Peter Goers: Archbishop Faulkner a genuine soul who touched the hearts of so many

ARCHBISHOP Leonard Faulkner was a humble man of the cloth who touched so many lives – and occasionally upset his church with his inclusivity.

Catholic leader Pope John Paul II with Archbishop of Adelaide Leonard Faulkner during the pontiff’s visit to Adelaide in 1986.

• Retired Adelaide Archbishop Leonard Faulkner dies at 91

Archbishop Leonard Faulkner had love in his eyes.

There are few truly great people and fewer truly good people. Sometimes, the great are good for the greater good.

The late Archbishop Faulkner – and former prisoner of war the late Bill Schmitt – were thus. Both men had extraordinary grace. Both men affected me deeply.

The archbishop had the great gift of making you feel better about yourself. Thousands will attest to this.

In this time of crisis in the church, it must be so difficult to be a priest, the majority of whom – like most of us – are good, flawed people.

Archbishop Faulkner’s life serves as an aspiration and inspiration to those working within the church and all of us in wider society.

“God is in the people”, said Archbishop Faulkner and he was devoted to both and believed they are one and the same.

He was born in Booleroo Centre in 1926 as the oldest of 10 children and his father, a farm labourer, was one of 15. It was a family poor in everything but love and faith.

He spoke of his father as a man who showed his love which was unusual for a man of that generation and a great blessing and example.

As man and priest, Leonard Faulkner showed modesty, compassion, humility, humanity and love. He was also resolute as only a kind, generous spirit can be.

He unfailingly reached out to the poor, refugees, migrants, Aboriginals and even those dying of AIDS – all marginalised – and he showed them the grace others couldn’t. He was a great example of the most important words (for me) in the Bible when Christ says: “What you do for the least of us, you also do for me.”

Leonard Faulkner giving his first blessing as a priest – to Mary Guerin – after his ordination in Rome in 1950.

As a very popular Bishop of Townsville, he declined membership of the exclusive Townsville Club because it would have separated him from the workers who could not join.

As a much-loved Archbishop of Adelaide, he eschewed residence at the grand Archbishop’s House on West Tce and the even grander mansion “Ennis” at Medindie, living simply in a flat in Parkside and, later, a modest brick home in suburban Netley “where people could knock on the door”.

He liked cats, naps, golf, neighbours and grace. Always grace.

When the Anglicans refused to bury the national figure Max Harris, an Anglican-educated, agnostic of Jewish descent, the Sisters of St Joseph and Archbishop Faulkner responded to his great service to the cause of Mary MacKillop and buried him between the convent and school at Kensington. With grace and love.

That was the ecumenism which church leaders often profess but Faulkner showed. A generous kindness.

He brought women into leadership in the diocese and he was a progressive in a hyper-conservative time – this was costly to his career but not his vocation.

He was never embittered and retired to continue working at what he had always been – a simple priest.

I treasure a memory of sharing a cooked chook with him – and my friends Peter and Deb McCallum – on a white plastic table at the Booleroo Bakery. We were grateful for each other’s company and for a lovely meal.

His life affirms that which is truly important – kindness and love. I know not whether Archbishop Faulkner’s goodness came from faith or his faith came from goodness. He was exhilarated by goodness and that is a potent example and legacy.

Rejoice in the goodness of this man and the potential in all of us.

■ Pe ter Goers can be heard weeknights on ABC Radio Adelaide

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