Monsignor Brian Walsh Farewell

Mass Celebrated by Archbishop Denis Hart
at Our Lady of Victories’ Basilica, Camberwell,
on Sunday, 30th May, 2004, at 6.00pm

Introduction

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Today is the Feast of Pentecost when we recall the coming of the Holy Spirit to touch the hearts of the faithful and to inspire them in preaching the Gospel.

We bid farewell at this evening’s Mass to Monsignor Brian Walsh in the forty-eighth year of his priesthood, as he retires as parish priest of Camberwell, where he has been among this parish family since January, 1988.

Present with us are many friends and supporters of Monsignor Brian, including schools friends from Saint Paul’s, Coburg, and Saint Bede’s, Mentone, priests and friends from Seminary days and from former parishes of Sunshine, Elsternwick and Dandenong, helpers from the 40th International Eucharistic Congress and Papal Visit, and personnel and companies who have provided help for his work with youth in parishes and the Lake Eildon camp.

As we call to mind our sins and pray for him in the new challenges before him, let us remember the power of the Holy Spirit to give life and strength to us all.

Homily

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Today we recall an event two thousand years ago when the Holy Spirit changed twelve fearful men into courageous proclaimers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Every one of us looks to have light for our path, comfort in our work, healing in our weakness, gifts to use in the service of others.

Together with the people of Camberwell, so many visitors and personal friends have come to farewell Monsignor Brian Walsh as he retires as a parish priest. He has assured me that other activities in his well-filled life will in fact continue. Looking around this church I see people who have been part of that life, which we have shared with him.

After education at Saint Paul’s School, Coburg, and Saint Bede’s, Mentone, he studied for the priesthood at Corpus Christi College, Werribee, from 1948 to 1956. He is remembered as assistant priest in Saint Mary’s, Geelong, Sunshine and Elsternwick.

His fame as an organiser, whether in outdoor work and fetes at Werribee, preceded him to Sunshine where he was responsible for the construction of a new parish centre, opened by one no less than the Duke of Edinburgh. From Elsternwick he guided Australian Catholic Relief and made the Project Compassion collection and the relief which was provided, a highpoint of the work of the Archdiocese of Melbourne.

It was not surprising that from January 1971 until February 1973 he was Executive Director of the 40th International Eucharistic Congress. This was to be a Congress, following the Second Vatican Council, with a new simplicity involving Masses, seminars, teaching and a wide involvement of the community of Victoria and beyond.

His ability to see possibilities, to organise them to the minutest detail and to involve a wide range of people in the project have done much for Church and State in our country. After the Congress, having been made a Monsignor, he was parish priest of Dandenong from 1974 until his appointment to conduct the preparations for the Papal Visit to Australia from July 1985 until December 1986.

On both of these occasions Brian demonstrated remarkable enthusiasm, ability to encourage people and to provide a large vision. It was often said that the Australian visit of Pope John Paul II was so carefully prepared that it stood out among the papal visits for the way in which everything was foreseen. Some of his friends who were invited to take part suggested that Brian is a perfect example of the Gospel maxim, “Ask and you shall receive. Seek and you shall find. Knock and it shall be opened unto you.”

The Papal Visit was a magnificent endeavour and an opportunity to reinforce the Catholicism, nourished at the Eucharistic Congress of 1973, by giving Australian people an exposure to our Holy Father, who is one of the great Popes of history and enabling the Holy Father to teach the faith to people around the nation. The coverage on television, in the media, and at the events brought many people to be challenged by their faith and to grow.

Here in Camberwell, Mons has looked after the renewal of Our Lady’s Basilica, the care of the plant and the work of the parish. What is not so well known is his relationships with young people and the regular camps at Eildon, which I understand are to continue.

Since the 1973 Eucharistic Congress he has been an adviser to the Pope’s Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses and he has brought an expertise and enthusiasm which, coming from the Melbourne Eucharistic Congress, have supported those in other countries.

Brian is a man who, at great cost to himself, has brought continued enthusiasm and dedication to the work of the Church and has placed his personal abilities genuinely at the service of others.

Today, as we thank God for all that he has done and as we pray for him, we remember that the work of the Holy Spirit is always to help us to discover our gifts, to use them and to carry them forward to the future.

Brian, as archbishop, fellow priest and friend, I thank you for all that you have continued to do and I pray that the Holy Spirit will guide you in your life ahead as you leave Our Lady of Victories.

+ Denis J. Hart,
Archbishop of Melbourne.