Mike Kelly RIP

We were so sad to hear the news from Jenny that Mike Kelly passed away at 9am on Thursday morning.

Mike was instrumental in the establishment of our Lay Dominican Family. For a long time there had been a Dominican laity connection, largely the result of active encouragement by the sisters ever since they came to Aotearoa New Zealand. A Dominican Third Order group was set up many years ago in Invercargill, and some of those people still carry the Dominican torch. Colleen Hopwood went a step further and made a formal commitment to the Order, while continuing to live and work in the community. From time to time other groups had started up: the Auckland and Wellington ex-pupils, the “three Marys” (Easton, Betz and Nash) who used to meet with the sisters in Palmerston North (that group, now enlarged, continues to meet). People from the deaf community, such as Danny Beech RIP kept in contact with sisters like Molly, Dominic and Maureen. When Mary Anna and Peter were respectively Asia-Pacific Dominican Council reps they were very active in travelling to the various Dominican centres. There was a busy focus group of lay people who met with them regularly and helped develop the peace and justice formation.

The time came to form an independent lay function of the Dominican Order. On 16 March 2008 Mike Kelly sent out a letter to a group of people whose names he had collated on to a list of lay people who had indicated an interest in the spirituality initiated by St Dominic and St Catherine of Siena.

This is what he said in the letter:

“At present in New Zealand there is a structure for the Sisters and a priory for the friars. A while ago a few of us wondered about setting up some way of connecting with lay people who like to be identified as Dominicans. In some parts of the world there is a quite formal Dominican apostolate – tertiaries and similar. In New Zealand people call themselves Dominican in a variety of ways – some groups of different kinds, and a number of individuals finding their own way.

On 8 March six of us – two from Auckland (Susan Healy and David Tutty), one from Palmerston North (Trish Corboy-Carr), one from Dunedin (Maria O’Connell) and my wife Jenny Wilson and I from Masterton, met to discuss whether a lay link was a good idea. We considered with gratitude the work the sisters have done in the past in keeping the connections alive, but wondered whether as part of the Dominican family lay people ought to take some responsibility.

We decided that in a changing world and a changing Church, in New Zealand at least, anything formal was not what was needed. What we thought would be useful was a regular newsletter that kept people in touch with initiatives of the friars and the sisters; gave lay people the option of contributing to some of those activities and perhaps even initiating some ourselves; and offered ideas on how some people in New Zealand walk the Dominican path either via groups or in other ways.

From the meeting on 8 March, the group identified the following starting points:

Each of us then shared what being a lay Dominican means to us. Some of the key points that emerged were:
valuing the quest for truth
responding to the signs of the times
spirituality and theology rooted in what we are living
coming together in groups
considering: how do we ‘preach’, and the many dimensions of that
freedom for the involvement of the laity in the mission of the church and the Order
deepening and nurturing our vocation in life
recognition of the variety of vocations
freeing the life that is in the church
community prayer as fundamental
commitment to the four pillars: prayer, community, study, and preaching
the importance of the Dominican charism continuing in Aotearoa /New Zealand.

We then considered what might be the aims of a national lay Dominican movement.

Summary of proposed aims for a national lay Dominican movement

To contribute to the ongoing life of the Dominican charism in Aotearoa /New Zealand
To create spaces where we can respond, and enable others to respond, to the signs of the times
To live and promote the four pillars of Dominican life: prayer, study, community, and preaching.
To promote a theology based on finding God in the world around us (an incarnational theology)
To recognise and promote the sense of belonging to the Dominican family
To affirm and support the prophetic voices and actions
To be part of the Dominican prophetic voice – within our church and society.”

Since this beginning in 2008 we have had two national gatherings of laity – the first in Wellington in 2010 and the second in Auckland in 2014. In 2012 a survey of the laity was taken with a profile developed which is published on our website (http://www.dominicans.org.nz/dominican-family-projects/profile-of-nz-laity/).

Lay Dominicans continue to live out the Dominican Charism in many ways throughout the country. We are connected, largely because Mike had the vision and dream to gather us as Dominican whanau.

We give thanks for Mike Kelly for his vision to initiate this Lay Dominican network in Aotearoa New Zealand. We hold in prayer Jenny and family as they farewell Mike over the next few days.