A Tribute to the late Bishop Des Moore MSC. He would have been a bishops, 50 years on July 2nd

Tribute by Joe Ensing, Tony Young and Russ Andersen, longtime MSC missionaries in Eastern Papua.

Courtesy of MSC Magazine

Bishop Sir Desmond Charles Moore msc KBE

“I think we lived in the best times, Tony.”

“You can be sure of that, Russ.”

Those times started for the two of us when we we studied at Croydon with Des for a short time. They were the heady days of Vatican II for the younger students. Des, who had come to Croydon after a spell of civvy life as a

banker preferred to trust the compass of his simpler faith that had served him well, and continued to do so throughout his life.

After serving his PNG missionary apprenticeship in Port Moresby, Des was

appointed P.P. of Boregaina in the Central Province and soon became also the MSC  Superior.  He was appointed Bishop of Sideia in Milne Bay Province in 1970.

Joe Ensing had already arrived at Sideia a short time before. Russ and myself had already been working in Milne Bay for some years. The three of us were there to welcome our new Bishop and friend from student days.  For the next 31 years we worked under him in our island parishes.  It was an experience we will never forget.

Bishop Des was a man without any pretensions to be anything else but himself.  He respected the formalities demanded by his Office, but apart from that was content to be what he would have described as “a pretty ordinary bloke”.  He could often be found on the wharf helping to load one of the mission boats, or organising the passengers and deck cargo with typical energy – sometimes to the 

bemusement of the crew.

Often he would be out and about around Alotau – at one time on a motor scooter.

He could be found in the offices of business houses and stores, bringing with him always a breath of fresh air; people enjoyed his forthright views on everything from the price of roofing iron to how the country was being run.

Bishop Des was always a dedicated shepherd who cared personally for all his sheep – or “donkeys” as we would sometimes be called when we had

annoyed him more than usual. His house was always open to anyone in need or distress, and most left him helped or comforted. When he was home he was always available on the mission radio network for a yarn or to discuss any problems that arose in the far flung parishes of his

diocese. To quote Russ, “I have to say personally I have never met anyone so charitable and so witnessing to God’s love in his life-style.”

Most of all he will be remembered by us as a man who fostered freedom in our tiny corner of the Church.  He was a man of definite opinions, but he had a remarkable tolerance for those who disagreed with him. He directed most matters and people with a light hand. He gave his young priests -such as we were then – plenty of rope in their ministry, but let us know very definitely when we had reached the end of it.

Again Russ, “Des trusted his priests while allowing us to be ourselves, warts and all!  We, in turn, trusted him, allowing him to be himself.  Such mutual trust engendered warm friendship and contributed to both sides giving of their best in MSC solidarity.”

To Des:  you may not believe all this, Des, but that’s how we remember it.  And now, when you have to bear with the inevitable limitations that age imposes, we pray with you that, in God’s good time, you will know the joy and the fullness of that blessing you gave to us,  in the presence of him who is the Truth that sets us free.

                                                By Russ, Joe, and Tony

  Golden Jubilee of Episcopal Ordination of Desmond Moore

Born 12th May, 1926, Desmond Charles Moore, M.S.C. Ordained Priest of Missionaries of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Bishop Emeritus of Alotau-Sideia, Papua New Guinea.

For 41 years, Bishop Desmond Moore ministered to the people of Papua New Guinea. Now in retirement in Sydney, he still has a heart for the region.

Bishop Moore grew up in Adelaide, relocating to Sydney as a young man to become a Missionary of the Sacred Heart (MSC).  He says it was his "desire to go to foreign missions", and the constant presence of MSCs throughout his childhood, that drew him to the order.  "The only people I knew who did mission work were the priests," he says.

Despite having already completed his high school education, Desmond Charles Moore "hadn't done too much Latin".  "I was there for three years doing school, then had a year in the novitiate, before I went to Croydon in Victoria. "When I was first ordained (as a priest of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on July 27, 1957), I was posted back to      Douglas Park as assistant to the novice master and the bursar of the monastery."

Bishop Moore held this role from 1958-1960, at the end of which he received his first overseas posting.

For his first 12 months in PNG, Des was based in Port Moresby where he worked with the bishop and the parish priest.

After two years, Fr Moore, who was then religious superior for the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart in Port Moresby, was posted to Milne Bay and, on March 7, 1970, was appointed bishop of the 20,000 sq km diocese of Sideia, succeeding the founding bishop of the diocese, Bishop Francis John Doyle MSC.  "There I was for the next 31 years," Bishop Moore says.

In 1996 Bishop Moore was knighted for his work in Papua New Guinea.  Ever humble, he accepted the award without fanfare, as a mere representative of the many religious and lay missionaries working in the region at the time.

"It was granted to me by the Queen; I don't know how that came about," he said.

His time in PNG gave Bishop Moore a greater understanding of the challenges faced by Australians who served in the Region during World War II.

Bishop Moore died, aged 94, on June 2nd 2020.