Obituaries

Father Paul Connors, 1935-2005

Father Paul J. Connors, 70, died of complications from diabetes on Oct. 9, 2005, at Barbara E. Cheung Memorial Hospice in Edison, N.J.

A wake service will be held at Divine Word Residence, 101 Park St., Bordentown, N.J., on Wednesday, Oct. 12 from 4 to 8 p.m. The funeral Mass will be offered at St. Mary’s Parish Church in Bordentown on Thursday, Oct. 13 at 10 a.m., followed by burial in St. Mary’s Parish cemetery.

Father Connors celebrated 50 years in religious vows last month. He was born in Somerville, Mass., and attended St. John’s Grade School. He entered the Society of the Divine Word at the Divine Word Seminary in Duxbury, Mass., and continued his studies for the priesthood at St. Mary’s Seminary in Techny, Ill. He was ordained at Techny in 1963.

His early ministries included administration and education in the eastern United States at Divine Word seminaries in Duxbury, Bordentown, and Girard, Penn. He was principal of the Divine Word high school seminary at Bordentown from 1969 to 1976. He was director of the Miramar Retreat Center in Duxbury from 1981 to 1990.

Father Connors was trained in spiritual direction and retreat ministry. He held a master’s degree in theology from St. Mary’s Seminary and an M.T.S. in spirituality from the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkeley, Calif. From 1995 to 1999, he served on the staff of Techny Towers Retreat Center, offering holistic individual and group spiritual direction and individual retreat direction. For four years, he coordinated the adult spiritual enrichment program called "Northern Lights," a collaborative effort sponsored by Divine Word International at Techny; St. Philip the Apostle Parish in Northfield, Ill.; St. Norbert Parish in Northbrook, Ill.; and Our Lady of the Brook Parish in Northbrook.

He served as a retreat director in the northeastern United States while living at the Divine Word residence in Bordentown since 1999.

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