Saint Denis Hurley?

by Editor · September 10, 2014

This week a reader proposes that a cause for the canonisation of Archbishop Denis Hurley OMI be launched. The idea to put the late archbishop on the road to eventual sainthood will resonate with many who knew and admired the long-serving archbishop of Durban.

Archbishop Denis Hurley. http://www.archbishopdenishurley.com/

Those who propose the cause for the canonisation of Archbishop Hurley will refer to his personal holiness, his sense of justice which underpinned a prophetic and courageous ministry in opposing apartheid, his work on behalf of the poor and the marginalised, his emphasis on mercy which finds an echo in the words of Pope Francis today, his tireless work in developing the English liturgy, and so on.

The critics of such a cause might question the archbishop�s position on some matters of theology, and�this is crucial�suggest that the devotion to Archbishop Hurley is limited in numbers and unrepresentative in demography.

It is no secret that Archbishop Hurley�s critique of Pope Paul VI�s 1968 encyclical Humanae vitae was not widely welcome in the Vatican. Some suggest that this precluded any chance of the archbishop being made a cardinal, an honour his supporters believe he merited.

The reasons for Archbishop Hurley�s exclusion from the College of Cardinals remain the subject of lively discussion. The most practical explanation is that in Cardinal Owen McCann of Cape Town, the Holy See in 1965 identified a similarly worthy candidate with greater faculties for diplomacy and affinity for the Roman way than the outspoken archbishop of Durban.

Whatever positions Archbishop Hurley held, especially in respect to the theology of the primacy of the conscience, he was never subjected to censure by the Holy See. It is possible to support Archbishop Hurley�s putative sainthood cause while also disagreeing with him on any number of positions, because the official recognition of sainthood, through canonisation, is bestowed on the basis of personal holiness.

If the life of Archbishop Hurley was marked by the personal attributes we seek in the saints, and that he proposed no heresy, then differences in nuances on matters of doctrine, theology or politics are mostly immaterial.

Of course, sainthood causes have been held up for reasons that did not relate to a candidate�s personal holiness.

Most prominent of these is the case of Archbishop �scar Romero, who was assassinated by a hit squad of the military junta of El Salvador in 1980. The cause was recently �unblocked� by Pope Francis, which suggests that either he does not share the reservations of his predecessors, or that the conditions which cause the blockage no longer exist.

Either way, Archbishop Romero�s cause was put on ice for apparently political reasons, not because there were questions about his personal holiness. There may well be an announcement of Archbishop Romero�s beatification fairly soon, especially since no miracles are required for the beatification of martyrs (if it is accepted that the assassination of an archbishop while he is saying Mass qualifies as an act of odium fidei, or hatred of the faith).

Before a cause for Archbishop Hurley�s sainthood can be launched, preliminary investigations must take place to ascertain that there are no obstacles in the path to his eventual canonisation. Such an investigation would examine his personal virtues as well as a thorough study of his writings, speeches and sermons.

If an investigation reveals obstacles, a cause cannot be launched.

However, if no such obstacles exist, and if there is demonstrable broad support for the cause, the archdiocese of Durban, in consultation with the archbishop�s order, the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, may see it proper to formally introduce a cause.

The 100th anniversary of Archbishop Hurley�s birth on November 9, 2015 might indeed be a propitious occasion to launch it, as our correspondent suggests.

At the same time, however, should there be no sainthood cause, the admirers of Denis Hurley will nonetheless be certain that he is with God, available to intercede on our behalf, and that his memory is cherished and preserved on earth, as it will be with the opening of the impressive Catholic centre named after the archbishop adjacent to his beloved Emmanuel cathedral.

Surely Archbishop Hurley would be perfectly satisfied with that.