March, 2007
| BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES ON THE LIFE OF FR ALBERT (BRIAN) DAVIS OP 1926-2007 |
Fr Albert Davis died in Calvary Hospital, Canberra, on 9th March, 2007.Norman Brian Davis was born in Adelaide on 17 September 1926, the son of Clement and Nora Davis (née Dullea). His father was a storekeeper and the family lived in the inner-city suburb of Ovingham. He was baptised in the nearby Dominican church of St Laurence, North Adelaide. Young Brian was educated at St Laurence's Primary School, Ovingham, Christian Brothers College, Wakefield Street, and Rostrevor College. He joined the Dominican Order straight from school at St Dominic's Priory, East Camberwell (Melbourne), was given the religious name 'Albert' and made his first profession of vows on 25 February 1946. His theological education was carried out at St Dominic's and Holy Name Priory, Wahroonga (Sydney). He was ordained to the priesthood in St Francis Xavier's Cathedral, Adelaide, on 13 November 1951. Fr Albert returned to Wahroonga to complete his institutional studies which he combined with being house bursar, assisting the Rosary Crusade mission, editing the vocational magazine The Young Friar Preacher and teaching sacred scripture to nuns. In 1957 he was assigned to Adelaide as a teacher at Blackfriars Priory School, Prospect, and about the same time was appointed as Provincial Promoter of Vocations for Australia. As well as being Dean of Discipline at the School, house bursar and conducting parish missions, he continued his editing work, which was extended to include The Rosary and Dominican News from the Solomon Islands newsletters. He had a strong interest in art and an eye for beauty which equipped him to commission high-quality photographs for the various promotional newsletters and vocational literature projects which he organised. He was himself a keen and talented photographer. He loved music, especially opera. Albert suffered a prolonged deterioration of his health towards the end of the 1950s. He was sent overseas in 1960, partly as a rest cure and partly to collect materials useful for his publishing work. While in Rome he attended the episcopal consecration in St Peter's Basilica of the Australia-based Irish Dominican, Eusebius Crawford, as Vicar Apostolic of the Western Solomon Islands. During the return voyage he worked as chaplain on a migrant ship. Back in Adelaide for only a short time, he was reassigned in 1960 to St Dominic's Priory, Melbourne, where he continued his publishing and design activities as well as carrying out the work of house bursar, librarian, chaplain to Nazareth House and spiritual director to a number of convents. In addition, he was appointed as the Provincial Promoter of the Dominican Missions in the Solomon Islands and visited the missions on several occasions to assess what was needed. About this time he was also the Provincial Promoter of Causes. For two years in the early 1970s he discharged the office of Dean of the recently-opened Dominican-administered Mannix College at Monash University in Melbourne. When Bishop John Toohy of Maitland invited the Dominicans to take up the chaplaincy at the University of Newcastle to which was attached the parish of Shortland, Albert was selected for appointment as parish priest. This short-lived venture was supported by Spanish friars from the Holy Rosary Province. In 1974 he moved back to Melbourne as a parish missioner, based at St Dominic's. Three years later he was assigned to Blackfriars Priory, Canberra, and took up the position of parish priest of Watson. He also functioned as Provincial Bursar, in which capacity he chaired the Provincial Economic Council, and as Provincial Secretary. External apostolates included chaplaincies to the St Vincent de Paul Society and the Catholic Women's League. He spent the year 1982 on sabbatical leave overseas, visiting the Holy Land, travelling extensively through Europe and the United States, undertaking a course of studies in liturgy and making the most of art galleries, museums and opera houses. On his return to Australia he was appointed as chaplain to the Australian National University and the then Canberra College of Advanced Education. He resided at John XXIII College where he also had the duties of conventual bursar and librarian. Albert received two more assignations, to Holy Name Priory, Wahroonga, in 1988 and Blackfriars Priory, Canberra, in 1997. He was very unwell throughout this lengthy period. As advancing age and frailty took their toll, he moved into the Villaggio Sant'Antonio nursing home in Canberra. His last few years were beset by multiple chronic health problems and he died suddenly but peacefully in Calvary Hospital on 9 March 2007. Fr Albert's funeral Mass was celebrated on 16 March in the Dominican church of the Holy Rosary, Watson, where Albert himself had served as parish priest. The principal celebrant and preacher was Fr Thomas Cassidy OP, Prior Provincial of the Australasian Dominican Province, assisted by nine other Dominican priests and four priests of the Archdiocese of Canberra and Coulburn, including the Vicar General. Archbishop Mark Coleridge sent his apology. Dominican Sisters from Sydney, Maitland and Melbourne were in attendance. Br Francis McKinnon OP served the Mass. Fr Albert's earthly remains were buried in the Woden Valley Public Cemetery. |
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