JOYCE REV. THOMAS, C.P. The Reverend Thomas Joyce, C.P., died at 4:45 p.m. on February 7, 2014, in the Immaculate Conception Monastery, Jamaica, NY. Attending him was the Rev. Terrence Kristofak, C.P., his classmate and former Provincial of the Passionist Province of Saint Paul of the Cross. Born in Pittsburgh on October 15, 1940, Father Thomas was a member of Resurrection Parish in Brookline and was educated there by the Sisters of Charity of Greensburg. He attended Saint Justin High School where he was a classmate of Brother Leo Di Fiore, C. P. An honor student, he was taught by the Sisters of Mercy of Erie. He entered Holy Cross Seminary, Dunkirk, NY, in September 1958, where he studied classical languages. He was professed a Passionist on August 15, 1962, taking the name of Brennan of Saint Theresa. He reverted to his baptismal name when he was ordained a priest in May 1969. The Ordaining Prelate was the Most Reverend Edgerton Clarke, first Bishop of Montego Bay, Jamaica. By 1972 he had earned graduate degrees in history and sociology from Fordham University. As a seminarian, he was the first student to be elected a member of the General Chapter of the Passionists in 1968. After ordination in Union City, NJ, he joined his class for a further year of pastoral theology studies in Baltimore, MD. His first assignments were as director of students in various Passionist seminaries on the East Coast of the U.S. He also served as Provincial Consultor for Saint Pau I of the Cross Province. In 1982 he joined the staff of the Monastery Parish of the Immaculate Conception, Jamaica, NY, where he remained pastor for 25 years. In 2003 he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, and he resigned his post in 2007, becoming Pastor Emeritus. He remained a member of the Passionist Community in Jamaica until the time of his death from complications of that illness. He was the son of the late Thomas Joyce, Sr. and Mary McDonough Joyce. He was predeceased by his brother, James. He is survived by two brothers, Kevin (Maggie) and John (Maureen); sister, Patti (Harvey) Klein; and sister-in-law, Mary Ann Joyce. Viewing is in the Monastery Chapel, February 10 and 11, 2014. The Mass of Transfer is Tuesday evening at 8:00 p.m. The Most Reverend Octavio Cisneros, D.D., Auxiliary Bishop of the Diocese of Brooklyn will preside. The Homilist will be the Very Reverend Justin Kerber, C.P., Rector of the Cathedral of Raleigh. The Funeral Mass will be on February 12, 2014, at 11 a.m. in the Monastery Church. The Most Reverend Neil Tiedemann, C.P., Bishop of the Diocese of Mandeville, W.I., will celebrate and preach the homily. Burial will be in the Monastery Cemetery. A Memorial Mass for Father Thomas is anticipated at Saint Paul of the Cross Monastery, Pittsburgh, at a later date. Details will follow. Send condolences at post-gazette.com/gb
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