Rev. Fr. Henry of the Holy Face For the second time within the short space of six months God called to Himself a member of the small community at Belvedere Hall. This time the summons was for Fr. Henry who died on Tuesday, 1st. Aug. 1967. That morning Fr. Henry had said Mass for the students who were on holidays at Greystones. After breakfast he went out and, as usual, when the weather was fine he spent a long time walking on the avenue. Later he looked at the newspapers before going to his room. Some anxiety was caused when he did not appear in the refectory for the prayers before dinner. Immediately, a search was made and he was discovered lying dead upstairs. Conditional Absolution was given and the Last Anointing was administered. The doctor, hastily summoned, said that death was the result of a severe heart attack. Fr. Henry was in his 55th. year. John Stanislaus Brophy was born in Carlow and his teachers were the Irish Christian Brothers. His good parents must have fostered vocations for three of their daughters entered the Convent, one son because a Dominican Priest and in Autumn 1931, Stan went to the Passionist Novitiate at The Graan, Enniskillen. He took the name Henry of the Holy Face. After his Religious Profession, he followed the usual course of ecclesiastical studies at St. Mary’s Retreat, Drum-mohr and at St. Paul’s Retreat, Mount Argus. He was ordained to the priesthood in the Pro-Cathedral, Dublin on 11th. June 1938. After Ordination he returned to Scotland where he was once more stationed in Musselburgh. During this period and also when he was a member of the community of St. Gabriel’s, The Graan, he was engaged in some mission and retreat preaching but his principal work as a priest was in our parishes in Glasgow and Belfast. Those who were with him in Holy Cross and in St. Mungo’s know how he won the hearts of the people by his patience in the confessional and by his devotion to the sick and the poor. No wonder that these people were saddened when sickness put and end to this fruitful ministry. No wonder they were shocked and grieved at the news of his death. Several years ago, Fr. Henry suffered a series of severe heart attacks and since that time there have been many occasions when he was so ill that death seemed imminent. Scarcely any form of priestly activity was permitted him and for long periods he was not even allowed to celebrate Holy Mass. This kind of regime must have been a heavy cross for a comparatively young man but he showed himself a model patient and submitted scrupulously to the directions of the doctor. During these years of enforced inactivity, Fr. Henry manifested a patience and gentleness that surprised those who knew him. The wry humour remained and the quizzical comment still guarded his shyness. Though he was far from being effusive in his thanks he showed his gratitude for the least attention. He was not anxious to have many visitors but always appreciated the company of his brethren. Nor did he dispense himself from light duties about the house, preparing the chapel for Mass, tending to the sanctuary lamp and often he would be first to arrive with a cup of tea for a companion, sick with ‘flu. Charity to the poor was one form of the apostolate left to him. He met them while walking the country roads around Greystones and they came looking for him at the Retreat. They seemed convinced that he could not refuse them and they timed their visits so that he would be available to answer their appeals for help. A few days before his fatal seizure, Fr. Henry had been given a fairly re-assuring report by the specialist. Indeed, the evening before his death he had been out for quite a long walk and he appeared in very good form. He was, however, perfectly aware of the precarious condition of his heart and he often urged his brethren not to delay to anoint him if he should show any symptoms of sickness. His two younger brothers had succumbed to heart attacks; Fr. Michael Brophy O.P. died about two years ago in Trinidad and it may have been the shock of Tom’s death, five weeks before his won, which hastened Fr. Henry’s end. To say that he was not afraid of dying is only part of the truth. More than resignation, it was a positive acceptance, particularly manifest on those occasions when he received the Last Sacraments. He had the privilege of offering the Holy Sacrifice on the morning of the day he died. On Wednesday 2nd. August the funeral procession left Belvedere Hall and the remains of Fr. Henry were transferred to St. Paul’s Retreat, Mount Argus. There in the monastery Church the obsequies took place on the following morning. The celebrant of the Solemn Requiem Mass was Rev. Fr. Damien, C.P., while Frs. Pancras and Honorius were the Deacon and Subdeacon. Afterwards, the remains of Fr. Henry were interred in the cemetery at Mount Argus. MAY HE REST IN PEACE. Obituary: Father Henry Brophy, C. P. ON AUGUST 1st, the death took place of Father Henry Brophy, C.P., at Belvedere Hall, Bray. He had been in a precarious state of health for some years, suffering from a chronic heart complaint. A native of Carlow, the late Fr. Henry entered the Passionists in 1932 and was ordained in Dublin in June, 1938. For most of his priestly life he was engaged in parochial work at Holy Cross Retreat, Belfast, and at St. Mungo’s, Glasgow. Gentle in manner and of a most kindly disposition, he won the esteem of parishioners and devoted himself to their welfare. He is survived by his sisters, all of whom are in religion. May he rest in peace. (The Cross, Vol. 58; 1967-68; No. 6, page 15)