GOODIER, ALBAN

Archbishop and spiritual writer; b. Great Harwood, Lancashire, England, April 14, 1869; d. St. Scholastica's Abbey, Teignmouth, March 13, 1939. He was educated at Stonyhurst, joined the Society of Jesus in 1887, was ordained in 1903, and made his solemn profession in 1906. In 1915, when superior of the Jesuit students in London, he was called to face the wartime crisis caused at the Jesuit Bombay University by the withdrawal of the entire professorial staff of German Jesuits. His tact in management soon established him as fellow and syndic of the university and a justice of peace. Appointed archbishop of Bombay in 1919, he was consecrated in Westminster Cathedral and took possession of his see Jan. 27, 1920. The administration of the Poona Diocese was added to his responsibilities in 1924. In Bombay, he was much loved by the people for his practical charities. However, the thorny politico-religious situation weighed heavily upon his sensitive nature, and on his quinquennial visit ad limina, he reported the facts to Pius XI. Advised not to return, he resigned Sept. 8, 1926, becoming titular archbishop of Hierapolis in Phrygia. After acting as auxiliary in London for Cardinal Bourne, he finally made St. Scholastica's Abbey his headquarters, and devoted himself to writing and to the giving of retreats, lectures, and sermons. His scholarly bent, simplicity, and deep piety are revealed in his writings, which have exercised a profound influence on many. Among his better-known works are: The Public Life of Our Lord Jesus Christ (1931); The Passion and Death of Our Lord Jesus Christ (1933); and Introduction to the Study of Ascetical and Mystical Theology (1939).

Bibliography: e. graf, "The Archbishop of Hierapolis," Dublin Review 205 (1939) 1–15. h. kean, "Alban Goodier (1869–1939)," Month 173 (1939) 408–415.

[w. peers-smith]