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OBITUARY
Reverend Monsignor Joseph F. Lawlor
Pastor Emeritus St. Christopher Church, Baldwin
First Diocesan Director of Confraternity of Christian
Doctrine |
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Monsignor Joseph F. Lawlor who served as a priest of the
Dioceses of Brooklyn and Rockville Centre for 69 years
died January 1, 2005 at St. Joseph’s Guest House in
Huntington. He was 93 years old.
A Brooklyn native, Joseph Francis Lawlor was born on
August 20, 1911 to the late Thomas and Anna Kenny
Lawlor. He was baptized at Queen of All Saints Church
and graduated from the parish school. He continued his
studies at Cathedral College in Brooklyn and the
Seminary of the Immaculate Conception in Huntington.
He was ordained a priest by Bishop Thomas E. Molloy at
St. James Pro-Cathedral in Brooklyn on June 15, 1935.
Father Lawlor’s first assignment at St. Thomas the
Apostle in West Hempstead lasted three years. He would
spend over two decades at his next assignment at St.
Joachim Parish in Cedarhurst where he taught religion in
the school daily. While there, he founded the Cedarhurst
Little League and Babe Ruth League in 1951 and served as
president for seven years. He was also the founder and
Chairman of the Annual Catholic Youth Day program for
high school students that was held at St. Joseph’s
Academy in Brentwood from 1947 to 1962.
When the Diocese of Rockville Centre was created in
1957, founding Bishop Walter P. Kellenberg realized
parish schools could not accommodate all the Catholic
children on Long Island and another way was needed to
teach them the tenets of their faith. Because of his
involvement with young people on the elementary and high
school level, Father Lawlor was chosen to be the
diocese’s director of Confraternity of Christian
Doctrine (CCD), starting September 8, 1957. He was named
director of the Christian Family Movement in 1960 and
the following year was appointed the director of the
Family Life Bureau.
In his eight years as the director of CCD, Father Lawlor
organized and coordinated the confraternity program to
run diocesan-wide on a weekly basis from September to
May and provided the basis for the training of the
volunteer teaching staffs. He oversaw the emergence of
lay people as coordinators of the religious education
programs on the parish level, and convened the Diocesan
Congress for Religious Education in 1961. At Bishop
Kellenberg’s request, Father Lawlor also initiated a
program for non-Catholics who were interested in
learning more about the Catholic religion. As part of
the Family Life Bureau, Father Lawlor organized the
first Golden Wedding Blessing to honor couples who had
been married for 50 years or more which was held in
1963. These Golden Wedding Ceremonies are still
celebrated in the diocese.
In 1959 Father Lawlor became the Chaplain at St.
Christopher’s Home for Infants in Sea Cliff (now known
as St. Christopher-Ottilie). In 1962 he was named Rector
at St. Camillus Residence in East Meadow, a residence
for priests on special assignment.
Father Lawlor was appointed pastor of St. Peter
Alcantara Parish in Port Washington in March of 1964. He
was instrumental in constructing additional facilities
for the parish school and rehabilitating the lower level
of the church. Later that month Monsignor Lawlor was
named to the newly formed Board of Directors at St.
Francis Hospital in Roslyn. He was elected Chairman of
the Board of the Hospital in 1970 and served until 1977,
a period of extensive fund-raising and construction at
the facility. He also served on the Board of Directors
at Mercy Hospital from 1967 to 1977 and as a Diocesan
Consultor from 1966 to 1977.
Father Lawlor was elevated to Papal Chamberlain by Pope
John XXIII in 1962 with the title of Reverend Monsignor.
In 1967, Monsignor Lawlor was assigned to St.
Christopher Church in Baldwin as Pastor. In his 19 years
there, Monsignor Lawlor oversaw extensive renovations in
the school and the rectory, organized the St. Vincent de
Paul Conference at the parish, started the Parish
Council, Parish School Board and the annual Parish
Feast. He retired in 1986. At that time, the meeting
room in the school building was renamed Monsignor Lawlor
Hall in his honor.
A wake for Monsignor Lawlor was scheduled for 2:00 p.m.
to 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. on Monday, January 3
and 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, January 4 in
Monsignor Lawlor Hall of St. Christopher’s School.
Monsignor John F. Bennett, the current Pastor of St.
Christopher’s Church and Dean of the Rockville Centre
Deanery, will be the principal celebrant at the Vigil
Mass for Monsignor Lawlor at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday,
January 4 at St. Christopher Church in Baldwin. Father
Francis X. Eisele will be the homilist.
Bishop William F. Murphy will celebrate the Funeral Mass
on Wednesday, January 5 at 11:00 a.m. at St. Christopher
Church. Monsignor John F. Bennett will deliver the
homily. Burial will be at St. John’s Cemetery in Middle
Village.
Monsignor Lawlor is survived by his nieces, Sister of
St. Joseph Loretta Scully and Ann Marie Kelly, and
nephews Thomas, Gerard and Joseph Lawlor.
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