THE LATE VERY REV. FATHER KEOGH, S.M.

New Zealand Tablet, 30 August 1917, Page 10

THE LATE VERY REV. FATHER KEOGH, S.M.

IMPRESSIVE OBSEQUIES. ■ The mortal remains of the late Very Rev. Father Keogh, S.M., 8.A., were laid to rest in the Hastings Cemetery on Thursday morning, August 16, The funeral was very largely attended, the general. public turning out in large numbers to pay their last respects to the departed priest and scholar. As a further mark of the great esteem and regard in which the late Father Keogh was held, the business people closed their shops whilst the cortege-passed up Heretaunga street, to the cemetery, the route being lined with people. Solemn Requiem Mass was celebrated in the Church of the Sacred Heart by the Right Rev. Mgr. McKenna, V.G. (Masterton). The Rev. Father Mangan, C.SS.R., was deacon, Rev. Dr. Geaney, S.M., subdeacon, and Rev. Father Hurley, S.M., master of ceremonies. The clergy present were the Very Rev. Dean Holley, S.M. (Provincial), Very Rev. Dr. Kennedy (Rector St. Patrick’s College), Ven. Archdeacon Devoy, S.M., Very Rev. Dean Binsfeld,

SAL, Rev. Dr. Martin, S.M/, Rev. Dr. Casey, S M (Greenmeadows), Rev. Fathers McManus (Palmerston North), T. McKenna (Pahiatua), Travers (Takapau), Bowe (Dannevirke), Bergin (Waipawa), O’Beirne (Carterton), Hickson, S.M. (Meeanee), Tymons, S.M., O’Sullivan, S.M., and Dowling, S.M. (Napier), O’Farrell ’ SM d Mahony, S.M., Kimbell. S.M., and Diguan, S.M. Representative laymen included Dr. Cahill (medical officer St. Patrick’s College, Wellington), Mr. J. P. Kavanagh (Feilding), and Mr. J. Devine (Palmeiston North). Messages of condolence were received from his Lordship Bishop Verdon (Dunedin), his Lordship Bishop Brodie and clergy (Christchurch), Right Rev. Mgr. Mahoney, V.G. (Adm„ Auckland), Very Rev. Deans Regnault, S.M. (Christchurch North), Tubman, S.M. (Timaru), Power (Hawera), Lane (Lower TTutt), McKenna (New Plymouth), Rev. Father Liston and seminary staff (Holy Cross College, Mosgiel), Rev. lathers Lane (Gisborne), Le Pretre, S.M. (Wairoa), M n D ° n^ el1 ’ S-M '' ( late Pastor at Hastings), Quealy, y ’ Goggan, SM Saunderson, Cashman, Sisters of Mercy (Palmerston North), Brigidine Nuns (Masterton), Sisters of the Little Company of Mary (Lewisham Hospital, Christchurch), Sisters of Compassion

(Wellington), ? numerous Catholic organisations; pro* fessional people, and representative Catholic families in the Dominion. - The following message was read ■ from Sir J. G. Ward, Bart. : —“I deeply regret to hear the sad news of the death of Father Keogh, which is a very great loss indeed. Father Keogh was a most distinguished scholar, and his kind and generous disposition, together with his active, hopeful outlook on life appealed to all who’knew him. He was a good and generous friend, and I have the deepest regard both for his personal qualities, and his highly intellectual attainments.” The Panegyric. Very Rev. Dr. Kennedy, Rector of St. Patrick's College, delivered the following eloquent panegyric on the life and work of Father Keogh, taking as his text—- “ They that instruct many into justice, shall shine like stars for all eternity.” (Daniel xii. 3.) We are met together (he said) to fulfil a sad duty, to bid farewell to a dear old friend, and to pay our last tribute of respect to a good priest, a brilliant scholar, a great educator, a true Christian gentleman. All leave-taking is painful. But to bid* farewell in death, to feel that we shall never again hear the voice, or clasp the hand, or look on the form of one whose life was closely interwoven with our own, is the saddest parting of all. Intimately associated as he was with us all in the main relations of life, it is with sorrowful hearts that we all come to honor the memory of a dear friend, a revered pastor, now cold in death. Most of you enjoyed for six years the privilege and consolation of being his spiritual children, or receivin' * from him as your parish priest the holy ministrations of religion. Some of you were privileged to live with him and to know him intimately as your teacher, your friend and lather, a lew were still more closely united to him by the bonds of friendship as his brother priests, To his brother and relatives his departure is an irreparable loss, and to them we offer our deepest and heartfelt sympathy. We all feel poorer by his death, as by the loss of one whom we all loved and revered on account of his great gifts of mind and heart, his sterling qualities, and his noble life-work. It is the sweet remembrance of these gifts and qualities and especially of his great work that consoles us to-day in our great loss. “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord, lor their works follow them,” says the Scripture, and again: “They that instruct many into justice shall shine like stars for all eternity.” Father Keogh's whole life was devoted to the noble, self-sacrificing work of instructing others into justice, the happy results of which are evident around us, and we may well believe that he is now enjoying the reward of his labors. Augustine Keogh was born in Dublin, on August 25, 1858, of good Catholic Irish parents, and all through his life he was a true son of St. Patrick and a splendid type of Irishman, bubbling over with sparkling Irish wit and humor which he used ever to give pleasure, never to cause pain. He was educated in the Marist Colleges in Dublin and Dundalk, and in France, and graduated in the Royal University of Ireland. Feeling that he was called to consecrate his life to the service of God he made his religious profession in the Society of Mary in 1879, and was ordained priest in 1883. His first field of labor was his old Alma Mater, St. Mary's College, Dundalk, where he taught with such brilliant success, that in a few years he was appointed Rector of the College. It was there I had the pleasure of first making Father Keogh's acquaintance some 30 years ago, and I well remember him as the same genial, scholarly priest, beloved of masters and boys, that we have all known him to be since he came to New Zealand in 1901., For nine years Father Keogh was Rector of St. Patrick's College, Wellington, a ”d it would be impossible to over-estimate the value of his work during that time. Gifted as he was with the qualities of an ideal schoolmaster, he has left by

his work in St. Patrick’s College a . deep* and.- lasting impression on a large number of Catholic boys in this Dominion. He came to Wellington splendidly equipped for the important work entrusted to him. A thorough knowledge of the Latin and Greek languages, as well as English literature, a master of the French language that - enabled him to speak it with the purity and fluency of a Parisian, and a long and varied experience in teaching made him a worthy successor .to the lamented Dr. Watters, the first Rector of the College. But it was especially the great gifts of his warm, generous, sympathetic heart that made his work so successful and fruitful. His intimate knowledge of each pupil, his deep personal interest in each one’s progress, his fatherly care and solicitude for the happiness and comfort of each and all, endeared him to every boy in the school, each one of whom lovingly regarded him as a dear personal friend and kind father. Yet his kindness never degenerated into weakness, and he did not hesitate to administer stern correction and even severe punishment, when he considered it necessary. He was a firm believer in the old Bible maxim, “Spare the rod, and spoil the child.’’ He loved boys dearly but not to spoil them. He never spared the rod when he believed that a culprit deserved it and would benefit by it. And he is honored and revered by many a jmung man in New Zealand who gratefully remembers him as a sometimes stern, but always just disciplinarian. The happy fruits of Father Keogh’s labors as Rector of St. Patrick’s College are to be seen all over the Dominion, for everywhere are to be found large numbers of his old pupils occupying high and honorable positions in the various professions, as doctors and lawyers, or as merchants and farmers, all reflecting the highest credit and honor on their Alma Mater, and its old Rector. Special mention must be made of the large number of Father Keogh’s old boys who have followed the example of their beloved Rector by dedicating their lives to the service of God. No fewer than 28 of his old pupils have become priests, an average of more than three each year of his Rectorship, a record of which we may all feel proud, and for which we should be deeply grateful. It is most gratifying and consoling to see that a large number of Father Keogh’s old boys, both priests and laymen, from various parts of the Dominion, are here to-day to do him honor and to testify to the respect and veneration in which his name is held by his former pupils. 1 must not forget to mention the deep interest he took in the military training of his boys. He was one of the first headmasters in New Zealand to form a College Cadet Corps, and old boys will remember the pride he took in his smart cadets as they marched through the streets of Wellington in their dark green uniforms, and the thoughtfulness and kindness he showed in providing for their annual camp. Here again we see already the remarkable fruits of his energy and labor. For more than 400 old boys of St. Pat’s, most of them Father Keogh’s old pupils, are now fighting at the front, many of them as officers ; over 80 have been wounded, and no fewer than 29 have made the supreme sacrifice. In 1909 Father Keogh was appointed parish priest of Hastings, as successor to the late lamented Dean Smyth. All of you may no doubt remember with love and gratitude the tender solicitude and ardent zeal shown by Father Keogh in the discharge of his duties as your parish priest for six years. You have not forgotten his devotedness to the sick and dying, his whole-hearted sympathy with those in distress, his tender love for your children. You remember him as a kind friend, a loving father, a generous benefactor, and a zealous and devoted priest. His winning smile, his cheerful disposition, his kind words brought sunshine into your homes. Those who were children at school during that time will remember with affection his frequent welcome visits to the school and to the playground, where he loved to encourage and help them in their work and to join them in their play. He ever showed the tender heart of the great Master, Who said: “Suffer the -little children to come unto Me and forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom of Heaven." He realised and appreciated the

promise of our Divine Lord when He said; “He that receiveth such a little one in My name, and whatsoever you do unto the least of these My little ones you do it unto Me." Many • of you recall with . deep emotion Father Keogh’s child-like affection for his saintly mother, and his filial devotion to her, especially in her last illness. His was truly the “Great Heart." And now he is to be laid beside the mother whom he loved so well. They were united in life, and they shall not be separated in death.” Our sweetest consolation is to be able to help dear departed ones by our prayers and good works. Your presence here to-day in such large numbers is evidence of your veneration and affection for him. On behalf of Dean Holley, the Provincial of the Society of Mary in New Zealand, I beg to thank you all, especially the clergy and Father Keogh’s old boys, priests and laymen, who have come long distances and at considerable invonvenience, to pay their last tribute of respect to their old friend and their old master. Sincere thanks are also due to the devoted priests of this parish, who were so kind and attentive to Father Keogh during his last illness : to the Fathers and students at Greenmeadows, who took the most tender care of him while he was ill amongst them, and who have come over to sing so beautifully the music of the Requiem Mass. To the good nuns, who were always so kind and attentive to him, we are deeply indebted. There remains only one last debt that we all owe to our dear departed friend, one last tribute of affection — that is the peace and happiness that it is in our power to obtain for him by our prayers, if he should not be already in possession of it. We cherish the fond hope that he is already enjoying the reward of his labors, that on the Feast of the Assumption of our Lady he who was her devout client and consecrated child, has been taken up to share in the triumph of his Heavenly Queen. At the same time we all know the frailty of human nature and the holiness of heaven. Let us therefore pray for him most fervently. “Eternal rest give unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him. May he rest in peace." Amen. The Interment. The body was borne from the church by members of the Hibernian Society, who were pallbearers, in conjunction with members of the church committee. The cortege was headed by the altar boys, and members of the Hibernian Society, followed by the students of Greenmeadows Seminary, visiting priests, many of whom were old pupils of the late Father Keogh. The remains were interred alongside those of the deceased priest’s mother, an impressive service at the graveside being conducted by the Right Rev. Mgr. McKenna, assisted by several visiting priests.—R.l.P. v ■„ AN APPRECIATION. (By Mr. James Holmes.) They came from everywhere and they were of all sorts and conditions, all ages and positions, of all creeds and no creeds. Men were there who rarely darken the doors of a church, who make no profession of religion, but a good man, a Father in God had passed, a man whose life had been a benediction to the town in which he lived, and all of us wanted to pay our simple tribute of affection. It was no show and there was no feasting, even the great Church to which he gave his allegiance was simple in its ornateness and ritual. Nothing jarred, nothing seemed out of place, because the man’s personality overshadowed everything. It was of him only we thought: his goodness, his singleness of heart, his tenderness, his smile, his cheery blessed presence. It was a fine spontaneous testimony to the power of undiluted goodness towering above wealth and position and pride of place. He has died poor as his Order demands. By his vows, lie had so lived that he needed to make no will, he had not a copper of his own, and yet he was wealthy beyond the dreams of avarice, in the affection he had won, through the service he had rendered. There is nothing like it in the whole world, this simple Christ-like life when it is given its chance,

; nand in this man, Father Keogh, it had had. its chance, arid to-day’s testimony was the outcome. “Give and it shall be given to you again; pressed down.” Even Dr. Kennedy stood in the pulpit as his friend rather than ■a 1 fellow priest. His words and sentences rang with affection as well as ttuth, and here let me say I have rarely heard so fine and touching an address. It was an address in which the heart dominated over the head, and l it drew a response from every individual. I would have ' liked to hear Dr. Kennedy close with Paul’s triumphant message to the Corinthian Church on the resurrection, especially the last few verses “O death where is thy sting? O grave where is -thy victory ? •* Thanks be to God, Who giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” V It is a part of the Christian burial service which demands fine reading, and only a few men seem able to rise to it, in its contempt of death, but I think Dr. Kennedy could. We came out into the sunshine to go with our friend on his last earthly journey. Many a time he had passed that same way, living ; but now we carried him S like the old Grammarian in Robert Browning’s immortal poem. We carried him not to a cold, dank grave, but to a spot sanctified by the body of a sainted mother, and we think he had been happy in the thought of it. No man wanted to buy and sell as the body passed; shopkeepers and customers stood bare-headed outside and let the business take care of itself— they stood to wav© him good-bye. Such men do not die. Their death is a resurrection, if we thought it out ; and a simple faith in Christ is the key to it all. Father Keogh has been a great gift of God to Hastings.