Lamh Foistenach Abu!
Posted on 10/22/2010 5:10:59 PM PDT by devane617
Monsignor John Scully died Friday while consecrating the bread and wine at an 8 a.m. Mass at St. Stephen Catholic Church. He had been a priest for 62 years.
"It was precisely how he wished to go and would have scripted it had we any power over the time of our death," Bishop Robert Lynch wrote on his blog.
Scully, 86, was a priest in residence at the Valrico church. He was born and raised in Boston, and will be buried there next to his parents, Lynch said.
Scully did many things during his decades as a priest in Florida. He was the first president of Tampa Catholic High School. He helped found Bishop Barry, an all-boys school which later became part of St. Petersburg Catholic High School, and he helped start Notre Dame Catholic School in Spring Hill.
He also started parishes that carried the names of his parents: St. Catherine's in Largo and St. Michael's in Clearwater.
"Monsignor Scully is just one of those legendary priests," said Father Len Plazewski, the director of vocations for the Diocese of St. Petersburg. "He had a huge impact in the area."
Lynch wrote that he often tried to convince Scully to move into an assisted living facility, but he always resisted.
"He found security, comfort and continued meaning for his priestly life due to the extraordinary kindness of Father Bill Swengros, pastor of St. Stephen's parish in Valrico and his staff and parishioners," Lynch wrote.
Scully went to St. Stephen's several years ago, even though he had officially retired. He was known for his zeal and energy, Lynch wrote. And he'll be remembered for his gentle nature, Father Swengros wrote.
"He and his strong spirituality will be missed in our parish and by all who loved and cared for him," Swengros wrote on the St. Stephen website.
Lynch said Scully, who served for years as the diocese's Director for the Propagation of the Faith, spent lots of time traveling to baptize, confirm, absolve and marry people.
"As I digest the news, it is almost like a giant oak has fallen and a huge space has been revealed — one that will not be easy to fill," Lynch wrote.
A funeral mass will be held at St. Theresa Catholic Church in Spring Hill. Details will be announced later, a spokeswoman for the diocese said.
I’ll PING Salvation to it..
ping
I’d say, “Oh, how sad,” but it isn’t really, except for his family and close friends who will miss him. May he be at home with the Lord today.
This should be in the religion forum, not chat.
Lamh Foistenach Abu!
St Teresa Catholic Church celebrated the 50th anniversary of Monsignor John Scully (right) in the priesthood with a special mass
Freep-mail me to get on or off my pro-life and Catholic List:
Please ping me to note-worthy Pro-Life or Catholic threads, or other threads of general interest.
This should be in the religion forum (or news), not chat.If you agree, please say so!
May God bless this holy man, and may He raise up a dozen to replace him.
I’m not Catholic and rarely post to the religion threads so I posted it in Chat...
May God bless and keep him.
Thanks for posting this. Bishop Barry was my Mom’s cousin.
RIP.
Thanks for posting! A Great story! He met his Saviour at the greatest moment!
I’m not Catholic. It’s a good story of service and dedication, regardless of institution.
Good luck with that. Maybe you can get your own site someday and someone might stumble upon it.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.