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Remembering Fr. John Paris

Remembering Fr. John Paris

A beloved member of our school community, Fr. John Paris, passed on January 15, at the age of 97 years old. Fr. Paris was the longest-serving faculty member in the history of St. Sebastian’s School. Originally from Rome, Italy, Fr. Paris joined the faculty in 1974 to teach Latin, French and Spanish. It didn't take long for him to become one of the most respected and well-liked teachers on Nonantum Hill. In recent years, he stood sentinel in the library. His gentle words reminding boys how to conduct themselves, his humor and charisma, and his deep wisdom and faith will always be remembered.

The School community gathered on January 22 for the funeral of Fr. Paris. Most Rev. Richard G. Henning, Archbishop of Boston, served as the Principal Celebrant of the service. Fr. John Arens gave a heartfelt homily on the life of Fr. Paris and his nearly 50 years of service to St. Sebastian's School on both Nonantum Hill and Greendale Avenue.

The St. Sebastian's community participated throughout the service as well, including readings from Declan Carroll '25, Head of School Brendan Sullivan, and Religion Department Chair Joseph Cressotti. Altar Servers were Joseph Bachiochi '27, Peter Bachiochi '25, Joseph Ryan '28, and faculty members Anthony Perez '19 and John Ryan IV '15. Members of the Class of 2025 Kevin Bresnahan, Ty Ciongoli, Brendan Keaveney, Devin Maguire, Theodore McKeigue, Joseph Sullivan, Nicholas Ward, and Daniel Yang served as pallbearers. Allen Pierce ’85 was the cantor at the funeral.

View video of Fr. Arens' Homily ►


Assistant Head of School Michael Nerbonne paid tribute to Fr. Paris during Corporate Chapel:

In a little over an hour from now, we will gather in the Church to celebrate the life of Fr. John Paris. We do so in gratitude to our Lord for all of the gifts which He bestowed on Fr. Paris in this life, all signs of God’s goodness, those very gifts which Fr Paris shared so freely and fully with all of us, day in and day out, in thousands of ways over thousands of days, in 50 years of most generous service to St. Sebastian’s.

I’m sure that some of you older guys have very fond memories of Fr. Paris, encouraging you to be quiet in the Library, inviting you to perhaps find an alternate location on campus in which to study (in other words, “Get out of the Library”), or pacing the floor with his breviary in hand quietly reciting his obligatory prayers, most likely in Latin.

As the seniors know, I was close to Fr. Paris, and I was honored and very happy that I was able to help him over the past few years of his declining health. It truly was a privilege to spend time with him as the end of his life approached. Through all of the challenges related to his health and decisions about his care, one constant remained: his love and devotion for our School, our faculty and staff, our alumni, and especially all of you, his students, who had a very special place in his heart.

Today we pray him home to his loving Creator, confident that he will hear the words of our Savior, “Well done, my good and faithful servant.”