Parish Life in the St Albans Catholic Church

James O’Brien was born at Wood Green, London, on 5th August 1930, one of a family of five. He had two brothers, John and Michael and two sisters, Mildred and Marie Celine. His early education took place at St. Paul’s Primary School. He passed the scholarship to become a pupil at St. Ignatius College, then situated at Stamford Hill, from 1942 to 1948. He decided to offer himself for the priesthood in the Diocese of Westminster and studied at Allen Hall, St. Edmund’s College, then at Old Hall Green in Ware. He was ordained to the priesthood on 12th June 1954 at Westminster Cathedral by Cardinal Bernard William Griffin.

His first, and only, parochial appointment was as curate to Father Bridgmen at St. Lawrence’s in Feltham from 1954 until 1962. He enjoyed telling stories of the Spartan life he endured in those early years of priesthood, and retained a lasting happy memory of his time there. In 1962 Father O’Brien became a member of the Catholic Missionary Society which had been founded by Cardinal Vaughan. The CMS was a group of Diocesan priests who lived in community and conducted missions throughout England and Wales. After 100 years of service the CMS changed in 2003 to become the Catholic Agency to Support Evangelisation (CASE), which has also taken over the running of the Catholic Enquiry Office (CEO). These were very formative years in his life, and the experience and knowledge he acquired stood him in good stead in his future responsibilities. In 1966 he became Director of the Catholic Enquiry Centre which conducted outstanding work in the area of evangelisation, responding to many thousands of people seeking information about the Catholic Church.
With Louisa and Hannah in Marshalswick, 2004

With Louisa and Hannah in Marshalswick, 2004

Cardinal Heenan appointed him Rector of Allen Hall in the year 1968. This was the year of the Paris student riots and the turmoil which took place in educational establishments throughout Europe was reflected both in church and society at large. His calm demeanour, his humility and his graciousness to staff and students alike ensured that Allen Hall avoided the worst excess of this turbulent period. The changing face of priestly formation led to the decision that the seminary should move to London (again!) in order that students might take advantage both of the pastoral and academic opportunities available in the City. Stories of “the move” in 1975 are legendary. That it was achieved successfully was due, in no small part, to his wisdom and guidance.

With (L to R), Fr Pat Courtney, Des Coyle and Fr. Manus Ferry, 2004

On 28th June 1977 James O’ Brien was appointed Titular Bishop of Manaccenser (Manaccenseritanus) and Auxiliary Bishop of Westminster. He assumed responsibility for his beloved Hertfordshire in succession to the former President of St. Edmund’s College, Bishop Christopher Butler OSB. He was to serve the priests and people of Hertfordshire with total dedication for the next twenty eight years. During that time, his commitment to ecumenical relations became a hallmark of his ministry. He developed close personal relationships with each of the Bishops of St. Albans with whom he worked. The weekly celebration of Mass in the Abbey and the annual ecumenical youth festival and pilgrimage were just two expressions of this important dimension of his life and work. His contribution to life of the wider community of Hertfordshire was recognised by the award of an Honorary Doctorate in Law by the University of Hertfordshire.

As with all bishops, Bishop O’Brien also had national and international responsibilities. He was Chair of the Committee for Ministerial Formation on behalf of the Bishops’ Conference. As a representative of the Hierarchy of England and Wales and also of CAFOD he represented the church in this country at the funeral of Archbishop Oscar Romero in El Salvador following his death on 24th March 1980. He experienced at first hand the danger and violence which erupted on that occasion and gave moving interviews on radio and television about those events. In recent years he was responsible in the Diocese for the Department of Ecumenism, Interfaith and Justice and Peace. Each of these areas benefited from his knowledge, understanding and expertise. Bishop Jim epitomised the description of a gentleman and a priest. His ready smile; his response when asked about his well-being “Splendid my dear”; his advice “Don’t take life too seriously” were expressive of his deep personal faith and knowledge of himself. Long before CAFOD introduced its initiative “Live Simply” Bishop Jim was doing precisely that – often to the amusement of others. In his humility, he was able to laugh at himself and indulge in his great hobby of walking (many miles!), bee keeping and latterly caring for his beloved Labrador, Ben.

Full text of Bishop George Stack’s homily, delivered at the 7pm Mass

I am so grateful to the Cardinal for allowing me to preach at this vigil Mass. This is a family occasion, when the people of Hertfordshire gather together to say farewell and give thanks to God for Bishop James O’Brien who has been their Father in God for over thirty years. What more fitting place to do that but this church of St. Alban and St. Stephen, which he knew and loved so well? There was always a welcome for him here throughout the years. Everything from regularly parking his car before going to London on his way to meetings and functions at Westminster, to the warm hospitality of the Sacred Heart Community, displayed again tonight in their willingness to host this Vigil of prayer.

Each time we come together at Mass we are nourished and fed at the table of God’s Word and the table of the sacrament which is the Eucharist. Each of us will have our own favourite pieces of scripture on which we “hang” our thoughts and prayers at significant moments of life – and death. The readings chosen for this evening’s mass were special to Bishop Jim. They speak of his life, his ministry, his faith and his example. We heard Jesus speak in the Gospel; “I have come from heaven not to do my own will but to do the will of the one who sent me”. Obedience was the key to Bishop Jim’s life. The word comes from “ob-audire”: turning the ear in order to listen and hear. Bishop Jim was a great listener. He created a respectful space in which people could talk about their hopes and fears, sometimes their anger and pain. He was always respectful, never judgmental. And all this because he was also able to listen to God in the silence of his own heart. He had an inner attitude of obedience in his calm ability to undertake the many important positions he was asked to fulfil in the Church: member of the Catholic Missionary Society; rector of the seminary; Auxiliary Bishop of Westminster. Each one of them carried out with the same humility and trust which characterised him. Auxiliary bishops do not have Episcopal mottos, but if they did, I am sure his would read: “Don’t take yourself too seriously” – advice which he followed meticulously.

When Cardinal Hume was diagnosed with terminal cancer in 1999, Pope John Paul II wrote these words in a letter to him:

“I have just learned of the serious illness which the Lord, in his all seeing Providence, has allowed in your life. I know you have accepted this suffering with courage and in spiritual obedience to the Father, and that the words of the psalm will surely accompany you in the days ahead: “I kept my faith even when I said I am sorely afflicted”.

Bishop Jim “allowed” his suffering to happen not in a passive but in an active way. St. Paul expressed it well in this evening’s reading when he said “I think that what we suffer in this life can never be compared to the glory, as yet unrevealed, which is waiting for us”. In his final illness, no word of complaint no matter what the distress. Whoever visited was always welcomed graciously: “Thank you for coming. Don’t put yourself to any trouble”. It was no trouble to those who visited, or brought Holy Communion, or celebrated Mass with him because they were always struck by his faith and devotion and what used to be called “resignation to the will of God”. Whenever I visited him, I always thought of the radical Anglican theologian of the 1960’s, Bishop John Robinson. Amongst the many controversial things he wrote, perhaps the most controversial was when he himself was diagnosed with terminal cancer in his early sixties. He wrote, to the consternation of man: “we must find God in the cancer cell”. In doing that, John Robinson takes us to the heart of the mystery of suffering in the human condition and the questions we all ask when confronted with suffering: Why does God allow people to suffer? Where is he when we suffer? How can God be believed in while we struggle to deal with pain of whatever sort? So often our answer is: nothing good can be said of suffering. Suffering is a contradiction of everything we strive to achieve in life and is the ultimate waste of time. But our Easter faith tells us that no suffering is wasted in which God is served. The service of God is the sanctification of time. It is through our vulnerability, particularly at times of suffering, that God nervously, tentatively, hopefully invites us to believe in him as all the layers which distract us are peeled away.

Bishop Jim fulfilled all this with joy and tranquillity. He was helped to do that by the people who surrounded him with care, love and respect, allowing him to fulfil his final wish to die in his own home. Among those I must pay particular tribute to Caroline McCaffrey and Wynn Taylor who supported him faithfully over the years – and helped him celebrate his final Easter with the occasional glass of champagne!

I finish with a word to our ecumenical guests. You will know how close you were to Bishop Jim’s heart and to what he believed in. This was expressed in so many tangible ways and through the close bonds of friendship he had with successive Deans and Bishops of St. Albans over thirty years. The ecumenical chaplaincy and the Friday Mass at the Abbey; the Youth Pilgrimages; the Bendictictine experience; the Breakspear celebrations. All these were to him a fulfilment of the prophesy of Isaiah to which we listened this evening: ‘On this mountain, the Lord of Hosts will prepare a banquet of rich food….that day it will be said: “See. This is our God in whom we hoped for salvation”.’

James O’Brien believed in and hoped for that salvation. He preached about it and invited us to “….rejoice and be glad” that God has saved us. This evening’s Mass gives us an opportunity to fulfil that sacred trust

An on-line ‘Book of Remembrance’ for Bishop James O’Brien has been set up on the Diocese of Westminster website at www.rcdow.org.uk.

This week, great tribute and honour was paid to our Bishop James O’Brien. Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor was principle celebrant at the Vigil Mass. It was a very special and prayerful occasion. A very blessed time for all of us in this Parish.

The success was due to the great co-operation, hard work and dedication of so many people. We give thanks to all the people who participated in the organisation of this event.

A big thank you to all the people who prepared the food - this was a real example of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes to be able to feed so many people; to the stewards and parkers; the welcomers; the guards of honour from our secondary schools; altar servers, musicians; to those who prepared the Church and hall, those who served refreshments; to those who cleared up and to the many who took part in the all-night vigil; on Thursday morning our special thanks to the schools in the Parish – Nicholas Breakspear School, Loreto, SS Alban & Stephen Infant and Junior Schools and St John Fisher School. Our young people got the chance to recognise the great work of Bishop James but also of co-operating to make it a special occasion.

Fr. Charles