Father Arthur Larkin died at the age of 43 on July 10th. His departure was premature; alarming to his friends, deeply distressing to his parents, brothers and sister.
Arthur was an unusual person. Even from his schooldays in St Michael's College his contemporaries looked on him as being both talented and special. His career seemed destined to be different. After his successful teenage leadership involvement in the Archbishop's Volunteer Corps, latterly as general secretary, it was not surprising that he decided to become a priest in the Dublin diocese.
After ordination on June 5th, 1982, he served as curate in Donnycarney until 1985. Appointed to Westland Row, he served there until 1990. While there he campaigned vigorously - and with success - for the poor of the parish. He was also part-time chaplain to Holles Street Hospital and to Sir Patrick Dun's Hospital. In those roles he followed with both concern and intelligence the problems arising in medical ethics.
From Westland Row he went as chaplain to St Colmcille's Hospital in Loughlinstown and remained there until 1998. His final appointment was as curate to Clonskeagh, where he was innovative in developing the life of the parish. The newly renovated church there displays many examples of his creativity and enterprise. His homilies were carefully prepared and clearly delivered. As Mgr Greehy noted in his homily at Arthur's funeral, he "studied the Scriptures as a basis for theology, and was a magnificent preacher of the Word. He was especially effective at marriages, funerals and bereavements."
Arthur filled all of these appointments with flair and commitment. His independence of mind showed itself not only in his daily routines but also in the way in which he could briskly challenge not only bureaucratic procedures but also what he considered to be questionable but received orthodoxies.
While his health permitted, Arthur vigorously pushed his own vision of what a well administered parish or Catholic ministry should be. Reflecting perhaps his Ulster family roots, he had little time for spoofing or for sycophancy. If he did not agree, he said so. People never had any doubts where his loyalty lay nor who his real friends were. The urgency of his views and his sometimes forthright expression of them did not always win him friends. Mgr Greehy talked about his "discernment, straight talk and barbed wit". However, his opinions were not extreme but rather reflected his impatience with what, in his view, were pastorally unhelpful or practically unrealisable positions.
In the course of his varied ministry many people received comfort and support from his presence and his concern in their troubled moments. The huge numbers who attended his removal and funeral Mass bore witness to that.
He was always ready to respond to calls from his Alma Mater to conduct retreats for the students and - particularly in his early ministry - he could speak to them in a language that appealed to their more spiritual selves. As president of the young St Michael's College Past Pupils' Union, he insisted on correct procedures and accountability. His period of office was an important moment in the growth of the union.
Mgr Tom Fehily, Arthur's great mentor, has written recently that his "greatest gift was his absolute fidelity to his vocation, to the many people whom he served in parishes and hospitals and, very specially, to his friends, who were many and varied". (Link-Up, August 2001).
Arthur's loyalty to the Church was total, despite his frank recognition of, and dismay at, human errors and failings.
Now it is his father and mother, his brothers and sister who can be encouraged in their deep sadness by knowing that Arthur fought the good fight and that he both preached and kept the faith. His indeed was a vibrant personality, a brain jostling with ideas and an inventiveness which he was ever ready to explore. May he rest in peace.
A.P.L.