Former Prior of Lough Derg Monsignor Gerard McSorley dies aged 98
Monsignor Gerard McSorley served as Prior of Lough Derg from 1980 to 1990
Tributes were paid to Monsignor Gerard McSorley after the former Parish Priest of Pettigo and Prior of Lough Derg passed away aged 98 on November 3.
Monsignor McSorley served as Prior of Lough Derg from 1980 to 1990, overseeing a programme of restoration and renewal, and ensuring that the Basilica and the facilities on which the pilgrimage at Lough Derg depended could continue to serve future generations.
He was the oldest and longest-serving priest in the Clogher Diocese, a diocese which includes Bundoran and parts of Ballyshannon.
The current Prior of Lough Derg, Monsignor Joseph McGuninness, commented on his predecessor: “When pilgrims on Lough Derg gather for Mass in the Basilica, or find a place to rest after a night of prayer, they are benefiting from the vision of Monsignor Gerard while Prior of Lough Derg. Many pilgrims will fondly remember the warmth of his welcome.
“Others may remember him best by the sound of his voice at the 6:30am Mass.
“Today, we give thanks for the priest who celebrated that Mass with them, Season after Season. We hold his family, his brother priests and all who mourn him in our prayers. May the Lord grant him his reward for a life spent generously in the service of God’s people and welcome him into eternal joy.”
Bishop Larry Duffy, the Bishop of Clogher, said: “It was always as a priest in the local parish that Monsignor Gerry made his impact across our diocese over the course of his 72 years of priestly ministry.
“His pastoral encounters with people and families in all kinds of situations opened and renewed pathways to Christ for so many. His care of and encouragement for priests with whom he ministered was also one of his hallmarks.
“In so many ways, he was ahead of his time, though he never looked for credit”.
Speaking of Monsignor McSorley’s era in Lough Derg, Bishop Dufffy stated: ‘His ten years as Prior of Lough Derg saw massive changes not just in terms of the physical facilities there, but in the orientation of the pilgrimage experience to the daily lives of the pilgrims in living out their baptismal calling to holiness.
“All of this he achieved without losing anything of the central and centuries-old spiritual tradition of this renowned sacred place.”
Monsignor McSorley, born in Eskra in Co Tyrone, was a talented footballer, winning the Ulster Minor title whilst playing for Tyrone.
He was ordained in 1954, and along with his time at Pettigo, he would serve his ministry in Tempo, Clara (Errigal Rruagh) and Monaghan/Rackwallace, as well as be on the staff at St Macartan’s College in Monaghan. He would later take up an appointment at Tullycorbet after his spell in Pettigo and Lough Derg.
Monsignor McSorley peacefully passed in the tender loving care of the nursing staff of St. Anne’s Nursing Home, Ballybay, surrounded by family.
He was predeceased by his parents Daniel and Winifred, sister Teresa (Mulligan), and brothers Eugene and Brian.
Monsignor McSorley will be deeply regretted and lovingly remembered by his brothers Donal (Omagh) and Michael (Clogher), his sisters-in-law Kathleen and Eilish, nieces, nephews, grandnieces, grandnephews, extended family, Bishops and Clergy of the Clogher Diocese, the people of the parishes in which he served and a wide circle of family and friends.