Société des Missions Africaines – Province d’Irlande
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né le 30 avril 1898 à Tuam dans l’archidiocèse de Tuam, Irlande membre de la SMA le 16 juillet 1921 prêtre le 11 juin 1925 décédé le 23 janvier 1956 |
1925-1926 Kinneury décédé à Browntown, Irlande, le 23 janvier 1956, |
(biographie en anglais à la suite)
Le père Thomas BARTLEY (1898 - 1956)
En Irlande, le 23 janvier 1956, à Hollymount, retour à Dieu du père Thomas Bartley, à l'âge de 57 ans.
Thomas Bartley naquit dans le diocèse de Tuam, en Irlande, le 30 avril 1898. Il fit ses études dans les maisons de la Société, en Irlande: Ballinafad, Wilton, Kilcogan, Blackrock. Il fit le serment en 1921 et fut ordonné prêtre en 1925.
Après un an passé dans la maison de formation des frères à Kinneury, il partait pour la Nigeria. Il travailla dans le vicariat de la Nigeria Occidentale. En 1937, il devenait conseiller provincial et supérieur de Wilton à Cork. Sans attendre 1946, date des assemblées, il repartait dès 1943 pour la Nigeria. Il retrouva sa chère mission qui est devenue le vicariat d'Assaba-Bénin, avant de devenir, en 1950, le diocèse de Benin-City. Le père Bartley va y travailler jusqu'en 1955. Mgr Kelly en fit son vicaire général. Malgré son caractère réservé et plutôt timide, il sut faire un très beau travil et aida à établir le diocèse de Benin-City.
Revenu de mission en juin 1955, il parcourait l'Irlande, cherchant des religieuses pour les nouvelles écoles de filles au Nigeria. Bien que fatigué, il faisait aussi un peu de ministère. Il mourut subitement d'une crise cardiaque à Brownstown, Hollymount.
Father Thomas P. BARTLEY (1898 - 1956)
Thomas Bartley was born in Tuam archdiocese, on 30 April 1898. He died, unexpectedly, in the family home at Brownstown, Hollymount, Co Mayo, on 23 January 1956.
Thomas (Tom) received his secondary education at the Sacred Heart college, Ballinafad, Co Mayo (19l5 19l6) and St. Joseph's college, Wilton, Cork (19l6 1919). He studied philosophy and made his novitiate at Kilcolgan, Co Galway where, on 16 July 192l, he was received as a member of the Society. He completed his seminary training in the Society's theological seminary, at Blackrock Road, Cork, and was ordained a priest, along with five colleagues, in the public chapel adjoining the seminary, on 11 June 1925. The ordaining prelate was Bishop Thomas Broderick, vicar apostolic of Western Nigeria.
After ordination Tom spent a year on the staff of the brothers' novitiate, Kinneury, Co Mayo, before being assigned to the vicariate of Western Nigeria. Tom was among the pioneer Irish missionaries who laid the foundations of the Church in the western region. When he first went to Nigeria in 1926 there was no mission in Benin City. It was to be established two years later, and at the time of his death was the headquarters of a fully established ecclesiastical see, the seat of a seminary for local priests, a catholic college, a convent and several catholic schools, as well as the centre of a great network of mission stations and growing Christians communities.
Tom was to play an important part in these developments. During his first tour of duty Bishop Broderick, the vicar apostolic, appointed him superior of the Onitsha-Olona district. This district had been formed in 1906 and had a dozen outstations. In all there were just over a thousand Catholics in the district and almost five hundred catechumens. Returning from his first leave in August 1932 he was re-appointed superior of the Ontisha-Olona district with Patrick Fleming as his assistant. Early in 1934, however, Bishop Leo Taylor, who had just succeeded Bishop Broderick (who died in October 1933), transferred Tom to Ashaka with the instruction to build a mission residence at nearby Ozoro. A year later, the task complete, Tom was appointed supervisor of schools, a post of great responsibility, which made him accountable for the conduct of the educational apostolate in the entire vicariate. He carried out his duties, which required much travelling, from Benin city mission.
Tom was a great believer in the outstation and the mission catechist. Indeed at one point he was responsible for over 60 outstations which he operated through a large and well trained network of trusted catechists. However Tom's most enduring contribution was to be made in the area of mission education. He was among those members of the Irish Province to receive university training, in anticipation of the growing need to provide secondary education in Nigeria. Studying at U.C.C., he received his B.A. degree in 194l (his subjects were history and French) and his higher diploma a year later. During this same period (1937 43) he was also superior at Wilton and a councillor to the Provincial Superior, Stephen Harrington. Tom returned to Africa in October 1943, to resume his post as supervisor of education. In his last years, although vicar general of the diocese of Benin City (erected in April 1950) and still deeply involved in the work of developing education, he was also to supervise the building of the cathedral church of Holy Cross. The cathedral was dedicated by Bishop Patrick J. Kelly in May 1955 just before Tom's final trip to Ireland. Tom spent most of what proved to be his last home leave seeking religious to staff a new girls' school in Nigeria. He had already booked to sail again for Africa (in May 1956) when he died. A letter to Bishop Kelly from the Irish Provincial described Tom's death: 'He left Ballinafad for his home on Sunday morning last, planning to return on Tuesday and then travel to Cork. He celebrated Mass in Robeen church on Monday morning (he walked to the church) and in the afternoon he walked to his sister's house. He returned in the evening, sat down to light his pipe and died... The body was brought to Robeen church the following morning and a solemn Requiem Mass was offered before the funeral started for Cork. I'm sure his greatest disappointment was that he failed to get the Sisters for Benin: he contacted, in all, forty-eight communities'.
Tom is buried in Wilton cemetery.
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