The monks of Mary Mother of the Church Abbey are mourning the loss of their beloved brother, Fr. Theophile (Waldorf) Brown who passed away the morning of December 24th, 2011.
Father Theophile Brown, OSB, son of the late Thomas Harvey and Sarah Etta Brown, completed his elementary and high school education in Richmond, Virginia in 1992. A member of the former St. Joseph’s Church, Jackson Ward, Father Theophile entered St. John’s University and Seminary, Collegeville, Minnesota, in 1946, to study for the priesthood. He professed his vows as a Benedictine, July 11, 1950, at St. John’s Abbey, Collegeville.
In 1952, he obtained his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Education, Philosophy, and the Classics at St. John’s University, Collegeville.
Father Theophile was ordained to the priesthood at St. John’s Abbey, Collegeville, on May 19th, 1956. After his ordination to the priesthood, he was assigned to St. Augustine’s Monastery in Nassau, the Bahamas, where he was Prior for ten years. He also taught at St. Augustine’s High Schoo and assisted at parishes in Nassau for 38 years.
In September 1961, Fr. Theophile obtained his Master of Arts Degree in Latin at the University of Ottawa, Canada. Continuing his studies abroad, Fr. Theophile obtained a Diploma d’Etudes de Civilization at the University of Paris (Sorbone) and a Diploma de Langue Francaise, Institut Catholique, Paris, in July 1975. Fr. Theophile completed his Master of Arts degree in French at Middlebury College, Vermont, in 1985. He completed a theological renewal program at the North American College, Rome, in 1992.
Fr. Theophile returned to Richmond, in 1994, to teach at Benedictine High School. He transferred his vows from St. John’s Abbey to Mary Mother of the Church Abbey in Richmond. At the Richmond Abbey, Fr. Theophile served in various capacities: Novice Master, Junior Master, Director of Liturgy, Organist, Chaplain to the Little of Sisters of the Poor, and assisting various parishes in the Richmond Diocese on weekends.
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The monks of Mary Mother of the Church Abbey are mourning the loss of their beloved brother, Fr. Theophile (Waldorf) Brown who passed away the morning of December 24th, 2011.
THURSDAY, Dec 29th
12:00 – 3:00pm: Viewing at Little Sisters of the Poor
04:15pm: Reception of the body at the Abbey
07:30pm: Wake
FRIDAY, Dec 30th
10:00am: Mass of Christian Burial at the Abbey
Burial in Abbey Cemetery
Reception after the burial
Please pray for the repose of the soul of Fr. Theophile
For any questions, please call the abbey at 804-784-3508
