Fr. Edwin J. Daly was born on 29thJune 1927, at Chicago, entered the Society on 20th August 1945, at Milford, arrived in Patna in 1952 and was ordained a priest in 1959. He became an Indian citizen in 1965 and joined Delhi Province in 1989. Ed was the founder-director of Navjyoti Niketan Pastoral Centre, Patna. He served this Institute for about two decades. Besides organising various types of renewal programs at Navjyoti, Ed was a regular resource person at the NBCLC, and was on a team of experts doing the rounds all over the country on the mission of church renewal. Ed was a devoted priest, a lover of the Church, a religious educator of young and old, and a true role model. He was in high demand for seminars, counselling, confessions, recollections and retreats for the clergy, religious and lay people. He had deep love for the poor and the suffering, and did all he could to alleviate their sufferings. One could never hear him speak ill of anyone. Ed was a great man for giving thanks. He never forgot to say “Thank you” to all those who visited him when he was sick, and to all those who took care of him. “Thank you for all your services, कोटि कोटि धन्यवाद्,” he would unfailingly say. He never complained of his aches and pains. He bore them all patiently trusting in Divine Providence, and as part of his share in the Paschal Mystery. And ultimately he trustfully surrendered himself like a little child into the Father’s love-filled merciful embrace on 25th November 2021. Ed, “You have been and are an inspiration to many” (Fr. Arturo Sosa), and “You were a blessing in our lives and will continue to bless us from above” (Dr. Shashi Rao). “Phir milenge!”
Mathew Padayatty, SJ
