PAUL DAVID BURNS C.S.S.
September 8, 1935 – March 6, 2023
The Reverend Paul David Burns, C.S.S., S.T.L., M.A., died on Monday, March 6,
2023 in Saint Patrick’s Manor, Framingham, Massachusetts. He was 87 years old, a
professed Stigmatine for more than sixty-six years, and in the sixtieth year of
his priesthood.
Father Paul was born in Cambridge on September 8, 1935, a son of the late Alfred and Margaret (McDonnell) Burns. He was raised in Watertown (Massachusetts) and in 1949 entered the Stigmatine seminary in Waltham and then in Wellesley (Massachusetts). He was admitted to the novitiate in 1956. After that, he earned a Bachelor’s degree and a Licentiate in Sacred Theology from The Catholic University in Washington, D.C. He added a Master’s Degree in classical languages from Fordham University in the Bronx, New York in 1965.
He celebrated his first religious profession on June 22, 1956 and his perpetual profession on the same date in 1959. Father Paul was ordained to the priesthood on June 9, 1963 in Washington, D.C. by Archbishop Philip Hannan.
His assignments included teaching at the Stigmatine Seminary in Wellesley, Director of the Espousal Retreat House in Waltham, Associate Pastor at Sacred Heart Parish in Feeding Hills, Mass., Pastor of Our Lady of Angels Parish in Woodbridge, Virginia, Pastor of Sacred Heart Parish in Milford and Associate Pastor at Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Springfield, Massachusetts. In 2010, he retired to the Stigmatine Residence (Saint Joseph’s Hall) in Waltham.
Father Paul’s character is difficult to capture because in many ways he was shy and private. Of course, everyone had their own personal experience of Father Paul; however, virtually, everyone would agree that Father Paul was: intelligent; calm; “laid-back;” stubborn in his beliefs, though always respectful of others; a man of careful judgment and decision-making; analytical; he loved to read; had a natural affection for animals--especially dogs; articulate, in a clear, concise way; had a genuine sense of humor; loved the water and swimming, and savored Dunkin Donuts.
Father Paul favored several scripture texts because each one is a clear, simple, direct statement about faith in God and in his Son our Lord Jesus Christ. Listen to the Word Father Paul loved to contemplate:
- I know that my redeemer lives… my own eyes shall behold him… (Job 19: 25a,27a)
- If God is for us, who can be against us? ... What can separate us from the love of Christ?... (Rm 8: 31b, 35a)
- (What you have) hidden from the wise and the learned you have revealed to the childlike… (cf. Mt 11:25)
- Take my yoke upon you…and you will find rest… (cf. Mt 11:29)
In his simple, straightforward, natural love for animals, Father Paul revealed his childlike affection and trust in his God.
Karl Barth was an immense scholar and theologian who brought much insight and learning to our understanding of the Word of God. Toward the end of his long life, he gave his last lecture and invited questions. One questioner asked: “Professor Barth, many people regard you as one of the deepest thinkers of the 20th century. Please tell us the profoundest idea you ever had.” Barth replied, without a moment’s hesitation:”Jesus loves me“.
For all his intelligence, Father Paul intuitively grasped what the great theologian meant. Father Paul understood that faith is not about praying away problems or fears and wishing it were otherwise. Faith somehow requires experiencing the love of God in Jesus Christ with child-like trust, and without fear whatsoever.
What made Father Paul so effective and loved in his ministry was his unshakeable belief that, wherever the bread is broken in remembrance of Him, who gave his life for us, then God will have the last word—a just, joyous, loving, and peaceful word, in this world and the next.
In Father Paul’s biographical profile, when listing his assignments, the very first he wanted us to note and remember was his ministry with young people at Camp Wyoma in Hinsdale, Massachusetts. He loved Camp Wyoma, the water, and everything associated with it. When asked to describe his ministry there, he wrote this: Dishwashing to Director. I think that sums him up. Simple, clear, concise, direct, humorous, honest, straightforward: Father Paul’s life, his ministry, his faith.
He leaves his siblings, Donald (wife: Mary) of Billerica (Massachusetts) and Barbara of Wells, Maine and in addition to his Stigmatine community, Father Paul is survived by many nieces, nephews and numerous friends whom he encountered during his priestly ministry.
He was also a brother of the late Alfred, Richard and William Burns, and Beverly Strang.
Family and friends gathered for Visitation on Monday, March 13th, in Sacred Heart of Jesus Church, Milford, Massachusetts, where a Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated at 11 a.m., followed by internment in the Stigmatine plot in Sacred Heart Cemetery.
May Father Paul David Burns rest in peace.
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