Canon John O’Toole died peacefully on Thursday 3 April.
Born in Dublin in 1950, John O’Toole moved to Chatham, Kent with his family when he was 8 years old. He attended both Catholic and non-Catholic schools and then went to King’s College, London and gained a BA in History and an AKC (Associate of King’s College) award in theology. He then studied at St John’s Seminary, Wonersh and also at St Mary’s College, Strawberry Hill where he gained a Postgraduate Certificate in Religious Education following which he became Head of RE at Richard Challoner Secondary School, New Malden, Surrey.
He was ordained priest in 1978. He spent most of his early career in parish ministry including joining the ecumenical clergy team at the shared Church of St Paul’s as part of the Thamesmead Christian Community – a local ecumenical project involving the Church of England, Methodist, United Reformed and RC Church (1990 -1996).
In 2011 he was appointed as Dean of St George’s Cathedral, Southwark and became a Canon of the Cathedral Chapter.
Canon O’Toole served the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales as National Ecumenical Officer and Secretary to the Department for Dialogue and Unity from 2015 to 2020. In 2020 he was appointed to the role of Episcopal Vicar for Kent.
Rt. Rev. Paul Hendricks, Auxiliary Bishop, Kent Area, RC Archdiocese of Southwark writes…
Along with many ecumenical friends, as well as priests and people from his home diocese of Southwark, I was very sad to hear of the death of Canon John O’Toole, after a long illness.
Amongst so many memories of John, I think of a talk he gave to our Southwark diocesan Unity Commission in 2011, reflecting on ‘My Ecumenical Journey’. He spoke of his experiences on coming to England from Dublin when he was eight years old, and spoke with great encouragement about the transformation in ecumenical relations over the years since then. Those were still days when Roman Catholics were forbidden (whether by Church law or simply by custom, I’ve never been sure) from even going into churches of other denominations. For John, attending a non-Church school turned into an opportunity to get to know other Christians personally, rather than being guided by our own preconceived ideas about them.
I wish I could remember all that John said on that occasion. He gave a similar talk at English ARC (now renamed the English and Welsh Anglican-Roman Catholic Committee), our national Anglican-Roman Catholic dialogue body. John was the Catholic Co-Secretary of EWARC for about ten years, until 2018. This was a natural and joyful experience for him, sharing his faith and learning from others, rejoicing in their faith and their love for their own worship, culture and traditions. He made so many lasting friendships there, and similarly in his work as the Roman Catholic National Ecumenical Officer, from 2015 until 2020.
During his years of pastoral ministry in his home diocese of Southwark, there were two particular ecumenical highlights. He was Parish Priest of Thamesmead, during the early years of what was the only formal Local Ecumenical Partnership in the diocese. The church was shared with the Church of England, Methodists and the United Reformed Church. Working in an ecumenical team – or indeed any team – is bound to have its challenges, but he found it a very formative and rewarding experience.
Later, between about 2012 and 2014, he was our Dean at St George’s Cathedral in Southwark. There, he built upon the already excellent relations with ‘South Bank Churches’ and in particular with the Anglican Cathedral at Southwark and St Olav’s Norwegian Church in Rotherhithe.
Along with his open, positive and encouraging attitude, I’m sure his friends will remember particularly his sense of humour, his infectious laugh and his great skill as a mimic – whether imitating seminary ‘Profs’ from many years ago, or more recent bishops and other clergy.
May he rest in peace and rise in glory.
Rev Dr Callan Slipper, Chair of the Churches Together in England Trustees writes
John O’Toole was so easy to be friends with. Unassuming, capable, dependable, he just welcomed the newcomer, as he did with me. I was the newly appointed National Ecumenical Officer for the Church of England, his opposite number. He put me immediately at my ease.
I found that as we worked together how friendship was not just skin deep but became a genuine collaboration, a listening to one another and then acting together. We served many of the same bodies, for instance what came to be known as the English Welsh Anglican Roman Catholic Committee (EWARC) and, together with many other colleagues, the training of the ecumenical officers in our various churches.
I know how deeply appreciated he was by my Church of England colleagues, especially those who had worked with him before I came along. We all felt he was someone who we could talk to honestly about what was happening in our two churches. In this loyal Catholic, we felt we had someone we could talk with, someone who understood and even appreciated us.
Indeed, he seemed to have an instinctive respect for the other, of whatever tradition. I never felt that he looked down on me and that he was even able to comprehend what, despite our limitations, my church was trying to do for the gospel in the nation. Not all Anglicans can manage that!
One of his most engaging qualities was his sense of humour. It would often sparkle out in moments of relaxation. And it would always appear in his public presentations. He was never boring when he spoke.
I am left with gratitude, and a sense that I have a friend in heaven. It is as if earth has returned a wonderful gift that we have been able to treasure for a while.
Main photo: Mgr Canon John O’Toole. Credit: Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales.