RC MILORD - ORDMIL CR
† CANADA †
It is with great joy that we welcome today’s announcement from Bishop Tom Deenihan of the Diocese of Meath (Ireland) that he intends of open the canonisation cause of the Servant of God Fr Willie Doyle SJ!
Captain Father William Joseph Gabriel Doyle, SJ, MC (03/03/1873)- better known as Willie Doyle - was an Irish Roman Catholic priest of the Society of Jesus who served as a chaplain in the Royal Dublin Fusiliers during the First World War. He was awarded the Military Cross (MC) for gallantry. Fr Doyle was killed in action (16/08/1917) while attending to the wounded and was posthumously recommended for the Victoria Cross (VC).
OPENING THE CAUSE FOR THE CANONISATION
C'est avec une grande joie que nous accueillons l'annonce faite aujourd'hui par Mgr Tom Deenihan, évêque du diocèse de Meath (Irlande), de son intention d'ouvrir la cause de canonisation du Serviteur de Dieu, le Père Willie Doyle SJ !
Le capitaine Père William Joseph Gabriel Doyle, SJ, MC - plus connu sous le nom de Willie Doyle - était un prêtre catholique romain irlandais de la Compagnie de Jésus qui a servi comme aumônier dans les Royal Dublin Fusiliers pendant la Première Guerre mondiale. Il a été décoré de la Croix militaire (CM) pour sa bravoure. Le père Doyle a été tué au combat alors qu'il s'occupait des blessés et a été recommandé à titre posthume pour la Croix de Victoria (CV).
"By offering his life to save wounded Anglican soldiers he became an ecumenical martyr of charity and is an icon of reconciliation and unity in the midst of religious and political division. He explicitly offered his life to God in reparation for the sins of priests; this offering has a greater resonance with us now than it did at the time of his death. Willie Doyle also suffered a breakdown as a novice when he was caught up in a fire in his novitiate building. Yet, 20 years later, he was admired by all who met him as a rock of courage in the trenches of World War 1. His example is one of hope for many. I am privileged to act as postulator for Fr Willie’s cause and look forward to helping to make him a new saint for the Jesuits and a new saint for Ireland.”