The Irish standard., 1902-01-04
FATHER TOM BURKE.
A Few "Reminiscences of the Great
Irish Dominican.

Irish Dominican.
| A writer in the Columbiad, the organ
of the knights of Columbus, goes
back to the childhood of Father Tom
Burke, the famous Dominican, and
tells of one of his boyish pranks for
which he received meet punishment.
His mother took him into an inner
room, and, locking the door, knelt
down and repeated the prayer, "Di-
rect, o Lord, our actions" etc., after
which she administered a sound
thrashing. In after years Father
Burke said: "When saw my mother
enter the room, make the sign of the
cross, and solemnly invoke the Holy
Ghost to direct her, knew 1 could
expect no mercy. never got such a
beating as that one directed by the
Holy Spirit, and I have never forgot.
ten it,
1t was not until 1850, four years
after his ordination, that he delivered
the sermon which made him famous.
The occasion was the opening of a
new organ at ST. Mary's, Sandymount.
a popular Dominican was asked to &C.
cupy the pulpit, but at the last mo-
ment was unable to attend, much to
the disappointment of the parish
priest. He had promised, however, to
provide Il substitute, and on the ap-
pointed Sunday morning a tall. unat-
tractive young man appeared with a
singularly vacant and stupid express
sion of countenance, which the preach
er assumed through spirit Of wag-
gerry. The assembled clergy We're hor-
rified, but nothing could be done. The
preacher assembled the pulpit, his man.
ner and countenance changed, the
clergy were lost in surprise. A SER
mon was delivered on the connection
between art and the genius of the
Catholic church, the fame of which
ran like wildfire and attracted atten-
ton even in France.
Father Burke was a great actor, in
the best sense. He once delivered
series Of Lenten sermons in Rome, and
the church was half filled at every one
of them by people who could not I'M
derstand a word the preacher was say
ing, but who were impressed by his
wonderful grace and power of action.
He was such master of the difficult
art Of expression and gesture, that on
one occasion, for the amusement of
his friends, he undertook to preach a
sensational sermon without saying
word. AS a schoolboy whenever he
got a copy of Punch he employed his
vacant moments in endeavoring to
work his features into the form of
some caricature which adorned its
pages. Afterwards, when in Rome,
The spent hours with friend in the
Vatican, initiating, for sheer amnse-
ment, the poses Of the great statues
in the galleries. Once while walking
in London he was struck with great
griffin which grinned down from a
cornice Of Temple Bar. He studied it
closely, and on his return home, with
the aid Of stick, produced perfect
imitation of it. An ecclesiastical ar
chitect was SO nnuch struck with it's
grotesqueness that he offered Father
Burke great indueement to give him
few sittings for decoration of a
great Gothic church he was about to
build The Dominican laughed at the
spectacle Of caricature of himself
gazing down at him from the capital
Of a column. IT wish to be a pillar of
the church," he said. "You want to-
make me only grinning gargoyle."
His popularity as a preacher was so
pressed it, "when Father Tom preach
great that, as an Irish cab driver ex-
ed, sure the church was full within
and without
A ludicrous incident occurred at Kill
barney cathedral in the presence Of
Lord Kenmare and all the local mag
mates. Father Burke was preac ching
for the Presentation Brothers schools,
and his sermon reached an unusual
length. The brothers, anxious for a
good collection, began rafting the tin
plates as hint to the preacher to stop;
the bishop, DR.. NIoriarty, frowned
from his throne, and the noise ceased.
The portly prior advanced from his
stall and took up his position in front
Of the pulpit, in the full view of all
present except the preacher, who was
just then eXpatiating on the zeal Of
the brothers. He pictured forth the
pale, ascetic monk, his emaciated
frame bearing evidence of his fast
ings and his vigils. He was surprised
to find the audience smiling. He
tried to be more impressive, and again
reverted to the mortified and over
worked monk. The audience could
hardly contain their merriment. There
in front of them was the rotound
figure, the broad, jolly face of the
prior, beaming like full moon, visi-
bic to all but the preacher, and fully
enjoying the beautiful description of
the ascetic monk. Greatly discon.
certed, the preacher concluded as
quickly as he could, and it is but right