THE CHURCH and the wider community in the Mid West is today (Thursday) mourning the sudden death of the former Bishop of the Diocese of Killaloe, Wille Walsh.
Bishop Walsh, who was 90, was in good health but died suddenly at his home in Ennis, opposite his beloved St Flannan’s College on Wednesday night.
Bishop Walsh was administrator of Ennis Cathedral before becoming coadjutor bishop of the diocese and then bishop.
His ministry was marked throughout by great compassion for the most vulnerable and he was actively involved in many charities and support organisations.
In 2012, he travelled with volunteers from the Building of Hope charity to Linkoni, Mombassa, Africa, where he was hands-on painting and labouring to build a school and home for blind orphans.
In 2002, he gave refuge to more than 50 Travellers who were being moved on from an illegal encampment.
The Travellers moved onto Bishop Walsh’s lawn, with his consent, after Ennis Gardaí began removing caravans from public areas around the town.
He was deeply troubled by the revelations of child abuse which hit the Church.
The late Bishop undertook a walk across all parishes of the diocese at the turn of the millennium seeking forgiveness for the actions of the church in relation to child sexual abuse.
He had recently marked his 90th birthday with a mass at Ennis Cathedral and a surprise gathering, thrown for him by family and friends.
Passionate about hurling, he was central to the success of many teams in St Flannan’s College and Éire Óg club in Ennis.
Bishop Walsh attended the Harty Cup final, in which St Flannan’s played and were defeated, just a few weeks ago.
Originally from Roscrea in County Tipperary, he was ordained Bishop of the Diocese of Killaloe, which stretches from Loop Head in County Clare to County Offaly, in 1994 and remained in the position until 2010.
He studied for the priesthood at Maynooth, but had a long association with St Flannan’s College in Ennis, where he attended as a boarder in the 1950s, before teaching maths and physics there for 25 years.
He also lived across the road from St Flannan’s College, when he retired.
Bishop Walsh was described by Parish Priest of Tulla and Communications Officer with the Diocese of Killaloe, Fr Brendan Quinlivan, as “the most gentle of men and a steady and consoling presence for the people of the diocese, particularly those experiencing any kind of struggle or sadness”.
Bishop of Killaloe, Fintan Monahan, said there is profound sadness at news of the death, describing Willie Walsh as dearly loved by the many whose lives he touched in his extraordinary pastoral ministry.
“His Episcopal motto was ‘Cinéaltas Chríost’ (The Gentleness of Christ) and his ministry radiated that in his care for the poor, anyone who was in trouble and anyone struggling in life,” he said.
