Obituary in Democrat and Chronicle
Webster: Thursday, January, 29, 2015, age 82. Predeceased by his parents, Michael and Helen. Survived by his sister, Helen (Art) Melville; niece, Molly (Andy) Hill; nephews, Arthur (Elizabeth) Melville, Peter (Kim) Melville; many cousins and friends. Thank you to his secial friends John Machand Jr. and family, John Crosby and family, Joe Darby and Bernard Heroux. Father Gerard was a priest 56 years serving in the Diocese of Rochester.
A Mass of Christian Burial 9:00 AM, Saturday February 7, 2015 at Holy Spirit Church, 1355 Hatch Rd., Webster. Interment Holy Sepulchre Cemetery. Donations in Father’s memory may be directed to Mercy Center, 1437 Blossom Rd, Rochester NY 14610.
Obituary in the Catholic Courier (Jennifer Burke)
Father Gerard McMahon, a longtime parish priest, died Jan. 29, 2015. He was 82.
Father McMahon grew up in St. Monica and St. John the Evangelist parishes in Rochester and attended the parishes’ school. He also attended Aquinas Institute, St. Andrew’s Seminary and St. Bernard’s Seminary, all in Rochester. He was ordained by Bishop James E. Kearney on June 5, 1959, at Sacred Heart Cathedral.
He then served as assistant pastor at St. Anthony of Padua in Rochester (1959); Our Lady of Mercy in Greece (1959-60); St. Mary of the Lake in Ontario (1960-69); and St. Mary in Corning (1969-75). He served as associate pastor at Corpus Christi Parish in Rochester from 1975-76 before becoming pastor at St. Patrick Parish in Moravia in 1976. He led that parish for nine years before becoming pastor of St. Gabriel Parish in Hammondsport and St. Patrick Parish in Prattsburgh in 1985.
He left those parishes in 1993 to take a temporary assignment in the Diocese of Scranton, Pa., where he served as administrator for several parishes. In 1998 he retired and returned to Rochester, where he lived at Our Lady of Victory Parish. He later moved to Church of the Holy Spirit in Penfield, where he lived and served as needed for approximately nine years. He later moved to the McAuley Residence at the Sisters of Mercy Motherhouse in Brighton.
Bishop Salvatore R. Matano will celebrate Father McMahon’s funeral Mass Feb. 7, 2015, at 9 a.m. at Church of the Holy Spirit. Interment will be in Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, Rochester.
Tags: Requiescant in Pace
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Served his third Mass 2 days after his ordination. Pleasant and affable Irishman!!
But aren’t they all??
I only just saw this sad news. What a loss to no longer have Father McMahon here on earth with us. I know he will advocate for us in Heaven, but its so sad he is gone. There is a void. I do wish there was a longer obituary; I would like to know more about how he spent his life.
I first Fr. McMahon not long after my divorce which was not long after my conversion to Catholicism in 2000. My son and I had moved in closer to Rochester from the country and I needed to find a school for him, and had chosen Archangel School, where he attended that year and just part of the next. One of the very best things about that school, besides Daily Mass at St. Jude’s, was Father McMahon. Father would come there weekly for confession for the whole school. He would also celebrate Mass in the little school itself on Confession day. He made an lasting holy impression on all the children and the staff.
We later moved to Penfield and He was one of my most favored priests to go to for confession. Not just me, as, at confession at Holy Spirit there are always long lines for the priests there – usually for the two priests at a time taking confessions on Saturday. And I was always glad when I could get to a Daily Mass at Holy Spirit with Father McMahon, who celebrated Mass so very reverently. There would always be a homily and it was often about the Saints. He must given one on St. Francis de Sales, on whose Feast Day he died. I wonder if he had a special devotion to him?
I wish I knew more about him. There was so little written in those obituaries, for a man for whom there is certainly so much to say. I can see he was sent to serve in remote, “perimeter” parishes of our Diocese. That placement for such a holy, likable, capable, and stalwartly faithful priest under this past administration is to be expected, for a shepherd so truly capable of feeding his flock and inspiring the faithful. Not Clark’s favored type! Who can know what difficulties he must have faced in the DOR being so true and faithful to the teaching of Our Church? I can only imagine. And who can know how much we in the DOR have benefited from his prayers and sacrifices over the years? It must have been a great, great comfort to him when Bishop Matano was installed. I am sure in Heaven Father McMahon will remain our faithful patron.
God Bless Father McMahon.
I just wanted to share some good news with your readers. A healing Mass will be held at Holy Name of Jesus Parish in Greece at 7PM on February 10th.
The address is 15 Saint Martins Way, Rochester, NY 14616
OK Dan, I will bite. What exactly is a “healing Mass”? The term comes off a little New Age for my taste, but I’m willing to learn. Is this an official designation that has some liturgical norms and expectations attached, or is it something a bit more loose and organic, that means different things to different people in different places?
Dan Riley: Nice announcement of spiritual benefit!!!
The remainder of this comment has been deleted as inappropriate.
D. Harris
This entire comment has been deleted as inappropriate.
-D Harris
Eliza 10;
Some times the Lord send us a copy of the Cure d’Ars and we don’t always get it until they are gone from us!!!
This entire comment has been deleted as inappropriate. (Censor librorum?)
Diane: inappropriate or you don’t agree with it??? Was it vulgar, obscene, or politically incorrect according to the rigid norms on this blog??
I think it is time to take a break from “Cleansing Fire” (cheers from the back row where the snipers hide). I don’t like being involved with a blog that suspends your rights guaranteed to you in the United States constitution.
PS: How do you get dust off of Birkenstock sandals??
Ray, of the 9 comments on this post honoring Fr. McMahon, you have 6 of them. I hardly think your civil rights are being violated. And I hardly think your words have been edifying on Fr. McMahon’s obituary post. To answer your question “inappropriate or you don’t agree with it???” I will take this opportunity to say that I don’t delete or modify comments because I don’t agree with them. Further, I don’t think that other staff delete comments because they don’t agree either. Unless a comment is attempting to teach contrary to the Church, and endangers souls, I can’t imagine anyone deleting all of part because they disagree. Promotion of dialogue is an important function of blogs.
I deleted rather than merely crossing out (but leaving legible) what you wrote because it was an ad hominem attack on Sid. It is fine to write strongly on issues, but not insulting people who also comment here. I’m not repeating what you said because it would only gratify the desire to have said it.
You are welcome on this blog, or to take a break as you mentioned. But not welcome to attack other people; and putting LOL after an attack doesn’t make it funny or right.
Appears no one answered Sid’s question about the “healing” Mass at Holy Name the evening of February 10. My guess would be that there were annointings at a Holy Mass vigil of the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes and the World Day of the Sick. +JMJ
I had been the victim of an ad hominem attack? Now I’m really curious what got said!
I’m surprised I got flayed asking about what Healing Masses were. I was serious… JLo’s answer seems plausible (annointings connected with World Day of the Sick… I did not realize that was taking place) but as the announcement was made in connection with Fr. McMahon’s passing, I thought it was connected with that somehow, perhaps healing for the survivors who loved him? Or maybe it was just posted (a bit off-topic) as a general announcement that had nothing to do with Fr. McMahon? Being unfamiliar with the term, I was unable to discern. That’s all I was getting at.
It was a good guess on my part, Sid, because we’re in Florida right now and attended Mass on Our Lady of Lourdes/World Day of the Sick on Wednesday; and as had been announced the Sunday before, the celebrant asked during Mass that those who wanted the special healing blessing to come forward. Since it happened here, it’s a good guess that’s what was happening at Holy Name… presumably the Mass said was the vigil of the next day’s Mass, since that feast of Our Lady and the World Day of the Sick are no small things in our Catholic Word. Now I am curious, too, but about if my supposition was correct!!! 🙂
+JMJ