How his Irish Catholic faith brought Teddy Kennedy home
Larger Text
Print
E-mail
Make a comment
RSS 
Recent Posts
- The Irish community returns to Hurricane Sandy hit Rockaways to aid ongoing recovery
- Young Irish woman turned in to U.S. authorities by Irish immigrant support group - Boston-based Irish International Immigrant Center does the unspeakable
- Profile in Irish fighting courage - Heffernan’s campaign for respite care for families dealing with fatal rare illnesses such as Batten’s disease
- Senator Schumer says Irish deserve a separate deal for visas because of 1965 shutout - Says “Schumer visas” set to give Ireland 10,500 visas a year for the future
- Prospects for immigration reform bill are 50-50 say the pols privately - House seen as major obstacle as Senate gets closer to a vote
Archives
09/03/2009 04:55 PM
"It was my faith that brought me home," Teddy Kennedy writes at the end of his memoir "True Compass" which will be published on September 14.
His extraordinary account of his battle with cancer in the final pages of that memoir will serve as an inspiration for all who face the same terrible fight. His closing line is an eloquent and wonderful epitaph for an Irish Catholic who battled demons in life.
Somehow, Kennedy found a way to overcome those demons even though he spent his life in the shadow of famous brothers and in the bright glare of the relentless media spotlight.
His Irish heritage forms a huge part of the book, as might be expected. His work on the Northern Irish peace process gave him as much satisfaction as those of us who worked with him on it suspected. It is quite simply, one of the great triumphs of his later life.
On the darker side, he frankly admits that he drank way too much in the years after Robert's death. That and Chappaquiddick he says almost caught him in a death spiral but somehow he survived.
Kennedy was nothing but a fighter, often one who suffered from self inflicted wounds. His brothers died at their zenith, so were displayed in amber in an aura of perfect grace.
With Teddy we got the man in full, flawed, yet magnificent in his determination to never give up on his ideals.
Kennedy did not wear his religion on his sleeve like many bible thumpers but in the end he hewed to the biblical message that "blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." Nobody helped the poor like Teddy Kennedy, nobody felt their pain more. It is a message his detractors deliberately choose to ignore, focusing instead on his all too easy flaws. Another biblical message should give them pause: "Let him without sin cast the first stone."
Kennedy's deep Irish faith came from his mother, Rose. She sought solace in her faith during the many tragedies she suffered.
He is contrite about Chappaquidick and said the death of Mary Jo Kopechne haunted him all his life. "Atonement lasts a lifetime," he said. We will never know what really happened on that lonely road off Chappaquiddick Island. Kennedy strongly denied that he was drunk on the night of that dreadful accident.
Suffice to say that Kennedy felt its impact the rest of his life and that his deep Irish faith helped him cope.
Comment
Be the first to make a comment.
- Did Pope Francis perform an exorcism at the...
- 87-year-old sues Donald Trump over condo...
- Immigration reform bill passes a huge hurdle...
- Violent attacks on gays in New York up 70...
- One in seven people on social welfare in...
- 'I expect terror attacks during G8 summit'...
- Nigerian migrants send $653 million a year...
- The top ten things I dislike about Irish...
- Irish leader delivers powerful commencement...
- Sordid tale of Jimmy Savile to become a musical
