Fr Timothy Edward (Ted) McGrath (1881–1977), was an Australian

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

priest and with

Eileen O'Connor Eileen ( or ) is an Irish feminine given name anglicised from Eibhlín and may refer to: People Artists *Eileen Agar (1899–1991), British Surrealist painter and photographer *Eileen Fisher (born 1950), clothing retailer and designer * Eileen ...

the founder of Our Lady's Nurses for the Poor.

Early life

McGrath was born in Bungeet near

Benalla Benalla is a small city located on the Broken River gateway to the High Country north-eastern region of Victoria, Australia, about north east of the state capital Melbourne. At the the population was 10,822. It is the administrative centr ...

, North East Victoria in 1881 to a poor rural family of Irish descent. Both his parents died by the time he was seven and his education was severely limited. Despite this background he was accepted into the order of the

Missionaries of the Sacred Heart The Missionaries of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (MSC; la, Missionarii Sacratissimi Cordis; french: Missionnaires du Sacré-Coeur) are a missionary congregation in the Catholic Church. It was founded in 1854 by Servant of God Jules Chevalier (182 ...

and ordained a priest by Cardinal Moran in 1909. He was appointed the first priest in charge of the new parish of Coogee in Sydney's eastern suburbs.

Work with Eileen O'Connor

He met a young woman Eileen O'Connor, who was severely physically disabled by spinal problems, and was deeply impressed with her holiness. Together they determined to found a group of religious women who would care for the sick poor in their own homes. On 15 April 1913 in Coogee the pair co-founded Our Lady's Nurses for the Poor. McGrath acted as chaplain and organiser since at this time Eileen could not walk. Following allegations of scandal, McGrath's superiors at the

Sacred Heart Monastery The Sacred Heart Monastery in Kensington, New South Wales, is a monastery of the Catholic men's religious order, the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart (MSCs). Since its establishment in 1897 it has played a leading role in the Catholic life of Sy ...

, Kensington, ordered him to break off contact with O'Connor. He refused and was expelled from the order. He and O'Connor travelled to Rome in 1915 to appeal the decision. He was readmitted to the order but forbidden to return to Australia. Despite these difficulties the order was firmly established by the time of O'Connor's death in 1921.

Later life

He served as a chaplain with the British Army on the Western Front in 1918. On Sept 28 near Wailly-Beaucamp in northern France, he went forward under heavy fire to rescue a wounded officer in

no-man's-land No man's land is waste or unowned land or an uninhabited or desolate area that may be under dispute between parties who leave it unoccupied out of fear or uncertainty. The term was originally used to define a contested territory or a dump ...

. He was awarded a

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

. After serving in Wichita and elsewhere in the US and Europe, he was finally allowed by his superiors to return to Australia in 1941. In 1969 he retired to Our Lady's Home in Coogee and died there in 1977, aged 95.

Bibliography

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McGrath, Ted 1881 births 1977 deaths 20th-century Australian Roman Catholic priests Missionaries of the Sacred Heart Founders of Catholic religious communities