The Ignatian - December 2016 Vol 26 July Edition Vol 27 | Page 33

Archives Father John Joseph Therry The Saint Ignatius’ College Ignis Project commenced in December last year with the redevelopment of the Therry Building. It is appropriate that Stage 1 of the College’s capital building program involves the redevelopment of a building named after Father John Joseph Therry. Father Therry was a man of great vision – a builder who was passionate and committed to many projects which helped to lay the foundations of the Catholic Church in Australia. The Reverend Father John Joseph Therry was an Irish priest from County Cork. Hearing that Catholic convicts were without a priest in Australia, he let it be known that he was prepared to travel to New South Wales to fulfil the role. He arrived in Australia, aged 30, in 1820 under a senior priest, Father Philip Conolly. Being authorised by both church and state, they were the first official Roman Catholic chaplains to New South Wales. At the time of his arrival in New South Wales, Father Therry was described by Bishop Poynter, vicar-apostolic of the London district, as a “capable, zealous and valuable young man”. Above Fr John Joseph Therry, one of the founders of Riverview and namesake for the Therry Building. FR TH E R RY LEGACY At the Riverview College Foundation we understand that leaving a bequest is a carefully considered decision. It is your opportunity to support a cause you believe in and to create a legacy that will honour you, your family or someone you hold dear. If you would like more information on bequests or planned giving, please contact: Aleks Duric, Director - Advancement Saint Ignatius’ College, Riverview Tambourine Road, Lane Cove NSW 2066 E [email protected] T 02 9882 8376 In 1821, Father Conolly went to Tasmania and Father Therry was left alone on the mainland, where he worked diligently with his parishioners, particularly with convicts and Aboriginal people groups. Father Therry set about establishing a healthy foundation for the Catholic Church in Australia and made arrangements for the building of St Mary’s Cathedral. He strove to build churches and schools throughout Sydney and outlying townships. In order to finance his building projects and his many charities, he dabbled in farming, stock breeding and even coal mining. However, as his projects increased in number, his accounts became increasingly chaotic and he waged continuous war with officials for permission to carry out vital services of his ministry. He spent forty-four years, until his death in 1864, working as a priest in New South Wales and once described his life in Australia as “one of incessant labour, very often accompanied by painful anxiety.” Today, however, he is remembered as “a man of large notions and considerable achievement… He undertook many obligations and responsibilities which would, in the circumstances, have crushed greater men. He firmly believed in a distant future for which he built, often regardless of existing conditions.” (Australian Dictionary of Biography) Father Therry saw the Ignatian tradition as being a vital ingredient in the healthy foundation of the Catholic Church in Australia, and one of his great abiding passions was to bring the Irish Jesuits to Australia. This was made possible when, on his death in 1864, he left the greater part of his property to the Society. The Jesuits used the sale of one of Father Therry’s properties, Josephton, to provide much of the finance needed to establish Saint Ignatius’ College, Riverview. Along with Father Joseph Dalton SJ and Archbishop Roger Bede Vaughan, Father Therry is honoured today as one of the founders of Riverview. C AT H Y H O B B S , A R C H I V IS T A R C H I V E S | I G N AT I A N | 3 3