VIOLENT DEATH CONTRAST TO A GENTLE WAY OF LIFE
Violent death contrast to a gentle way of life
"OMAGH did not deserve what happened. It deserved a lot better." Words from the Bishop of Derry, Dr. Seamus Hegarty, at the funeral of Mr. Brian McCrory, on Thursday last.
He was speaking during the service for the 54-year-old father of three, whose life had been described by Rev. Eugene Hasson, a local parish priest, as being capable of being summed up in one word - "good".
The manner of his death, Fr. Hasson told the many hundreds of mourners who crowded into St. Mary's Church, Killyclogher, or who stood in the incessant drizzle outside as the Requiem Mass was relayed by loudspeaker, was such a contrast to the gentleness of his life.
He went on: "Brian died in the most violent way imaginable. The message from the 15th August bomb in Omagh is very, very clear. Never again must this happen in our land.
"If there is anyone in our midst who still harbours violent deeds in their hearts, then they especially must listen and hear this message. Never again."
Fr. Hasson said he had known the McCrory family, from Mountjoy Road, Omagh, for more than 18 years. They were respected throughout the community as "honest-to-God, hardworking people", he said.
He added that Mr. McCrory's two sons, Colin, 26, and Brian, 24, and daughter, Louise, 20, were lucky to have such a man as their father. They knew how he had enriched their lives, and that made their loss all the more grievous.
And he continued: "Bernadette [Mrs. McCrory] said to me that she would be willing to carry the cross of her loss for the rest of her life, if Brian's was to be the last of such deaths.
"Such human and spiritual maturity has to be admired, and maybe it is a challenge we can all work towards."
The local priest, a Tyrone County Hospital chaplain, carefully read the names of the other 27 victims of the previous weekend's appalling car-bombing of Omagh, and prayed for each of them.
However, he kept returning to the loss of Brian McCrory, one of six brothers and four sisters, the family of the late, Mick McCrory, and his wife, Sheila, and his simple, but effective tribute to him -"good".
Bishop Hegarty told the wider family circle the attendance of so many at his funeral was a sign that people cared about them.
"You are the people who are at the centre of our attention at this time," he said.
He said the physical scars left by the bombing would leave deep emotional scars that would take time to come to the surface, and then longer to heal.
But the Bishop also said the aftermath of the evil, which was the bombing, was the good - the way the emergency services and others had pulled together.
"If the level of co-operation and Christianity can be continued indefinitely, this place in Northern Ireland would be a great place to live in," he added.
"Rebuilding Omagh will help the healing process, and slowly your nightmares will come to an end."
Mr. McCrory, is survived by his wife, sons, and daughter, and brothers, Kieran, Dermot, Michael, Raymond and Noel, and sisters, Ann, Patricia, Deirdre and Trudy.
"OMAGH did not deserve what happened. It deserved a lot better." Words from the Bishop of Derry, Dr. Seamus Hegarty, at the funeral of Mr. Brian McCrory, on Thursday last.
He was speaking during the service for the 54-year-old father of three, whose life had been described by Rev. Eugene Hasson, a local parish priest, as being capable of being summed up in one word - "good".
The manner of his death, Fr. Hasson told the many hundreds of mourners who crowded into St. Mary's Church, Killyclogher, or who stood in the incessant drizzle outside as the Requiem Mass was relayed by loudspeaker, was such a contrast to the gentleness of his life.
He went on: "Brian died in the most violent way imaginable. The message from the 15th August bomb in Omagh is very, very clear. Never again must this happen in our land.
"If there is anyone in our midst who still harbours violent deeds in their hearts, then they especially must listen and hear this message. Never again."
Fr. Hasson said he had known the McCrory family, from Mountjoy Road, Omagh, for more than 18 years. They were respected throughout the community as "honest-to-God, hardworking people", he said.
He added that Mr. McCrory's two sons, Colin, 26, and Brian, 24, and daughter, Louise, 20, were lucky to have such a man as their father. They knew how he had enriched their lives, and that made their loss all the more grievous.
And he continued: "Bernadette [Mrs. McCrory] said to me that she would be willing to carry the cross of her loss for the rest of her life, if Brian's was to be the last of such deaths.
"Such human and spiritual maturity has to be admired, and maybe it is a challenge we can all work towards."
The local priest, a Tyrone County Hospital chaplain, carefully read the names of the other 27 victims of the previous weekend's appalling car-bombing of Omagh, and prayed for each of them.
However, he kept returning to the loss of Brian McCrory, one of six brothers and four sisters, the family of the late, Mick McCrory, and his wife, Sheila, and his simple, but effective tribute to him -"good".
Bishop Hegarty told the wider family circle the attendance of so many at his funeral was a sign that people cared about them.
"You are the people who are at the centre of our attention at this time," he said.
He said the physical scars left by the bombing would leave deep emotional scars that would take time to come to the surface, and then longer to heal.
But the Bishop also said the aftermath of the evil, which was the bombing, was the good - the way the emergency services and others had pulled together.
"If the level of co-operation and Christianity can be continued indefinitely, this place in Northern Ireland would be a great place to live in," he added.
"Rebuilding Omagh will help the healing process, and slowly your nightmares will come to an end."
Mr. McCrory, is survived by his wife, sons, and daughter, and brothers, Kieran, Dermot, Michael, Raymond and Noel, and sisters, Ann, Patricia, Deirdre and Trudy.
Further Information
Publisher: TYRONE CONSTITUTION
Ref: TC/0367
Published Date: 27-Aug-98
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