SEPTEMBER 16, 2022
mississippicatholic.com
With a servant's heart, Father Carroll passes at age 86 By JOAnnA PUDDiSter KinG
JACKSON – Known for his servant’s heart, Father Bernard Patrick “Brian” Carroll passed on Monday, Sept 5 at the age of 86, celebrating 60 years of priestly life in Mississippi. Born on April 27, 1936, in Dublin, Ireland to the late Dan and Bridget Carroll, Father Carroll enrolled at St. Patrick’s College in Carlow, Ireland and was ordained for the Diocese of Jackson (formerly Natchez-Jackson) after completing his seminary studies on June 9, 1962. While at seminary, Father Brian earned his nickname “Speedy.” His friends would encourage him to “quicken up” his story telling saying “can you speed this up and get to Father Bernard Patrick "Brian" Carroll is picthe end.” tured in 1968. He died on Monday, Sept. “But it never happened,” said 5 at the age of 86, celebrating 60 years Father Gerry Hurley after describof priestly life in Mississippi. (Photo from ing the moniker during his homily archives) at St. Paul parish for Father Brian’s funeral Mass. Also known for his dry wit and sense of humor, Father Brian had a joke for each occasion, said Father Hurley. “And you weren’t always sure when he reached the punchline.” Having a servant’s heart, Father Brian was well known for his ministry to children and the sick. Many comments on social media following the news of his passing highlighted just how special Father Brian was to those who knew him.
“Well done good and faithful servant. You gave us so much. I could name it all from baptizing my dying brother with a teacup to giving your best to our youth. We’ll miss you; God give you rest.” – Jimmy Isonhood “Father Carroll always had the wisdom from the Holy Spirit to guide his parishioners. ... He was wonderful to make home visits and give the anointing of the sick to the sick and dying. He anointed my great uncle in Jackson in the middle of the night. He always said God protects us.” – Jeannie Malatesta Roberts “He was so good to my in laws who came to live with us and attended church at St. Paul with us in Brandon for a few months after they lost everything in Katrina. Later, when my father-in-law died in 2010, [Father Brian] drove from Brandon all the way to New Orleans to concelebrate. He was so good at comforting the grieving, “ wrote Lori Brechtel on the news of Father Brian’s passing. “Another time, my husband dropped something off after hours at St. Paul, and Father was in the kitchen in the Learning Center by himself cooking anything he could find to feed a family in need that had pulled in from Lakeland Drive. He had a servant’s heart and was so funny and humble. ... Well done, good and faithful servant,” Brechtel continued. The list of memories and stories could fill pages on the love, humor and heart for service Father Brian had for the people of the Diocese of Jackson. Each story, such a wonderful testimony to the joy and compassion over his 60 years in the diocese. Arriving in the diocese in September 1962, Father Brian was assigned to St. John’s Parish in Biloxi and served as a teacher at Biloxi High School. In 1967, he served on the faculty of Our Lady of Victories High School in Pascagoula and as assistant pastor of St. Joseph Parish in Moss Point. From the coast, Father Brian then made his way up to Vicksburg teaching at St. Aloysius High School and serving as assistant pastor at St. Paul Parish in 1968. He then served on the Diocesan Board of Consultors as a representative of assistant pastors. In 1969, Father Brian was assigned as assistant pastor at Annunciation Parish in Columbus and served as chaplain at the Mississippi University for Women (formerly Mississippi State College for Women). Traveling south, in 1970 Father Brian was assigned as pastor of St. Alphonsus Continued on page 20 –
New documentary on Sister Thea Bowman highlights her faith, justice work By AnnA CAPiZZi GALVeZ
WASHINGTON (CNS) – A new documentary on Sister Thea Bowman shines a light on her life and work as an advocate for racial justice and intercultural understanding. The idea for the documentary came to Franciscan Sister Judith Ann Zielinski, who wrote and produced the film, after the 2020 death of George Floyd while in police custody in Minneapolis. “I thought, I have to do something, what can I do?” and “Thea Bowman popped into my head. She was a Franciscan sister, a woman who had been fighting systemic racism in her own time and in her own way.” The documentary is a comprehensive look at Sister Thea, the first African American member of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration and one of six Black Catholics known as a “Servant of God.” It also makes a case for her sainthood and for contemporary spirituality, Sister Zielinski said. “Going Home Like a Shooting Star: Thea Bowman’s Journey to Sainthood,” comes from NewGroup Media and the Diocese of Jackson, Mississippi. Along with archival media of Sister Thea, the documentary features interviews with her colleagues, friends, fellow Francis-
can Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, former students and African American scholars, priests and bishops. The one-hour film, a part of the Interfaith Broadcasting Commission’s fall documentary season, will begin airing on ABC stations nationwide Oct. 2. Redemptorist Father Maurice Nutt, associate producer and biographer of Sister Thea, called her an “apostle for racial reconciliation in our church today.” Noting that she died in 1990, Father Nutt said the
film would make her known to a new generation. He also said her life resonates with much of what younger Catholics are looking for in the church – someone who speaks truth to power. “Her call for justice, justice for the roles of women, justice for those who experience no matter what ethnicity, oppression or hatred” speaks to “us as a church being the body of Christ,” he said. – Continued on page 8 –
INSIDE THIS WEEK
Synod synthesis insert Summary of diocese synod findings
From the archives 14 Bishop Gunn travels west as retreat master
In memoriam 15 LEM James Tomek and Father Jim Schifano, SCJ