May 3, 2000, NEW YORK CITY
We learned today that His Eminence John
Cardinal O’Connor has succumbed to the illness which he so courageously and publicly
fought in recent months. We pray in
thanksgiving for his life of dedicated service to the church and now for his peaceful
repose beyond the reach of pain, worry and care.
Cardinal O’Connor and I shared a
background of boyhoods in Philadelphia. He
served as Bishop of Scranton at the time I was representing a Pennsylvania district in
Congress. Our vocational paths crossed again
in my recent move to New York in the closing days of his tenure as Archbishop. His long service to the church and to the nation
during his nearly thirty year Navy chaplaincy, are a model of faithfulness to be emulated.
Cardinal O'
Connor was, before all things, a priest. In
his preaching from his beloved St. Patrick’s Cathedral, in teaching or in offering a
kindly pastoral word his commitment was to minister to his people. In contemporary discussions of ethical issues he
was firm but not unkind or unfair. He will
be remembered for his ready willingness to engage in discussion of the many issues that
confront the city and its people.
In the field of
ecumenism and interfaith relations His Eminence frequently sought to bring together people
of different faith traditions both to enhance their mutual understanding and to find ways
in which to collaborate in addressing some unmet need.
His robust personality suited him well to this task and this was seen
especially in his joyful hosting of Pope John Paul II’s visit to New York. Inviting the leaders of myriad faith traditions to
process into Central Park, Cardinal O’Connor hosted the leaders personally in his
residence for an early morning breakfast. In
all that he did he sought to embody the unity for which our Lord prayed.
On behalf of the
35 member churches of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., I extend
our heartfelt condolences to the Diocese of New
York and to the National Conference of Catholic
Bishops. In this season of Easter we
especially recall, “ because He lives we too shall live.” In Christ’s sure promise we trust and commend
to God’s keeping this His good and faithful servant.
-end-
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