Emmaus Partnership
Given at the Funeral Mass of Fr Mark Leenane RIP at St Vincent de Paul, Osterley, on Tuesday 1st August 2023
Chiselled into the stone above the door of the old Mansion House of All Hallows College, Dublin, are the words Euntes Docete Omnes Gentes, ‘Go teach all peoples’. Those words inspired thousands of young men, including Fr Mark, to respond to Jesus’ invitation to ‘follow him’ and leave Ireland to go out on mission to another land. The privilege of being a member of a formation team of a seminary is to see the gradual growth of a seminarian into priesthood and the ways in which the Holy Spirit prompted and shaped Fr Mark’s vocation, ordination, and then priestly ministry.
At his ordination, the priest hears the bishop pray the words of the Prayer of Consecration, ‘grant to this servant of yours the dignity of the priesthood. Renew in him the spirit of holiness… so that he may bring the words of the Gospel to the ends of the earth, the family of nations, made one in Christ, to become God’s one holy people.’ We thank God for the service of Fr Mark through his priestly ministry.
The shock of Fr Mark’s sudden death is a reminder of the fragility of life and the mystery of life and earthly death. Every priest is both a steward of God’s mysteries and an earthenware vessel, conscious of weakness and the need of the merciful love of God to forgive and heal. The hymn Ag Críost an síol is a reminder that priestly ministry is a gift and that it is Christ at work in the mission of the Church.
Christ’s is the seed, Christ’s is the crop,
into the barn of God may we be brought.
Christ’s is the sea, Christ’s is the fish,
In the nets of God may we be caught.
In the second verse, the hope of eternal life shines through from death to the end of earthly life, and then beyond to rebirth. The beautiful image of the two arms of Christ enfolding and surrounding us will bring us gently to the Paradise of Graces. The opening hymn ‘Christ be beside me…’ the modern adaptation of the ancient words from the hymn attributed to St Patrick which sings of the power of God to strengthen and guide the pilgrim, ‘I arise today’… in the mighty strength of the Trinity, the life of Christ’s paschal mystery, and the power of God in creation. Such words speak of the protection of God over his beloved.
When the priest receives the paten and chalice at his ordination, the bishop says, ‘Accept from the holy people of God the gifts to be offered to him. Know what you are doing and imitate the mystery you celebrate: model your life on the mystery of the Lord’s cross.’ The second reading from the letter of St Paul to the Colossians invites us to look for the things of heaven because the life we have now is hidden with Christ in God. This invites constant conversion and putting to death all those things that prevent us from becoming like Christ, putting to death the old man, and reclothing ourselves in the new clothes of grace: sincere compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, bearing with and forgiving one another, putting on love, allowing the peace of Christ to reign and being thankful. Always be thankful. These are the signs that our life is in Christ. The growth can be slow, but persistence, sacrifice and care are called for through the daily steps of priestly life.
In this funeral Mass we entrust Fr Mark to the mercy of the Father and pray for the repose of his soul that he may be welcomed into the mansions of heaven, to that place which Jesus promised to prepare for him: ‘I am going now to prepare a place for you, and after I have gone and prepared you a place, I shall return to take you with me; so that where I am you may be too’ (John 14:3).
The consoling words of the first reading promise the hope of eternal life and liken heaven to a great banquet of rich food and fine wines. This hope is fulfilled in the Eucharist when heaven and earth unite in time. Christ comforts those who grieve for their loved ones and wipes away the tears from every cheek. He has destroyed death for ever by his cross, death and resurrection. With such hope we gather as God’s holy people, laity, priests, and bishops, to pray for Fr Mark and to support his family in Ireland, one another, and to encourage one another in our faith in Jesus Christ and the promise of the hope of resurrection beyond the grave.
Fr Mark’s journey to the Father now continues through the purification of God’s healing grace and his soothing balm towards the gates of heaven. When we see the face of God beyond our grave, then we will know how completely we need God’s mercy. The Church’s prayer for the dead is a sign of our communion with both the living and the dead. It is an act of charity. We continue to trust that the Good Shepherd will lead Fr Mark home and hope in the final line of the psalm which echoes in our hearts, ‘In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell forever.
Eternal rest grant to him O Lord
and let perpetual light shine upon him.
May he rest in peace.
Amen.
Bishop John Sherrington
……………………………..
Obituary
Andrei Rublev’s icon depicting the Holy Trinity dates from the early fifteenth century and is familiar to many as one of the greatest examples of Russian art. It is also known as ‘The Hospitality of Abraham’, with the three angels who visited Abraham at the Oak of Mamre as described in the Book of Genesis, chapter 18. There seems to be a place for another person at the table, perhaps an invitation to share the hospitality and in the life of the Trinity?
On 12th July at Archbishop’s House, Westminster there was a spare place at the table when the Cardinal extended hospitality to priests celebrating their Jubilee of Ordination. Fr Mark Leenane had written to accept the invitation but he was absent having been called to share the hospitality of Heaven on 6th July in the twenty-fifth year of priesthood. He was missed at the Mass of Thanksgiving in the Private Chapel before the celebratory lunch and remembered in the prayers offered by the Cardinal.
Fr Mark’s sudden death, at home in the presbytery, came as a shock to his family, friends and parishioners of St Vincent de Paul parish, Osterley. A few days earlier he had been discharged from hospital having been treated for a heart attack and he was convalescing. It was thought he was recovering well. Family, friends and parishioners have been consoled in the knowledge that Fr Mark was a faithful and devoted priest: devoted to them and, above all, to the Lord.
Mark Leenane was born in Dublin on 10th January 1964 and baptised nine days later at Mary Help of Christians church on Navan Road, Dublin 7. At the age of twelve he was confirmed at the church of Pius X in Templeogue. He attended Templeogue College from 1976 to 1981, then Bolton Street College of Technology, Dublin 2.
He was particularly good at maths and physics and went on to study successfully for a diploma in construction economics and a BSc in surveying. He came to London for employment as a quantity surveyor in 1985 and by 1990 was a senior qs, before returning to Dublin to study for the priesthood at All Hallows, Dublin 9. While there he gained further academic qualifications.
His time in London prompted him to request to be accepted as a student for the Diocese of Westminster and this was granted in the autumn of 1991.
There were times when he questioned his vocation, whether it was to priesthood or to married life. He took time out for vocational discernment and returned to resume formation for priesthood.
From January to July 1996 he was placed at Our Lady Help of Christians, Kentish Town for pastoral experience. He then continued studies at All Hallows and returned to London for further pastoral experience in 1998, based at Ss Sebastian and Pancras parish, Kingsbury Green and was ordained as a deacon at St George’s Catholic Secondary School, Maida Vale where he had been doing pastoral work, in June 1998. On 5thDecember 1998 he was ordained to the priesthood in the chapel at All Hallows by Bishop James Moriarty.
Fr Mark’s first appointment was to St Gabriel’s, Archway where he served as Assistant Priest from 1998 to 2002. He then took up his appointment as Assistant Priest at The Most Precious Blood and St Edmund, Edmonton and part-time Chaplain at the North Middlesex Hospital where he remained until March 2004.
He was then appointed Parochial Administrator at St Vincent de Paul, Osterley and in November 2005 he was appointed Parish Priest. Fr Mark’s experience of building construction stood him in good stead in Osterley with its newly built church.
The foundation stone was laid on 9th May 2004 after Mass celebrated by Bishop Alan Hopes. Parishioners had been gathering for Mass in the parish hall, a temporary arrangement since 1937! Fr Mark commented that as the foundation stone was blessed ‘there was an impromptu drumroll from a child in the folk group. It lent a sense of drama to the occasion and brought a smile to people’s faces.’
The £900,000 building was designed with special sound insulation, the church being under the flight path to nearby Heathrow Airport. Fr Mark was able to oversee the completion of the church later that year.
During twenty-five years of priestly ministry Fr Mark was a hard-working and conscientious priest. He related well with parishioners of all ages and backgrounds. He included people in the life and work of the Church, trusting people with responsibilities whether paid or as volunteers. He ensured that the liturgy was well prepared and celebrated with reverence, including the use of the thurible at the three Sunday Masses.
He paid attention to the fabric of the parish property and was adept at carrying out maintenance and repairs. His background in surveying made him a natural choice for service as a member of the diocesan Art and Architecture Committee. He took people seriously, and expected to be taken seriously by others.
A kind man and priest, he reached out to the poor and vulnerable. He had, and could express, strong opinions. He often ‘thought out loud’ as he would consider decisions that needed to be taken. On the occasions that he said or did something he regretted he would always ponder and apologise when necessary.
He achieved a good work-life balance, taking time off to be with family and friends and for leisure pursuits including cycling, walking and holidays. His childhood passion for rugby continued into adulthood; he played for the Old Actonians, based in west London, and remained a loyal supporter. Fr Mark appreciated the arts, especially art, music, poetry and architecture. Visiting art galleries, museums and historic buildings in London, Paris and Madrid were activities he enjoyed, and he was a regularly in the audience at Wigmore Hall. Current affairs, especially politics, interested him, as did care for creation and the environment. He was committed to working, fundraising and praying for greater justice and peace locally and globally.
Fr Mark made time for people and enjoyed the company of others and is sorely missed by his parents, Michael and Eileen, his siblings and their families, and by friends and parishioners. He prayed with and for people, and now we pray in thanksgiving for Fr Mark’s life and ministry. May this faithful priest rest in peace and rise in glory.
________________
SOURCE:
