Wednesday,
the 5th of October, 14 Quex Road, London, became ‘Denis Hurley House’. The
naming ceremony was part of a Service of Blessing led by the Provincial of the
Anglo-Irish Province, Fr Willie FITZPATRICK and Cardinal Cormac Murphy
O’Connor, together with the former Bishop of Leeds, David Konstant, and the
Administrator of Durban Cathedral in South Africa, Fr. Stephen Tully.
The
terrace house is home to the Oblates’ Partners in Mission programme, through
which people of all ages are invited to share in the Oblate mission by
witnessing to the liberating presence of Jesus Christ and proclaiming his
Kingdom to the most abandoned. A key focus of the project is to provide people
with a variety of opportunities both at home and abroad to experience mission among
the poor and marginalised.
Willie FITZPATRICK
And soon,
the Denis Hurley Association, currently being set up in Britain as a charitable
trust to raise funds for alleviating poverty and destitution in Durban, will be
based here too. In his word of welcome, Fr. Lorcan O’REILLY, Director of the
Partners in Mission project, expressed gratitude for the presence of the
patrons of the Denis Hurley Association.
Cardinal Cormac Murphy O’ConnorIt is
fitting that 14 Quex Road will be known as ‘Denis Hurley House’ to honour the
late great Archbishop of Durban, who was an Oblate of Mary Immaculate.
Archbishop Hurley was a Father of the Second Vatican Council, a distinguished
liturgist, a courageous and unflappable foe of the apartheid system, a dedicated
prophet of justice and reconciliation in his native South Africa and a revered
pastor in the Province of Natal.
In his
homily, Fr Fitzpatrick said that St Eugene de Mazenod had challenged his
followers to “leave nothing undared for the Kingdom of God” in the service of
the poor and abandoned. “Archbishop Denis Hurley was one such man”. Bishop David Konstant reflected that Denis
Hurley grew to greatness by his refusal to accept injustice, his ability to
take risks in the course of doing what was right and his cheerful respect for
the underdog.
Bishop
David said: “He had huge courage. I met him when he had been taken to court,
accused of undermining the police. Bishops from around the world came to his defence
and the case was dropped, but instead of going quietly, he stood and spoke at
length, to great effect,condemning the corrupt, cruel apartheid system.”
Robina
Rafferty, chair of the Denis Hurley Association, described the Denis Hurley
Centre in Durban, which provides food, medical care, an employment service and
other support to hundreds of poor people and refugees in Durban. Many collect
food from the centre but stay outside, because they are undocumented migrants.
Robina explained that the Denis Hurley Association aims to raise funds to support
the work and to provide new premises while also working to keep the vision of
Denis Hurley alive today. She also spoke of her delight that the association
now has a place to call ‘home’ in London.
In
reflecting on why the new name resonates with the members of the Partners in
Mission team, Ronan Lavery said, “While I feel very proud that we have adopted
Denis Hurley as the patron of the Partners in Mission house, I also feel
slightly nervous! For it falls on us, in collaboration with the vowed Oblates of
our Province, to continue the mission handed down to us by St Eugene and
through Denis Hurley. We, the Oblate Partners in Mission team, have some big
shoes to fill. We are called, everyday, to strip away the layers of prejudice
which many people in our society today are forced to wear. We are challenged to
look at all those whom we meet through the eyes of Christ, and to call others
to do the same. This is a difficult task, but one which is made so much easier
when we have the inspiration of great men such as Eugene, Denis, and many other
great Oblates, to guide us in our work.”
Denis
Hurley’s audacious ministry was a faithful witness to that challenge in the second
half of the 20th century. All those who call ‘Denis Hurley House’
their home in London are pledged to embrace that same challenge in the 21st
century. (Lorcan O’Reilly)
