James S. Reilly, O.S.A.

1903 – 1981 (June 4)

James Samuel Reilly was born December 8, 1903 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Edward F. Reilly and Mary Jane Mason. He was baptized December 27, 1903 at Annunciation BVM Church, Philadelphia, and was confirmed April 19, 1911 at St. Monica Church, Philadelphia. Upon graduation in 1921 from Roman Catholic High School, Philadelphia, James began undergraduate collegiate studies at Temple University, Philadelphia, in preparation for his work in the field of accounting and real estate. He entered the Augustinian formation program in 1927 at Augustinian Academy, Staten Island, New York, and was received into the novitiate on September 8, 1928. He professed simple vows on September 10, 1929 and solemn vows on September 10, 1932. He completed his college studies, earning a B. A. in Philosophy from Villanova College, Villanova, Pennsylvania, in 1932, and then pursued theological studies from 1932 to 1936 at Augustinian College, Washington, D.C. He was ordained to the priesthood on June 11, 1935.

After serving briefly during 1936 as Assistant Pastor at Immaculate Conception Parish, Hoosick Falls, New York, Father Reilly was named Master of Professed at St. Mary's Hall, Villanova. In 1938 he became Procurator at Villanova College. In 1941, Father Reilly began a long career in parish ministry. He served as Assistant Pastor at St. Denis Parish, Havertown, Pa, from 1941 to 1959; at St. John the Baptist Parish, Schaghticoke, N. Y., from 1959 to 1961, and St. Joseph Parish, Greenwich, N. Y. from 1961 to 1962.

In 1962 he was affiliated to the Province of Our Mother of Good Counsel, and was assigned as Assistant Pastor at St. Augustine Church, Detroit, Michigan. He served as prior at Augustinian Academy, St. Louis, Missouri in 1964 and 1965, and as prior at Tolentine College, Olympia Fields, Illinois, for a short time in 1965. In that year he was elected Econome General of the Order, and served in that office until 1967, when he tendered his resignation. Upon his return from Rome, Father Reilly served briefly as Pastor of St. Gregory Parish, Galt/Cambridge, Ontario, Canada. In 1968 he was named prior of the Augustinian Provincialate, Evanston, Illinois. Later in 1968 he was transferred to St. Clare of Montefalco Catholic Parish, Grosse Pointe Park, MI., where he was prior until 1971. He remained there until 1972, when he retired to St. Thomas of Villanova Monastery, Villanova. He died there June 4, 1981.

Father Reilly was a friendly and pastoral man. He is buried in the Augustinian plot at Calvary Cemetery, West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania. 

John P. Reidy, O.S.A.

1910 – 1968 (October 9)

John Patrick Reidy was born on March 17, 1910 in Staten Island, New York to Michael J. Reidy and Margaret F. Brophy. He was baptized on March 27, 1910 at St. Columba Catholic Church, New York, New York, and received the Sacrament of Confirmation on May 16, 1922 at St. John Baptist de la Salle Catholic Church, Stapleton, S.I. After completing his high school studies, John was received into the novitiate on September 8, 1927. He professed simple vows on September 9, 1928, and solemn vows on September 8, 1931.  He earned a B.A. in Philosophy from Villanova College, Villanova, Pennsylvania, in 1932. He then pursued theological studies at Augustinian College, Washington, D.C., where he was ordained to the priesthood on June 11, 1935, at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. He did additional studies at the Catholic University of America, Washington.

Father Reidy was assigned to serve as Assistant Pastor at St. Clare of Montefalco Parish, Chicago, in 1936. From 1942 to 1962 he was stationed at St. Rita Parish, Chicago. He was a member of the Province Council from 1947 to 1952. In 1962, Father Reidy was appointed Assistant Pastor of St. Mary Parish, Rockford, Illinois, where he also served as prior of the Augustinian Community. He returned to St. Rita Parish, Chicago, in 1968 as Assistant Pastor and prior.  Just a few months after his return, he died of a heart attack on October 9, 1968.  

Father Reidy is buried in the Augustinian plot at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, Alsip, Illinois.

Leo J. Reichart, O.S.A.

1884 – 1979 (January 26)

Leo James Reichart, son of August Reichart and Catherine Wummer, was born in Bally, Pennsylvania on February 22, 1884. His primary education was obtained at Blessed Sacrament Parochial School in his native town. After having worked for a while as a tailor, he enrolled at the Augustinian Preparatory Scholasticate, Saint Rita Hall, Villanova, in 1903. Received as a novice on July 4, 1907, he professed simple vows on July 6, 1908, and solemn vows on October 18, 1911. He began his college education at Villanova in 1907, but was sent to Rome in 1908, to pursue philosophical and theological training at Saint Monica's International College. He was ordained to the priesthood at the Church of the Most Holy Trinity, Rome, on July 25, 1913, and offered his first Mass at the Tomb of Saint Monica in Saint Augustine Church there the following day.

Upon his return to the United States, Father Reichart taught Latin at Villanova for a year, and then was named assistant pastor at Our Mother of Consolation Parish, Chestnut Hill, on June 20, 1914. Very shortly therafter, he was transferred on October 30, 1914 to Saint Rita Parish, South Philadelphia where he served the people and the Order uninterruptedly for the next 54 years - as curate, prior of the community, pastor, and definitor of the province.

The record of Father Reichart's apostolate at Saint Rita's is not so much to be found in the church he renovated, both upstairs and down, nor in the school he built, in the many social services he brought to the parish, nor in the societies he fostered, the devotions he sponsored, in particular, the novena prior to the feast of Saint Rita, or the awards he received - all this he himself recorded in his personal data sheet laconically: "Bought a piece of land. Built a new school." Rather his priestly service is inscribed in the hearts of the thousands of people he touched and the Augustinians who labored with him.

Father Reichart was primarily a man of prayer. The people of the parish knew well the fervor with which he celebrated Mass; his confreres knew the hours he spent in prayer every day, in the community chapel, on his knees before the Blessed Sacrament. While he was a man of sacrifice, penance, self-denial, most memorable were his smiling face and friendly manner. He loved people. No one was ever turned away. He was never too busy, never too tired. His devotion to the sick is legendary. Unforgettable was the familiar sight of Father Reichart, head bowed, stole around his shoulders, walking the streets of the parish, taking the Blessed Sacrament to the sick in their homes. It was the only time this most gregarious of men did not greet anyone he passed. Every evening before going to bed he went about the community saying to his brothers: "Buon riposo, buon riposo."

Even in retirement at the age of 84, Father Reichart continued for yet another nine years in his ministry, at full pace, until ill health required his taking residence at the Villa of Divine Providence, Lansdale, in 1977. There Father Reichart died on January 26, 1979, at the age of 95. His Funeral Mass was celebrated at Saint Rita Church, after which he was buried in the Augustinian plot at Calvary Cemetery, West Conshohocken, PA.

John J. Regnery, O.S.A.

1880 – 1954 (June 28)

John Joseph Regnery was born in Locust Gap, Pennsylvania on February 19 1880, to Michael Regnery and Christina Spaeder. He entered Villanova College and later studied at Saint Vincent's College in Westmoreland County, PA. In 1899, he entered the novitiate at Villanova, PA, and was ordained to the priesthood in Saint Charles' Seminary in Overbrook by Archbishop Patrick Ryan on May 28, 1904.

Father Regnery served in our parishes in Lawrence, MA; Havana, Cuba; Chicago, IL, and in New York State at Carthage, Hoosick Falls, Schaghticoke, Cambridge and Troy. In 1916, he became a member of the Province Mission Band, and its rector from 1918 to 1922. In that latter year he was appointed prior and pastor at Saint Augustine Parish in Philadelphia, PA. In 1926 he was assigned the same duties at Saint Clare Parish in Grosse Point, MI, in 1930 at Our Mother of Good Counsel Parish in Bryn Mawr, PA, and in 1938 at Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish, Staten Island, NY. In 1944, Father Regnery was appointed prior and pastor of Saint Nicholas of Tolentine Parish, Jamaica, NY, and in 1950 he became prior at Saint Denis in Ardmore, PA. At the death of Father Murtaugh, pastor of Saint Denis in 1951, Father Regnery was assigned the duty of pastor as well.

Father Regnery was 74 when he died of cancer in Philadelphia's Fitzgerald-Mercy Hospital on Monday evening, June 28, 1954. The Funeral Mass was offered on Friday, July 2nd, at Saint Denis by the Prior General, Father Engelbert Eberhard, O.S.A. Father Stephen Lanen, rector of the Mission Band, preached the homily. Father Regnery was buried in the Community Cemetery at Villanova.

William J. Regan, O.S.A.

1879 – 1912 (December 21)

William James Regan, son of Francis Regan and Maria Davis, was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, on October 6, 1879. He was baptized in the Cathedral of St. Mary, Halifax, on October 21, 1879. William began his education at the school of St. Mary, Halifax, and after five and a half years, transferred to LaSalle Academy, then to St. Joseph Normal School, followed by his acceptance into the novitiate of the Brothers of the Christian Schools. He remained with that religious community for ten years, eight of which he taught at the Brothers' school, Manhattan College, on Second Street, New York. William had received a varied education including Physics, Physiology, School Management, History, and Advanced Drawing.

On June 25, 1906, William applied for entrance into the Order. Apparently, his letter of request was lost, for on August 16, 1906, he made another request from his mother's home on West Third Street, South Boston, Massachusetts. Shortly after that he was accepted as a candidate during the provincialate of Father Martin J. Geraghty, O.S.A. He entered the novitiate on December 8, 1907, made his first profession of vows on December 9, 1908, and solemn vows on December 9, 1911. On June 1, 1912, he was ordained to the diaconate by Archbishop Prendergast at the Philadelphia Cathedral, and received his first assignment on August 28th to Saint Rita High School, Chicago, Illinois, together with Joseph Kepperling. 

William Regan he died at the age of 33, on the evening of Saturday, December 21, 1912, of acute Bright’s disease at Saint Bernard Hospital, Chicago. A Requiem Mass was offered at Saint Rita Church, Chicago, on Thursday, December 26, 1912, after which prior James Greeen, O.S.A. accompanied the body to Villanova, where Prior Provincial Martin Geraghty, O.S.A. was celebrant of the funeral rites. William Regan was buried in the Community Cemetery atVillanova.
 

Robert E. Regan, O.S.A.

1908 – 1982 (August 7)

Robert Edward Regan, son of William J. Regan and Sara F. Sullivan, was born at Tompkinsville, Staten Island, on May 27, 1908, and was baptized by Father John Barthouski, O.S.A., at Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish. His grammar school education was obtained at Saint Peter parochial school and at Saint John. He was a member of the first class to enter the revived Augustinian Academy, Austin Place, in 1921, and a member of the last class to graduate from there in 1925. Received into the Augustinian Order on August 15, 1925, he was a pioneer of the first class at Good Counsel Novitiate, New Hamburg, New York. He professed first vows on August 16, 1926 and solemn vows on August 16, 1929. At Villanova, he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1930 and also completed a year and a half of theology. His theological training was completed at Augustinian College, Washington, DC, where he was ordained at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception on June 14, 1932. The next year, 1933, the degree of Master of Arts in Religious Education was conferred on him by Catholic University.

While teaching homilectics at Augustinian College, from 1933 to 1950, he attended classes at Catholic University where he was awarded a lectorate in theology in 1938 and a doctorate summa cum laude in 1941. His dissertation, Professional Secrecy in the Light of Moral Principles, was subsequently published. Father Regan taught homilectics at Catholic University during the 1939-1940 school year, and religion in the summer school and Saturday sessions at Villanova from 1938 to 1950. Transferred to Villanova in 1950, he taught theology and was chairman of the Department for five years. During all these years he was constantly in demand as a preacher at first Masses, funerals of the friars, graduations, retreats, special lectures and conferences.

Father Regan was assigned to his home parish, Our Lady of Good Counsel, Staten Island, as pastor and prior in 1962. To him fell the privilege of originating and completing a new church and friary. In 1968 he was named assistant pastor at Saint Nicholas of Tolentine, Bronx, New York, and, in 1971 was assigned in the same role to Saint Nicholas of Tolentine, Jamaica. He retired in 1974 and remained there in residence. He had the joy of celebrating the golden anniversary of his ordination with two of his classmates, Fathers Richard Plunkett and John Dunne, just two months before his death on August 7, 1982.

An indefatigable laborer in many phases of the vineyard of the Lord, Father Regan was an accomplished speaker and a perceptive reader of astonishing speed. Ever ready to entertain with his rich baritone voice, his infectious bonhomie and proficiency at the keyboard made him welcome at any gathering. Erudite, dignified, proper, warmhearted, he was preeminently an Augustinian priest.

Following his Funeral Mass at Our Lady of Good Counsel, Staten Island, Father Regan is buried in the Augustinian plot at Calvary Cemetery, West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania.

John Regan, O.S.A.

1862 – 1884 (November 24)

John Joseph Regan, son of Thomas Regan and Mary O’Brien, was born in Clonmell, Ireland on December 23, 1862. He entered the novitiate at Villanova, PA, in February, 1883, and professed simple vows on February 3, 1884.

He was forced to discontinue his studies because of poor health. He died of tuberculosis at the home of his parents in Lawrence, MA on November 24, 1884 at the age of 22. He is buried in Saint Mary's cemetery in Lawrence.
 

Henry T. Regan, O.S.A.

1859 – 1937 (July 16)

Henry Timothy Regan, son of John O’Regan and Margaret Donovan, and younger brother of Daniel Regan, O.S.A. of our Province, was born at Andover, Massachusetts, on December 18, 1859. He was baptized at Immaculate Conception Church, Lawrence, the following day. He entered the novitiate at Villanova, Pennsylvania on October 3, 1880, and made simple profession on October 4, 1881. He was solemnly professed on October 5, 1884, and was ordained to the priesthood on May 23, 1885 by Archbishop Patrick Ryan in the Philadelphia Cathedral.

Father Regan served at Immaculate Conception Parish, Hoosick Falls and at Saint John’s, Schaghticoke, both in New York, and later at Saint Mary's in Lawrence, Mass. He was also Rector at Saint James Parish, Carthage, New York; Saint Laurence's in Lawrence, Mass.; and at Saint Mary’s, Waterford, and Saint Patrick, Cambridge, N.Y.

Father Regan died at Villanova on July 16, 1936 at the age of 78. He is buried in the Community Cemetery at Villanova.
 

Daniel D. Regan, O.S.A.

1850 – 1917 (April 5)

Daniel Denis Regan was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts, on January 1, 1850, to John Regan and Margaret Donovan. His younger brother, Henry also became an Augustinian. While Daniel was a child his family moved to Andover, Ma., where he attended the Punchard Free School. In 1868, Daniel entered Villanova College, where, in 1872, he earned his B.A. degree. On January 20, 1870, he entered the novitiate at Villanova, professed first vows on January 21, 1871, and solemn vows, on January 25, 1874. On both Acts of Profession Daniel signed O'Regan as his surname. After studying theology at Villanova College he was ordained to the priesthood on March 15, 1874 by James F. Wood, Bishop of Philadelphia, at St. Charles Seminary.

Father Regan was assigned as an assistant to the parish of St. Mary in Lawrence, Ma., and in July 1875, he was appointed director of the Immaculate Conception Church, the parish’s mission church. On April 11, 1878, he was assigned as rector and treasurer of St. Mary's parish in Waterford, New York, where, two years later, he directed the building of a convent. In September 1881, he was appointed the sixth pastor of St. Mary's Church in Lawrence, Ma. From 1886 to 1894, Father Regan was pastor of St. Paul's parish, Mechanicville, New York, where he served two terms as prior of the community. During his pastorate he also directed the construction of St. Peter the Apostle Church in Stillwater, New York.

In 1890, when he was re-elected prior of the St. Paul parish community, Father Regan was appointed definitor of the province. The following year he was chosen as vicar provincial, in the absence of Father James D. Waldron who was attending meetings in Rome. In 1894, Father Regan was appointed pastor of Immaculate Conception Parish, Hoosick Falls, New York, and four years later, built the academy that accommodated 500 students. In July 1898, the Albany Synod appointed Father Regan (together with another Augustinian, John T. Emmett) as school commissioner. On July 16, 1902, he was appointed prior of St. Augustine Parish community in Philadelphia, Pa. Among Father Regan’s gifts was his to place debt-ridden St. Mary's parish in Lawrence on a solid financial basis. The Troy Times of New York, commended him on the occasion of his silver jubilee, "as an eloquent, forceful and logical preacher, of strong character, and a citizen respected by all, and deeply interested in matters pertaining to the public welfare." 

Father Regan died on Holy Thursday, April 5, 1917, at the age of 67, at St. Augustine Parish. Interment took place on Easter Monday, April 9, in the vault at St. Augustine's in Philadelphia, Pa. 

Vincent T. Reed, O.S.A.

1883 – 1951 (June 30)

Thomas Reed, the son of John Reed and Mary McCrossin, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on January 3, 1883. After laboring for a number of years as a coppersmith in the Philadelphia Navy Yard, he entered the Villanova Monastery from Annunciation Parish in South Philadelphia, as a lay brother in 1921 at the age of 38, taking the religious name Vincent. He remained in the oblature until 1933 when he entered the novitiate at New Hamburg, New York, on December 2, 1933. He professed simple vows on December 3, 1934 and returned to Villanova. He was solemnly professed on February 2, 1938.

With the exception of his novitiate year and a brief assignment to Saint Mary’s Parish in Lawrence, Massachusetts, Brother Vincent spent his entire 30 years of religious life in the Villanova Monastery. There he served well as sacristan and porter and was affectionately called “Curley” by members of the community. 

Brother Vincent lived a very simple personal spirituality with great devotion to the Passion of Christ and devotion to the saints, whose relics were the simple adornments of his room. For most of his years at Villanova he was also infirmarian and gave devoted care to the sick friars. During the summer school sessions, when the campus overflowed with hundreds of religious sisters, Brother Vincent would round the campus after dark bringing them evening snacks. At his death during the summer session of 1951, his Requiem Mass was attended, in addition to friars and family, by a large group of religious sisters.

Brother Vincent was 68 when he died in Bryn Mawr Hospital on Saturday, June 30, 1951, the same day on which father Edward Merwarth died in Philadelphia's Misericordia Hospital. A Solemn High Requiem Mass was offered on July 4, 1951 in Saint Thomas of Villanova Church at which Father James Donnellon, O.S.A., prior of the monastery community, was celebrant, and Father William Lunney, O.S.A. was homilist. Brother Vincent is buried at Villanova in the Community Cemetery.
 

Charles H. Redding, O.S.A.

1897 – 1962 (February 22)

Charles Henry Redding, son of John Redding and Ellen Clay, was born in Old Saint Augustine's Parish, Philadelphia, on December 19, 1897. He was educated at Saint Augustine Parochial School and, from 1914 to 1918, at the Augustinian Scholasticate, Saint Rita Hall, Villanova. He was received as a novice on June 15, 1918, and professed simple vows on June 25, 1919, He made his solemn profession on June 25, 1922. After completing philosophical and theological studies at Villanova he was ordained to the priesthood in Saint Thomas of Villanova Church on August 2, 1925 by Bishop Thomas Walsh of Trenton, New Jersey. 

Father Redding was assigned as a curate in our parishes of Saint Mary in Lawrence, Massachusetts, in 1926, Saint Paul, Mechanicville, N.Y., in 1928, and Saint Rita, in Chicago in 1929. He was elected discrete from the Saint Matthew Parish community, Flint, Michigan in 1932, and was transferred that same year to Saint Clare of Montefalco Parish in Chicago. In 1933 he was assigned to Saint Augustine High School, San Diego, California.

After serving as assistant pastor at Saint Rita Parish in Philadelphia from 1942 to 1946, Father Redding was appointed to Saint Nicholas of Tolentine Parish in Atlantic City, where he was made subprior in 1950 and was elected definitor in 1953. Father Redding was appointed pastor at Saint Denis, Havertown, in 1954, and was selected as prior of San Agustin, Marianao, Cuba, in 1956, but had to resign because of ill health later in the same year. From 1957 to 1961 he was associate pastor at the Assumption Parish, Lawrence, Mass., after which he retired to Saint Thomas Monastery, Villanova. 

Stricken suddenly by a heart attack, Father Redding died in Hollywood Hospital, Florida,  on February 22, 1962. He is buried in the Community Cemetery, Villanova. 

Walter G. Rafter, O.S.A.

1888 – 1979 (October 8)

Walter Gabriel Rafter was born on July 20, 1888, to Walter Rafter and Barbara Gabriel. In September, 1904 he entered Villanova Preparatory from Flushing, New York. He was received into the novitiate on July 4. 1907; professed his first vows on July 6, 1908. Following profession, he was sent to Rome for studies and there professed solemn vows on October 18, 1911. He was ordained to the priesthood in Rome on July 25, 1913, and soon after returned to the United States.

Father Rafter was first assigned as a professor of classics at Villanova College in September, 1913. He was appointed prior and headmaster at Malvern Preparatory in August, 1926. His next assignment was as prior and professor of Moral Theology at Augustinian College. Father Rafter served briefly as Secretary of the Province (1936-1938).
Father Rafter spent many years in service to our parishes. His first parochial assignment was as a parish assistant at Saint Nicholas of Tolentine, Atlantic City (1935-1938). He, thereafter, was appointed pastor and prior to Saint Denis parish, Havertown (1938-1944); Our Mother of Good Counsel parish, Bryn Mawr (1944-1950); and Our Lady of Good Counsel parish, Staten Island (1950-1953).

In 1943 Father Rafter became the prior to the novitiate community in New Hamburg where he served for three years. He returned to parish ministry in 1956 as prior and pastor for Saint Joseph parish, Greenwich. He next served as an assistant at Saint Nicholas of Tolentine, Atlantic City (1958-1959).

In 1959, at age 71, Father Rafter was transferred to Saint Thomas Monastery and he returned to teaching Latin and Greek as a faculty member of the University. In July, 1965 he accepted an assignment as an assistant to Saint Thomas of Villanova parish, Rosemont. He retired first in August, 1967. However, he briefly returned as an assistant to Our Lady of Good Counsel parish, Staten Island, in 1969.

In 1970, because of his advanced years, Father Rafter retired to Saint Thomas of Villanova Monastery. Father Rafter died on October 8, 1979, at age 91, at the Villa of Divine Providence, Lansdale, PA. The funeral was held at Villanova on Wednesday evening, October 10, 1979 with burial the following morning in the cemetery adjoining Saint Mary’s Hall. His remains were later transported to the Augustinian section of Calvary Cemetery in West Conshohocken, PA.
 

John M. Quinn, O.S.A.

1922 – 2008 (October 3)

John Michael Quinn was born on November 27, 1922, in Donaghmore, County Tyrone, Ireland, one of three sons and three daughters of Andrew Quinn and Rose Hughes. He was baptized in Saint John Catholic Church, Donaghmore, on the day of his birth. His family immigrated to the United States and the city of Philadelphia, where John attended Corpus Christi Parish School, from 1928 to 1936, and Northeast Catholic High School, from 1936 to 1940. From 1940 to 1942, he was a student at Villanova College, and then was accepted as a postulant at Augustinian Academy, Staten Island, New York. He began his novitiate in New Hamburg, N. Y. on November 12, 1942, and made his profession of simple vows on November 13, 1943. He then returned to Villanova College where he received his BA in Philosophy in 1945. He pursued theological studies at Augustinian College, Washington, D.C., professed solemn vows on November 13, 1946, and was ordained to the priesthood at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington, DC, on February 10, 1949. While in Washington, DC, he completed an MA in Philosophy at the Catholic University of America.

Father Quinn was assigned to Saint Mary's Parish in Lawrence, MA, and taught at the newly-founded Merrimack College in North Andover until 1954. He then was assigned to Saint Joseph Friary, Drexel Hill, PA and taught at Archbishop Prendergast High School and then at Msgr. Bonner High School, until 1958, when he returned to Washington, and was assigned to Saint John of Sahagun Friary. There he taught at Archbishop Carroll High School and completed his studies for a PhD in Philosophy at the Catholic University of America. From 1960 to 1963, he was assigned to Saint Thomas Monastery and taught at Villanova University. In 1963 he was assigned to Casa San Lorenzo, Miami, FL, and taught at Biscayne College. In 1973 he returned to Villanova University until his retirement from the classroom. During his time at Villanova he was also the Associate Director of the Augustinian Historical Institute. Fr. Quinn authored many books and articles on philosophy and on Saint Augustine, and in 2002 he published A Companion to the Confessions of Saint Augustine, of which a reviewer wrote, "This brilliant and sensitive interpretation of the subtleties of Augustine's text will find an unequalled place not only in the study of the Confessions but also in the much wider range of Augustinian scholarship."

Father Quinn passed over to the Lord on Friday, October 3, 2008, at the Health Care Center of Saint Thomas Monastery, after a long illness. He was 86 years old. The Funeral Mass was celebrated at Villanova on Wednesday, October 8, 2008 and the following day burial took place in the Augustinian Section of Calvary Cemetery, West Conshohocken.
 

Francis P. Quinn, O.S.A.

1875 – 1939 (January 28)

Francis Patrick Quinn, son of Edward Quinn and Sarah Melvin, was born in Watertown, New York, on September 13, 1875. He was received as a postulant at Villanova, PA, on June 29, 1901, entered the novitiate some months later, and made his simple profession of vows on October 26, 1902. His was the first class of novices to be clothed with the white habit in the Villanova Province. Francis Quinn was solemnly professed on October 27, 1905, and was ordained to the priesthood on Ascension Thursday, Mary 24, 1906 at Saint  Charles Seminary, Philadlephia.

Father Quinn was assigned as curate at Saint Nicholas of Tolentine, the Bronx, N.Y. in 1906. In 1908 he was transferred to Saint Nicholas of Tolentine, Atlantic City, N.J., and in 1909 to Saint Laurence Parish, Lawrence, MA. In 1913 he was appointed to Saint Paul’s Parish, Mechanicville, and in 1925 was named rector of Saint John the Evangelist, Schaghticoke, where he remained until 1931 when he was appointed pastor of Saint Joseph, Greenwich, NY. During World War I, Father Quinn served as a chaplain in the American Army, one of the last chaplains to receive a commission before the signing of the armistice.

Father Quinn was rector at Saint Joseph's in Greenwich when he died at McClellan Hospital on January 28, 1939 after a three week illness. He was 64. Prior Provincial, John Sheehan, O.S.A. was celebrant of the Requiem Mass at Saint Joseph, after which Father Quinn was buried in the Community Cemetery at Villanova.
 

Edward J. Quinn

1890 – 1967 (December 13)

Edward Joseph Mary Quinn was born in Hazelton, Pennsylvania on December 31, 1890, to Cormac Quinn amd Mary Moore. He attended school in Jessup, Pa., and in September 1912, became a postulant at Villanova. He was received into the novitiate on June 25, 1915 at Corr Hall and professed simple vows on June 25, 1916. He was solemnly professed on the same day in 1919. Edward earned an A.B. degree at Villanova College and graduated June 14, 1919. He was ordained at Villanova on September 24, 1922 by Denis Cardinal Dougherty. He completed his studies in Washington, D.C., and received an M.A. from the Catholic University in 1923.

In 1923, Father Quinn was assigned Augustinian Academy, Staten Island, New York. In 1927, he was assigned as novice master at Mount St. Rita’s there. In 1932 he was appointed to Saint Augustine, Troy, as a member of the Province Mission Band, whose rector he became in 1944. He also served as a definitor of the Province. In 1951, he was assigned vice president in charge of finances at Villanova College. After serving as controller at Villanova College for two years, in 1953, he was assigned pastor of Our Mother of Consolation, Chestnut Hill, Pa., and served as prior of the community. In 1959 he was assigned to Saint Joseph Parish, Greenwhich, N.Y.

Father Quinn died on December 13, 1967 at Saint Mary’s Hospital, Troy, N.Y. of cancer. Prior Provincial, James Sherman, O.S.A. was celebrant of the funeral mass on December 16, 1967 at Saint Augustine, Troy. Provincial emeritus, James Donnellon, O.S.A. preached and Bishop Edward Maginn presided.

Father Quinn was a confidant of legendary ball player, Babe Ruth, and was instrumental in reconciling Babe and his wife after their separation.
 

Thomas P. Purcell, O.S.A.

1913 – 2004 (November 27)

Thomas Patrick Purcell, son of Thomas E. Purcell and Martha Madden, was born on May 9, 1913, in Shamokin, Pennsylvania, and baptized in the Church of St. Edward. In 1928, he graduated from St. Edward Elementary School and then worked at an A & P Supermarket until 1931, when he became a postulant at Augustinian Academy, on Staten Island, New York. In September, 1935, he entered Our Mother of Good Counsel Novitiate, New Hamburg, New York, where he made his simple profession of vows on September 10, 1936. Three years later he professed solemn vows. In 1940, he received a BA degree from Villanova College, Villanova, Pa. For the next four years he studied theology at Augustinian College, Washington, D.C., where, in 1944, he also earned an MA in history at Catholic University. He was ordained to the priesthood on May 29, 1943, by Bishop John M. McNamara, at Trinity College Chapel, Washington, D.C.

Father Purcell's first assignment was to Our Mother of Good Counsel Novitiate, where he served as sub-master from 1944 to 1947. In 1947, he was selected to be Assistant Chaplain at Villanova College, where he was also professor of theology and history. From 1950 to 1952, he was vice-rector at Augustinian Academy, while continuing to teach summer school at Villanova College.

In 1952, Father Purcell, together with Fathers George Krupa and Edward Robinson, departed for Japan to establish the first Catholic mission in Nagasaki, after a lapse of 315 years. The parish was entitled Our Mother of Consolation, in the atom-bombed area of Shiroyama, where they also opened the first parochial school in Japan. Father Purcell served that community as Prior and Pastor until 1963.

He established a new parish of Saint Monica in the port area of Nagoya City in 1963 for some 83 families who had come from Nagasaki. These were mostly working class people who formed their own housing co-operative and built their homes with Catholic Centers included. Father was active in the national committee that worked with young Christian workers who emigrated from Nagasaki to the cities of Tokyo and Nagoya. He had written articles on Augustinian related subjects, for the new Japanese Catholic Encyclopedia.

From 1980 to 1988, Father Tom served as Prior and Pastor at St. Augustine Parish in Tokyo. In 1988, he returned to Shiroyama, Nagasaki, as assistant pastor in Our Mother of Consolation parish, until his health began to deteriorate.

The fifty-two years Father Purcell served in the mission of Japan seemed to be fortified by the special grace and desire he expressed in 1952. Back then, he wrote to the Provincial, "Ever since I was a small lad I have had the desire to go to the missions, which may be a natural desire of one of Irish extraction, to want to spread the Faith. So you can see why the rumor that you are thinking of sending men to Japan made me happy. If you wish me to go, I shall be more than willing and happy to comply with your wishes to go to Japan."

On November 27, 2004, Father Tom, at the age of 91, passed away, while he was a resident of St. Francis Nursing Home in Nagasaki. The main celebrant at the Mass of the Resurrection, in the church of Our Mother of Consolation, was Joseph Mitsuaki Takami, Archbishop of Nagasaki.

Nazzareno Proposta, O.S.A.

1845 – 1910 (June 1)

Nazzareno Proposta was born in Latera, Italy, on December 26, 1845. He was vested with the Augustinian habit by his uncle, Father Agostino Semeria, at Genazzano, on March 19, 1856. After completing his early education in the minor seminary, he entered the novitiate at Genazzano under Novice Master Giuseppe Mecobelli and was professed on April 5, 1862, as a member of the Roman Province. He subsequently studied at Rome and Bracciano and made his solemn profession in 1866. He was ordained to the priesthood at Viterbo, Italy on March 19, 1869.

Father Proposta arrived in the United States on November 10, 1874 with Father Pacifico Neno, having sailed from Liverpool, England aboard the "City of New York." He was a member of the first Provincial Chapter of the American Province, which was held in December of that same year and which named him Regent and Rector of Studies. During his seven years in the American Province, he served also as examiner for Holy Orders and Master of the Professorium, as well as professor of Dogmatic Theology and Ethcis. While stationed at Villanova he attended the consecration on March 17, 1876 of Bishop Thomas Galberry. He also designed a large seal for the bishop upon his nomination as Bishop of Hartford.

Father Proposta was later stationed at Schaghticoke and Mechanicville in New York, for a time as assistant to Father Filippo Izzo. Father Nazzareno was a member of the Provincial Chapter of 1880 which transferred him from Villanova to Saint Paul's in Mechanicville with Father Izzo. On January 26, 1881 Father Nazzareno was invested with the cap and ring, indicating his reception of the Master's Degree by the Prior General. That same year, he and Fr. Izzo left Mechanicville on June 14, to return to Italy, sailing from New York. Father Proposta then taught once again at Viterbo and later at Saint Monica’s, Rome. In 1883 he returned to Viterbo for reasons of health. There he served at various times as prior, regent of studies, and professor in the diocesan seminary. 

Father Proposta retired to Genazzano because of poor health where he died at the age of 65 on June 1, 1910. He is buried at Genazzano. 
 

Gerald A. Prior, O.S.A.

1898 – 1956 (December 3)

Gerald Anthony Prior was born August 9, 1898 in Pottstown, Pennsylvania to William Prior and Elizabeth Gannon, and was baptized there August 14, 1898 at St. Aloysius Church. Pottstown. After completing secondary education at Belmont College, Belmont, North Carolina, Gerald did university studies for two years at St. Joseph College, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He entered Saint Rita’s Hall in 1920 as a postulant at Villanova, where he continued his university studies. He was received into the novitiate on February 2, 1921, and professed simple vows on February 19, 1922 and solemn vows February 19, 1925. After earning a B. A. from Villanova College, Gerald pursued theological studies at Villanova. He was ordained to the priesthood on August 2, 1925.

Following ordination, Father Prior was assigned for one year to the Augustinian Novitiate, New Hamburg, New York. He then served as a teacher at various Augustinian schools: Augustinian Academy, Staten Island, New York; Fox Valley Catholic High School, Aurora, Illinois; St. Thomas High School, Rockford, Illinois, and Malvern Prep School, Malvern, Pennsylvania.

Father Prior was appointed assistant pastor of St. Augustine Catholic Church, Detroit, Michigan, from 1936 until 1955. In 1955 he was assigned to Mendel Catholic High School, Chicago, Illinois. He died there December 3, 1956.

He is buried in the Augustinian cemetery at Villanova.
 

Luke M. Powers, O.S.A.

1887 – 1970 (June 16)

Luke Michael Powers was born October 12, 1887 in Northampton, Massachusetts to Luke Powers and Bridget Burke. He was baptized October 15, 1887 in St. Mary’s Church there. Luke was received into the novitiate July 4, 1905 at Villanova, Pennsylvania, and professed simple temporary vows on July 5, 1906. He was solemnly profesed on July 6, 1909. He earned a B. A. in Philosophy from Villanova College, in 1909, and pursued theological studies in Rome, Italy. He was ordained to the priesthood on July 25, 1912.

Father Powers was appointed assistant pastor of St. Rita Parish, Philadelphia, from 1913 to 1917. He taught at Villanova College from 1918 to 1920, while also serving as sub-prior of the Augustinian community there. From 1920 to 1926 Father was assigned to parish ministry in Detroit, Michigan. In 1926 he became assistant pastor of St. Mary Parish, Lawrence, Massachusetts, where he also served as sub-prior. Father Powers was transferred in 1929 to St. Matthew Parish, Flint, Michigan, where he was Pastor for the next 37 years. He also served several terms as prior of the Augustinian community in Flint.

Because of ill health, he retired in 1966. He died June 16, 1970 of congestive heart failure and a pulmonary embolism. When a new centralized Catholic high school, replacing seven smaller Catholic schools, was opened in Flint in the Autumn of 1970, it was named The Luke M. Powers Catholic Education Center in recognition of his long ministry to the people of Flint.

He was originally buried at St. Mary's Hall Cemetery, Villanova. When that cemetery was relocated to the Augustinian plot at Calvary Cemetery, West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania, Father Powers' body was transferred there.
 

John M. Positano, O.S.A.

1908 – 1978 (December 26)

John M. Positano was born on May 6, 1908, in Freeland, PA, on of three sons and three daughters of Angelo Positano and Isabella DeFina. After graduating from high school John decided to dedicate himself to the study of music, mastering especially the clarinet. He soon developed a first-class band which he directed under the name of Jack Foster. With this group of musicians, he gained fame in Greenwich Village, New York. He was always a devout Catholic and, in spite of his success as a musician, his mind turned toward religion and in the early 1930s he asked to be admitted into the Order. He was accepted, and after completing his novitiate he made his profession of simple vows on September 10, 1934. He studied at Villanova College, receiving his BA degree, and at Augustinian College, Washington, DC, receiving his theological training. He also studied at Saint Serafic College, Bronx, NY. He was ordained to the priesthood on May 30, 1942, by Francis Cardinal Spellman, Archbishop of New York, in Saint Patrick's Cathedral.

Father John was first assigned to Saint Nicholas of Tolentine Parish, Philadelphia, PA, where in addition to his work as a parish priest, he devoted much time with an organized group of musicians in entertaining young men and women in the Armed Services. He was next assigned to Holy Rosary Parish, Lawrence, MA, and, in 1958, as pastor to Saint Mary Parish, East Vineland, NJ, where he made renovations to the church and built the parish school. In 1967 he was appointed pastor of Our Lady of Pompeii Parish, also in East Vineland, NJ, where he completed work on the new church. In 1970 he was assigned in residence to Saint Augustine Preparatory School, Richland, NJ, from where he was able to carry on his work as Mission Moderator and director of the Augustinian Missions in the Andes in Peru. Father John continued to visit hospitals, prisons, and orphanages, and was very much in demand for celebrations of every nature, both civic and religious. He was moderator of the Vineland, NJ, regional PTA, and director of development of the Augustinian Vice Province of Our Mother of Good Counsel, a member of the Catholic War Veterans, and National Chaplain of the Italian War Veterans. In 1977 he was assigned in residence at Our Lady of Pompeii Church, East Vineland, NJ, and was able to continue his many good words of service to the Church and people.

On December 3, 1978, after a clarinet performance for the annual Saint Augustine Prep School Gala, he suffered a heart attack and was hospitalized. Despite signs of improvement toward Christmas, he died in the early morning of December 26, 1978, at the age of 70. The news of his death brought messages of condolence from many places throughout the United States and Europe. Father John's funeral was celebrated at Our Lady of Pompeii Church, after which he was buried in the Augustinian section of Saint Mary Parish Cemetery, East Vineland, NJ.