St. John Cantius Bulletin
Father John A. Hardon, S.J., S.T.D.
[1914 – 2000]
On December 30th at 3:23 p.m., during the Hour of Divine Mercy, Father John
Hardon journeyed into eternity to meet his beloved Savior.
Father Hardon was a man of deep faith, tremendous learning, and great charity.
He made a lasting and positive impact on the lives of literally thousands; on
the lives of Cardinals, Bishops, priests, deacons, seminarians, consecrated
men and women, and on laity from all walks of life-on Catholics, Protestants,
Jews and Mohammedans--on atheists and agnostics. A rough estimate is that he
was responsible for scores of conversions to the Catholic Church. During the
turbulent post-Vatican II years, Father was a beacon and mainstay of Catholic
orthodoxy for innumerable Priests, Religious and parents.
He was truly a priest's priest, a teacher's teacher, and a theologian's theologian.
In a word, he was vitally and continually interested in the salvation and sanctification
of souls. In his vast love of neighbor, everything was calculated to these ends.
Many who knew him can witness to the fact that if he could help them spiritually,
eating and sleeping became of secondary importance to him.
During his fifty-three years of priestly life, Father experienced the cross
as have few contemporary Americans. Physical pain was an everyday occurrence,
but his greatest suffering came from the rejection of those who refused to accept
his teaching as that of the unchanged and unchanging Catholic Faith.
Father John Hardon was also a Jesuit's Jesuit. He loved the Society of Jesus
with a profound and lifelong passion. One could almost say that to know Father
Hardon was to know St. Ignatius Loyola.
Father Hardon was a spiritual advisor
to the society of St. John Cantius.
Copyright © 2003 St John Cantius Parish
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