The Parish priest of St John of God church in Auburn, Fr Raymond Farrell, died early on 27 March at St Joseph’s Village in Auburn. He was 73 years of age.
Archbishop Anthony Fisher OP will lead a small Mass of Christian Burial for Fr Ray in line with the coronavirus pandemic public health restrictions, with a public memorial Mass to be arranged at a future date.
Fr Ray was born in Wellington, NSW and entered St Columba’s College, Springwood in 1967 but his studies were interrupted by the need to care for his parents.
He resumed his studies at St Patrick’s College Manly (1991) and was ordained to the priesthood at St Felix De Valois Parish, Bankstown on 13 September 1996.
He served as assistant priest at Liverpool and then at St Mary’s Cathedral in 2001.
He was appointed the administrator of St John of God in 2002 and then parish priest the following year, a role he served until his death.
During his time as parish priest of Auburn, Fr Ray served as dean of the Auburn-Bankstown deanery from 2003 until 2016. He has been the chaplain to the Catholic Women’s League since 2003 and to the archdiocesan council of the St Vincent de Paul society since 2011. He served on the Council of Priests from 1997 until 2019.
