[Apologetics] Cardinal Newman Society: On the loss of Father Groeschel

[Art Kelly]

On Saturday, October 4, 2014 12:59 PM, Cardinal Newman Society <info at cardinalnewmansociety.org> wrote:
 


EMAIL TITLE GOES HERE 
Fr. Groeschel                      View In Browser 
 
October 4, 2014
 
You may have heard: Father Benedict Groeschel, C.F.R., died shortly before midnight.

We are so very grateful to the thousands of Cardinal Newman
 Society members who responded to our call for prayers on Tuesday.  Father had
 fallen and was in great pain.

But today, he suffers no longer.  On this Feast of Saint
 Francis—a most important feast for a priest who devoted himself
 wholeheartedly to the Franciscan spirituality, a radical commitment to living as
 Jesus did—please pray with us that Father celebrates with the great Saint
 himself.

Father Groeschel was extraordinarily dedicated to the mission
 of The Cardinal Newman Society, desiring the renewal of faithful Catholic
 education as key to the renewal of faithful Catholic life.  He was thrilled
 to write the foreword to The Newman Guide and invited me on his EWTN show several times to celebrate the best in Catholic higher education.

He was also a friend and a father.  He touched our lives
 in a very personal way—in the way of Christ.  He spent time with our
 staff.  He stayed at the home of one of our leaders, whose boys will never
 forget his presence.  My wife and children also had the opportunity to spend
 time with him, including a brief encounter at one of his last public
 appearances.  We treasure these moments as we would time with a family
 member—but even more, because we were touched by holiness.

When I last saw Father Groeschel, he was doubled over with
 back pain, having slept most of his life on a hard floor with empathy for the very
 poor.  His decades of insightful preaching and his influential public
 ministry ended abruptly with a statement for which he quickly apologized, but
 which nevertheless stole the reputation of a man who never sought
 reputation.  His last years have been spent with his Franciscan Friars and
 Sisters of the Renewal, who showed him the very same love and compassion that he
 gave equally to the poor and the sinful.

May Father Groeschel rest from all his suffering in the loving
 arms of his Father in Heaven!  Please pray with me and the staff of The
 Cardinal Newman Society for the happy repose of his soul:

Requiem aeternam dona ei, Domine; et lux perpetua luceat ei. Requiescat in pace. Amen.

Eternal rest grant unto him, oh Lord; and let perpetual light
 shine upon him.  May he rest in peace.  Amen.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Patrick Reilly
President

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The Cardinal Newman Society
9720 Capital Court, Suite 201
Manassas, VA
 20110

alert at CardinalNewmanSociety.org
Ph: 703-367-0333 Fx: 703-396-8668
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