Terence J. Purcell papers, ca. 1890-2006

fonds

ca. 1890-2006

Textual Records, Graphic Materials, Nonmusical Sound Recordings, Clippings, Ephemera, Photographs

949883

6.45 metres of textual material and approximately 400 photographs (43 boxes)
2 sound cassettes

Terence Joseph Purcell (1922-2006), Catholic priest, was born in Enmore, NSW, on 11 February 1922, only son and eldest of five children of Thomas Joachim Purcell and Frieda May Elizabeth, nee Von Holdt. His mother was a Catholic convert, received into the Church by Monsignor Tom Harrington at Guildford, NSW, where the family lived. The Purcell family moved to Strathfield after the death of Thomas Purcell.

During World War II Purcell attained the rank of Staff Sergeant while serving with the Corps of Australian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers in Sydney and in Darwin.

Purcell studied for the priesthood at St Columba’s College, Springwood and St Patrick’s College, Manly. He was ordained in St Mary’s Cathedral, Sydney, by Norman Thomas Cardinal Gilroy on 24 July 1954. He served in several Sydney parishes before his appointment as parish priest of St Benedict’s, Broadway from 1973 until his retirement in 2005. He had presided over celebrations for the 150th anniversary of St Benedict’s in July 1995.

In 1972 Purcell graduated Bachelor of Divinity (Honours) from the University of London in 1972. During this course he specialised in Greek New Testament studies and Greek and Latin writings of the early Church Fathers. From the early 1970s Purcell had begun submitting information to the Holy See regarding the position of the Catholic Church in Australia.

Purcell held a number of offices in the Archdiocese of Sydney, including Secretary of the Archbishop’s Senate of Priests and Chairman of the Clergy Remuneration and Retirement Plan. He was also Vice President of the Newman Graduate Association.

In 2005 Father Terence Purcell was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for service to the Catholic Church, particularly through the restoration of St Benedict’s Church, Broadway. He died in Sydney on 19 December 2006.

References:
Compiled from the collection
Library correspondence file

This collection comprehensively documents Father Terence Purcell’s military experiences on the homefront, and his post-war religious life as a seminarian and parish priest. It includes personal diaries, correspondence, theological notes, lectures, study materials on Church history, subject files, sermons and homilies, photographs and a sound recording. His reports to the Vatican relating to the Catholic Church in Australia reflect his assiduous commentary on Catholic affairs and his role as an implacable advocate for traditional Catholic doctrines.

SERIES 01
Terence J. Purcell personal and travel diaries, 1974-1975, 1980-2005

SERIES 02
Terence J. Purcell ‘Personal Diary Papers’, 1918, 1936-2006

SERIES 03
Terence J. Purcell notebooks, with loose extracts, 1972-1975, 1991-2006

SERIES 04
Terence J. Purcell financial and legal papers, 1982-2005

SERIES 05
Terence J. Purcell miscellaneous papers, 1938-2001

SERIES 06
Terence J. Purcell theological notes, lectures and study materials, 1949-1993

SERIES 07
Terence J. Purcell sermons and homilies, 1982-2001, with papers relating to his Golden Jubilee of ordination to the priesthood, 2004

SERIES 08
Terence J. Purcell ‘Evolution File’, 1956-1998

SERIES 09
Terence J. Purcell subject files, 1937-2005

SERIES 10
Terence J. Purcell copies of submissions to the Holy See relating to the Catholic Church in Australia, with related files, 1979-2000

SERIES 11
Terence J. Purcell papers relating to St. Benedict’s, Broadway, Sydney, 1980-2005

SERIES 12
Terence J. Purcell printed material, 194-?, 1962-2005

SERIES 13
Terence J. Purcell photographs, ca. 1890-2004

SERIES 14
Terence J. Purcell associated papers and records, 1974-1995

SERIES 15
Terence J. Purcell papers relating to the Archbishop’s Senate of Priests, 1951-1980

SERIES 16
Terence J. Purcell papers relating to the Archdiocese of Sydney Board of Management’s Clergy Remuneration and Retirement Plan, 1968-1989

SERIES 17
Terence J. Purcell sound recordings, 1986

Copyright status:: In copyright - This collection has multiple rights owners
Please acknowledge:: Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales and Courtesy copyright holder