Father Ciaràn Savage OCSO COMMENT

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Bob ....
To: nunrawdonald.....
Sent: Friday, 23 October 2015. 
Subject: Father Ciaran

Father,

 thank you so much for including the homily for the Mass of Father Ciaran it was lovely all though I never met or knew him. 

It was wonderful to hear such a simple and uplifting story about giving your life to God. 

I kept these words in my mind for as long as I could this morning before the blessed sacrament......I have to prepare for my death. 

Thank you again for sending me the link.

 

God Bless 

Robert

Thursday, 22 October 2015

Father Ciaràn Savage OCSO (1926 - October 16, 2015) Roscrea

 

 

  Roscrea

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

19^th. 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