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Homily by Bishop Monahan
The late Mary Walsh (no relation to Bishop Willie) was the housekeeper and cook for Bishop Harty in Westbourne.  She stayed on with Bishop Willie until her death.  Her efficiency and personality are still talked of in Westbourne.  She used tell the story of how a few days after his consecration, Bishop Willie having got the lie of the land as it were in Westbourne, made one and only one change to the domestic situation there.

You see, up to then, Westbourne was a cup and saucer house with not a mug in sight.  Willie suggested to Mary that mugs were required.  She didn’t object, but what horrified her to some extent was that Bishop Willie went down to Dunnes Stores and personally picked out and purchased a set of mugs for Westbourne.  “Oh” Mary exclaimed “Imagine a bishop in Dunnes!”

Times have changed, but back in October 1994 things were different.  I don’t want to over-squeeze the metaphor of the mugs as a sign of change to come, but mugs had come to Westbourne and Bishop Willie had marked his arrival and that was thirty two years ago.

The Passing of Time?
It seems only like yesterday that we gathered here to say our final farewell to Willie Walsh much loved shepherd, family man and friend to so many.  And yet here we are today one year on celebrating his first anniversary.  That feeling of “only like yesterday” is a sign of how missed Bishop Willie is by all of us.  We miss the man we knew – his presence, his humour, his passion for hurling, and the compassion that he seemed to bring to every situation.  We miss the chance meetings with him on the street, walking in Flannan’s grounds and I miss the visits I made to his home and he to mine.

Loss takes on many forms and each of us feels it in our own individual ways.  Apart from his presence, I think we all miss his distinctive voice and his habitual phrase “Is that so?” with which he punctuated his unique gift of listening.  He was a great listener, and he was so good at it that one felt you could almost hear him listening.

Where Memory and Faith meet
An anniversary Mass such as this is that moment when memory and faith meet.  Our memories are of a special man and today all those memories of his giftedness marry with the sacredness of his faith.  His strong Faith filled by his love for all opens into the Hope we all share and profess: a hope that tells us death is not the end but a passing into the fullness of life promised by Jesus Christ.

A Life of Service
The gospel line “Well done good and faithful servant” could have been written with Bishop Willie in mind.  He never saw himself in any other light except that as servant of the people of God.  Some saw it as a weakness in him – that constantly being at the service of others.  Many saw it as his great strength and our memory of it is as challenging for us today as it was during his life among us.  Willie was a leader who outshone others and he continues to be a shining example to us today.  His generosity to all feels even more challenging now that he’s gone to his eternal reward.

Cinéaltas Chríost
On his first anniversary, we look back with gratitude, with fondness for his lifestyle which had its share of human foibles and weaknesses.  Above all, he saw himself and others as human beings who at times struggled and at times triumphed as they journeyed through life.  Faith in God for him was faith in humanity and he embraced the mystery of humanity by passing no judgement on others.  He was more aware than most of the fact that humanity lived out its passage through life graced by the fact that Christ himself was human and touched saint and sinner alike with love and understanding.  In that sense, we can say Bishop Willie was Christ-like.

Christ-like to the disadvantaged, those with whom he worked closely, priests he supported and all the laity he respected and encouraged.  Christ-like to those who felt heard when few others listened – his legacy lives on.  It lives on in a Church that continues to learn how to be humble, compassionate, and open to the signs of the times.

A legacy that gently challenges
As we pray for Bishop Willie today, we also allow his life to question us and challenge us in the manner in which we live our Christian lives.  How do we serve? How do we listen? How do we lead in our families, our parish communities? Bishop Willie’s life reminds us that the Gospel of Christ is lived most convincingly through kindness, courage and quiet faithfulness.

Prayerful Remembrance
Once again as we did a year ago, we commend Bishop Willie Walsh to the God he served with such integrity.  May the Lord now grant him rest from his labours, peace in the company of the saints, and joy in the presence of the Good Shepherd whom he followed so faithfully in this life.

We remember him with love for all that he did for us as individuals and all he did for the diocese of Killaloe and our country.  I think of a few lines from the poet F R Higgins, who wrote a lament for fellow poet Padraig Ó Conaire.  They could be written for Bishop Willie:

“Alone I’ll mourn my old friend, while the cold dawn
Thins out the holy candlelight.  Respects are paid to one loved by the people,
And so he was to me,
Close friend, near brother,
So lovable, so courteous,
And noble.”

Bishop Willie’s nobility was found in the ordinary events and practices of life.  A man who would choose a mug before a cup and saucer!

Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord,
And let perpetual light shine upon him.
May he rest in peace. Amen!

ENDS