† Friar John-Joseph Dolan (1951-2010)

Friar John-Joseph Dolan

Last Thursday – on July 15 - one of my colleagues came into my office and asked if I had heard the sad news. Friar JJ had died. I had met Friar John-Joseph Dolan a couple of times – once in Rome and another time in Toronto. The context of these meetings was always a group. I never knew the man on a one-on-one basis. But his energy and love for Christ shone through every word that he uttered. From the way Friar John-Joseph behaved with other friars and lay people in the room, I knew immediately that he had spent his life serving others and that doing so gave him joy.

Originally from Buffalo, New York, Friar John-Joseph became a Franciscan in 1969. He was a teenager at the time and was about to start an incredible adventure serving the Lord. After graduating from college, he served the poor with a focus on housing issues. In the years that ensued he also aided the sick and worked as a teacher and promoter of social justice. In 2001 he became a member of the General Definitory. His position as an Assistant General saw him visit every continent on the planet except for Antarctica.

On July 17, Bishop Gianfranco Girotti presided over a funeral Mass for Friar John-Joseph at the Basilica of the Twelve Holy Apostles in Rome. Friar Marco Tasca – the Minister General of the OFM Conv. – will repatriate Friar John-Joseph’s body to the United States in the coming days for Mass and burial.

(Source of images on webapge and homepage: http://www2.ofmconv.pcn.net/en/.)