Columban Father Aidan Murray RIP

Fr Aidan Murray was born on 5 June 1937 in Fohenagh, County Galway, Ireland,  and attended school in St Cuan’s National School and St Joseph’s, Ballinasloe, before joining the Columbans in 1955. A gifted athlete, he particularly excelled in hurling and rugby and when the pitch battles were over he would entertain all with his songs and stories. 

Ordained on 20 December 1961 he was assigned to Korea where his brother Brendan was already working.   After language studies he went to the northern diocese of Chunchon.  The parish of  Jeong Seon high in the Taebeck mountains was the first of  some rugged areas in which he ministered. In Hongchon he was able to keep pace even with the legendary Fr Phil Crosbie, (an Australian Columban who died in 2005 at the age of 89) a survivor of a Korean war death march, before taking charge of his own parish of Kumwha along the volatile border with the North. 

In 1973 he became part of the Columban effort to minister to the rural poor migrating to the capital Seoul. There he helped develop the community in the Sinsudong area before continuing the same type of work in Dongrae in the southern city of Pusan.  From 1979 until 1986 he served in Cheju island in the parishes of Kwangyang Dong and Muselpo.Then he was appointed to promotion work in Ireland for three years, and on his return to Cheju he worked in Soguipo until he was appointed again to Ireland in 1996.  

Having spent most of the previous thirty-five years in Korea he considered himself fortunate to be able to return to his native diocese of Clonfert and spend over ten years in the parishes of Kilnadeema and Kilrickill.  Father Aidan was a good friend, a great companion and a generous minister of a caring God.  His illness reflected the strength and the courage that marked his life.  He stood straight as long as he could stand and then went calmly to his God on the morning of 21 December 2009.  

May he rest in peace.