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Photos
By Rebecca Rakoczy, Staff Writer
ATLANTA-The lilting Celtic hymn, "Lord of All Hopefulness," swelled in
the Cathedral of Christ the King Jan. 17, in a joyful and loving tribute
to Msgr. Louis Naughton, who is terminally ill with cancer. What had started
earlier in the week as a plan for a small Mass to pray for his healing
grew exponentially overnight. More than 40 priests and over 100 friends
and parish members gathered in praise, thanksgiving and love for this
diminutive priest, who has served in the Archdiocese of Atlanta for more
than 30 years. Msgr. Naughton, present, but visibly ill, sat alongside
the altar with Archbishop John F. Donoghue, Msgr. R. Donald Kiernan, vicar
general, and Deacon Whitney Robichaux. With the words of Hebrews 5:1-6
ringing through the Cathedral, Father Paul Burke gave the homily. His
voice cracking just once in grief, Father Burke honored Msgr. Naughton
as a "priest, friend and Christian gentleman." According to the New Testament
reading, "No one takes this honor upon himself but only when called by
God just as Aaron was." Father Burke told the congregation, "Tonight we
rejoice that Monsignor responded to that call to become a priest . . .
We thank God for the generosity of this gentleman that he said yes to
God." Some of those attending the Mass were brought in wheelchairs, others
with oxygen tanks. The Mass of healing flowed over them also, as Father
Brian Higgins, a parochial vicar at the Cathedral, anointed Msgr. Naughton
in the sacrament of the sick as part of the ceremony. Father Burke also
reflected on the mystery of suffering and pain. "If God is good, why is
there pain and suffering in the world? Tonight we ask God to give you
courage and peace and to help us to understand . . . To be called to suffer
is to carry the cross of Jesus . . . the cross is the ultimate victory
of love." A native of Galway, Ireland, Msgr. Naughton was trained as an
engineer before he heard the call of God. After serving as a seminarian
in Atlanta, he was ordained in 1971 in his native land at the Galway Cathedral
and returned to his adopted homeland here, serving in parishes across
the archdiocese as both a parochial vicar and a pastor, in addition to
many archdiocesan duties. His assignments as a parochial vicar have included
the Cathedral, Holy Cross Church, Sacred Heart Church and St. Jude's Church
in Atlanta, and St. Mary's Church in Toccoa, where he was pastor. In June
1984, he was assigned to the Metropolitan Tribunal and did graduate studies
in canon law. He received his JCL degree and was made a defender of the
bond in both the Metropolitan Tribunal and the Court of Appeals in October
1986. Father Burke, also a native of Galway, Ireland, recalled Msgr. Naughton's
pilgrimage to the Holy Land, to retrace the steps of Jesus. "Msgr. Naughton's
whole life has been a pilgrimage of faith . . . from Galway to Dublin
to Washington, where he studied the sacred tenets of the church, and then
to Atlanta." People were invited to hold relics of Blessed Mary Elizabeth
Hesselblad, who is being considered for sainthood. Msgr. Naughton requested
that prayers be offered asking for the intercession of the nun, beatified
in 2000, who dedicated her life and religious order to Christian unity.
After the Mass, Msgr. Naughton sat for a half-hour and greeted well-wishers
and those who requested his special blessing, in the Cathedral gathering
area. Msgr. Naughton had been the judicial vicar for the Metropolitan
Tribunal for nine years. He retired from his position this past fall when
he was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer. In residence at the
Cathedral, he has since ceased all treatment.
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