Joe's family was associated with the newspaper business. Well-known journalist Olivia O'Leary cut her teeth under the tutelage of Joe's uncle on the Carlow Nationalist.
He attended Newbridge College as a boarder before joining the Dominicans and spending his noviciate year in St Mary's Priory, Pope's Quay, Cork.
On completion of his philosophy and theology studies at the Dominican House of Studies in Tallaght he went to UCC, where he obtained a BA degree.
Joe spent his first years of priesthood working in Trinidad, a place he grew to love. Indeed, Trinidad and its people gave him a new and fresh understanding of what it meant to be church. While in Trinidad he made lifelong friends with a number of people.
After his years in Trinidad he returned to his alma mater, Newbridge College.
His gentle manner and kindness made him a great favourite with students in the school. He was a fine teacher.
No past pupil of Joe Bergin will ever say a bad word about him. He was an exemplary senior dean. Joe was a fair man, a quality that young people see and respect very quickly.
From Newbridge he went to St Mary's Priory, Pope's Quay as prior, being elected to the job on two occasions.
He was an excellent preacher and his liturgies were always prayerfully conducted. He made it his business to pray and speak in a language that touched the souls and hearts of those who came to pray in the church.
Joe's interest in music gave him a great introduction to the church choir. In his six years as prior his support for the choir played an important and seminal role in making the choir into what it is today.
At the time another now former Dominican, Fiontán Ó Murchú was choir master and both he and Joe worked closely in the development of the choir.
On completion of his six years in Cork, Joe moved to the Dominican-run St Martin's Parish in Tallaght, where he was parish priest for approximately 10 years.
While there, his elderly mother, with whom he was very devoted, moved to a bungalow across the road from the church, which gave Joe the possibility of keeping a close eye on her.
It was in 1990, while he was in St Martin's, that he decided to leave the Dominicans and resign his priesthood.
He moved to America and married Loreen.
He subsequently became an Episcopalian priest and ministered in Newfoundland, Newark, New Jersey and finally in New York.
On reaching compulsory retirement age Joe continued to help out in a nearby parish.
In 2017 Joe returned to Ireland after the death of his beloved Loreen the previous year.
During his time in America he made regular summer visits to Ireland accompanied by Loreen.
Joe was my prior during my three years while attending UCC.
I have memories of a most gracious man, who had a great and genuine interest in people. He was a man of faith. A gentle soul without a malicious thought in his head.
Joe Bergin was a refined person with a wonderful sense of occasion. He lived in the now and accepted people for where they were and what they were.
Joe began to write a memoir of his years with the
Dominican Order. The text was at such a stage that he was in the process of looking for a publisher. His deteriorating health put paid to the work. No doubt the manuscript is among his belongings.
He had a number of close Dominican friends, who in turn cherished his friendship.
The late Dominican Constantius Bergin (1915 - 1994) was his uncle.
I had the good fortune to meet Joe and Loreen on a number of occasions while they were on holiday in Ireland.
Two years ago I visited him in the nursing home in Cavan. His memory was impaired but the moment I mentioned my name he smiled that infectious smile of his, threw his arms around me and called out in the loudest of voices my name. But on this occasion there was no sign of his pipe. Joe loved smoking his pipe.
A lovely last moment with a gentleman.
May he rest in peace.
A comment on Condolences on RIP.ie
Oh Joe, how loved you were. You were my brother-in-law, my go to scholar on Gilbert and Sullivan, my adviser and so much more. You made my sister so incredibly happy and it makes my heart joyous to know you are together again. You will continue to teach me about the love I have to give. You have touched so many, many hundreds if not thousands of people to value the gift of life. May you rest peacefully my sweet Bergin. You will always be in my heart, and even though it’s broken for now, it will heal with all your words of comfort and love inside of it. I love you. Travel well Sweet Prince. - Jennifer Lee
Pictures. On the day of Joe's priestly ordination. From left: Katherine Parry (Nee Bergin) Bridie Bergin (Mollie’s sister) Fr Constantius Pat Bergin OP, PC Bergin, (Joe’s father) Eithne Shubotham (Nee Bergin) Joe Bergin, Mollie Bergin (Joe’s Mother) Sheila Kelly (Nee Bergin) and Dr Joe Kelly.
7 comments:
Joe was the prior in Cork when I was a novice, and was my mentor as a deacon when I did my pastoral training/work in St Martin's parish. When I hear the word "gentleman" used, Joe immediately springs to my mind as a template for all the best meanings of the word. He truly was gentle and kind to everyone he met. The world will be a poorer place without him.
Francis, thank you for your fine words. The world certainly is a poorer place without him and what a loss he was to the Irish Dominican Province.
All the good men who have left the province. Someone somewhere must be trying to tell the province something. But is it listening, is it capable of listening?
I hope his manuscript is found. And I feel somewhat guilty as he had asked me tonhelp him find a publisher.
Michael, I have his manuscript!!!!!! I was just looking at it yesterday and there are notes written in his perfect, illegible handwriting! There are notes of stories he wanted to add. This loss of those stories I feel are the saddest. I want it to be published and will figure out what’s to be done with my sisters. Please don’t lose touch with me. I can give you my email if you’d like it. I feel closer to him knowing those who knew him.
Be well and hope we can stay in touch. ~Jennifer Lee
Thank you for the lovely words and memories of Joe. I am one of his 5 step children,my mother was Loreen Bergin. Joe became such an integral part of our family in the years he was married to my mother. When they moved to syracuse, he became a part of the episcopal community in syracuse. He successfully integrated four failing parishes into one great and loving church, St. Mark the evangelist, where he stayed until he retired. After his retirement joe and my mother moved into a house with me and my family. He became a grandfather to my children, and i had the privilege to experience thr joy of that relationship between them. He was not only a grandfather to my children, but also my nieces and nephews, totalling 11 young lives he helped mold. During these years in retirement he worked on his memoirs. When my mother died in 2016 he continued to live with my family, until his nephews brought him home to Ireland in 2017. The memoirs were finished at that point, and the manuscript went with him back to Ireland. I hope that his nephews still have a copy of it. Joseph Bergin touched many people's lives and we/they are all the better for it. I hope he is at peace now, and smiling down on us.
Gwen Hedlund
Thank you for the comments and lovely to hear from you. Jennifer if you send me your number I can call you. Of course your number will not appear here on the blog.
Gwen, reading your comment I'm asking myself about what really is the value in a celibate priesthood. But that's for another day, maybe. And I can tell you so many funny stories. Also, I met your mother in Ireland. She left an impression on me.
Again thank you for continuing to "own", by recalling them with affection and respect, those of the Dominican Order who chose to get married. It is tragic that the church authorities continue to impose celibacy on those who have a vocation to priesthood AND a vocation to marriage.
I am saddened to hear of Joe's death, but he lived with courage and love, that will not die. I hope his memories are published.
It is consoling to know through your blog that priests who married continued to have a profound positive influence on others, continued to bring them closer to Christ. God bless you.
On a point of information, Fr Constantius (Pat) Bergin was Joe Bergin's elder brother, not his uncle.
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