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innumerable people on the margins of society, with Soul of Christ, sanctify me; Body of Christ,
their various needs and their importunate requests
for immediate help. Brother Ted matched these save me
activities with repairs and maintenance tasks at The Water from the side of Christ, wash me
Ranch, with an energy level that people twenty years
younger than him could well have been envious of. Passion of Christ, strengthen me.

I used to think that Brother Ted would live to be 100 Then looking ahead to the fragility and mortality of
years of age. In fact, several times I warned him he the life of each one of us, it continues:
should have something prepared to say at MY funeral
Mass. Admittedly a risky commission to give to
someone who had lived in the same community with O good Jesus, hear me...
me for so long! So, what happened over the space In the hour of my death call me; and bid
of two weeks was totally unexpected. That Saturday
morning when he started to feel unwell, with the pain me come unto You
increasing each hour… Brother Ted trying to downplay That with your Saints I may praise You;
it, but within hours, the ambulance was called and
the first aid people did all they could to ease the pain Forever and ever, Amen.
before he was taken to the Emergency Department.
Next morning, he underwent a quite massive
operation and thereafter spent most of his remaining “In the hour of my death call me and bid
days in the ICU. I want to pay tribute here to the care
that he received from the doctors and nurses at the me come unto You.”
Royal Darwin Hospital. From time to time we thought
Brother Ted would somehow manage to overcome the In the hour of Brother Ted’s death, we can be sure it
forces that were pulling him down, but it was not to was Jesus who called him and bade him to come to
be. A few hours after he was transferred to the Hospice Him, so that with all the Saints he could be with Him
on Holy Thursday, he simply stopped breathing. Two and praise Him forever.
of his very close friends were at his side, Peter Liddle
and Joan Halvorson who are both here this morning.
As we continue now with the celebration of the Mass,
I want to extend my personal condolences, the we can be sure that Brother Ted, who as a Missionary
condolences of the Darwin diocese and those of the of the Sacred Heart was so faithful to his religious
Missionaries of the Sacred Heart to Brother Ted’s commitment and to the teachings of Jesus, so
younger sister Margaret and her husband Des, to devoted to the presence of Christ in the Eucharist and
their children and to all his other relatives, most of always ready to help the neediest of God’s people, is
them down in Brisbane. They have been in frequent already enjoying everlasting life, peace and light in
touch with us throughout these last couple of weeks. the Kingdom of God.
Needless to say, the poignancy of these recent
events has only been heightened by the distancing Fr. Malcolm Fyfe MSC
restrictions we currently have to work under. I also 16 April 2020
want to extend our condolences to Brother Ted’s
many friends and clients, many of whom will now be
wondering who to turn to with their needs.
I also want to mention my fellow MSC priests and
brothers, especially those ministering in the Darwin
diocese. Our NT MSC Superior, Father Leo Wearden at
Wadeye, Father Peter at Daly River, Fathers Pat Mara
and Danh Doan on the Tiwi Islands and of course
my concelebrants here at the altar. All of these men
will miss Brother Ted’s fellowship and his ever ready
willingness to assist them in any way needed.
In particular, I want to mention Brother Herman
Kooyman, who is in lockdown at the Pearl Aged Care
Facility. He would love to be here this morning to give
witness to how much and how often Brother Ted did
everything he could to make life a little more tolerable
for him. Brother Herman will miss Brother Ted very
dearly indeed.

So thank you, Brother Ted, for your enormous
contribution to the life and mission of the Church
in the Northern Territory, with special emphasis on
helping the Indigenous and the marginalized.

There is an ancient and well-known prayer called the
Anima Christi, a prayer addressed to Christ in the
Eucharist and generally recited after receiving Holy
Communion. It is a beautiful prayer that Brother Ted
was familiar with. It begins with the words:
8 Catholic Community of the Northern Territory, Diocese of Darwin