forages for berries,
his
beady eye
unblinking.
Oratio
Angelus
bells
call the monk to
prayer.
The
squirrel scurries
up the ash tree
carrying the Word
to
the tree tops.
Contemplatio
Tea in the field
An overcast afternoon
in the low meadow,
my aunt rests on drying hay.
The cutting bar hums
through a crop of pale gold
scattering seeds to the wind.
Marian Brannigan
Notes
Lectio Divina has 4 stages: Lectio, Meditatio, Oratio,
Contemplatio.
In Norse mythology, Ratatoske is a squirrel who runs up and down the
world tree carrying messages.
|
PLEASE PRAY FOR
ATH CIARAN O SABHAOIS OCSO
OF
THIS COMMUNITY WHO
DIED
YESTERDAY FRIDAY, 16TH OCTOBER 2015
IN
HIS 90TH YEAR AND
THE
65TH YEAR OF HIS MONASTIC PROFESSION
R.l.P.
FUNERAL
MASS ON MONDAY, 19TH OCTOBER 2015 2:00 PM
__________________________________________________________
MOlJNT
SAINT JOSEPH ABBIY. ROSCR£A, Co TIPPERARY. IRELAND
