HUNDREDS of mourners - family, friends and colleagues - gathered at Christ Church Cathedral in Dublin yesterday for the funeral service of Mr Fergus Pyle, chief leader writer of The Irish Times and a former editor of the newspaper.
In his address, Canon Stanley Baird, who ministered to Mr Pyle during the last weeks of his life, said that should he ever find himself struck down suddenly by a serious illness he would gain great strength from Mr Pyle's example.
Canon Baird, the Rector of Swords, said that he had become involved in a two way communication with Fergus during what turned out to be the final chapter of his life. "Those who knew Fergus", he said, "will not be surprised when I tell you that for every one word I uttered he responded with ten or twenty. And his words were those of a person who knew he was facing the greatest test of his life."
Fergus had been "completely open and honest with himself, caring for and understanding of others, confidently realistic as far as his illness was concerned, but with a Christian commitment to hope and victory".
Canon Baird revealed that Fergus had shared with him moments of happiness and moments of disappointment in his life. "Among other things, I asked him if, in relation to his disappointments, he felt any bitterness of this he was certain - he was carrying no bitterness forward in his life."
The chief mourners were his wife, Mary, and their children Anna, Co nor Jerram, Sarah and Sebastien. Also in attendance were his sister, Ms Hilary Pyle his brother, David; his sister in law, Mrs Margaret Sides; and his father in law, Canon Jerram Burrows.
The President, Mrs Robinson, was represented by her aide de camp, Commandant Dermot O'Connor. The Taoiseach, Mr Bruton, was represented by his aide de camp, Captain Maurice McQuillan.
The Polish ambassador, Mr Stanislaw Szymanski, and the Hungarian ambassador, Mr Laszlo Mohai, also attended. The British embassy was represented by its deputy head of mission, Mr Richard Clarke, and by Ms Claire Tuhey.
The Minister of State at the Departments of Health, Education and Justice, Mr Austin Currie, the Fine Gael TD, Ms Frances Fitzgerald, and Judge Gerard Buchanan, the retired Circuit Court judge, also attended, as did the second secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and head of the Department's Anglo Irish Division, Mr Sean O hUiginn.
The following governors of the Irish Times Trust Ltd and directors of The Irish Times Ltd attended Major T.B. McDowell, chairman; Mr Donal Nevin and Mr Don Reid. The Irish Times Ltd was also represented by the following directors: Mr Conor Brady, editor; Mr L.C. O'Neill, chief executive and group managing director; Mrs Karen Erwin, deputy group managing director; Mr Derek McCullagh; Ms Maeve Donovan; Mr Pat O'Hara, Mr Eoin McVey and Mr Ken Gray.
The congregation included dozens of past and present colleagues of Mr Pyle from all departments of The Irish Times, including former editor Mr Douglas Gageby.
The large media presence included RTE's director of news, Mr Joe Mulholland, and the station's director of broadcasting development, Mr Wesley Boyd. Other past and present journalists and broadcasters who attended included Mr James Downey, Mr Dennis Kennedy, Mr Brian Farrell, Mr Dermot Mullane, Mr Kieran Cooke, Mr Vincent Jennings, Mr Joe Fahy, Ms Nell McCafferty, Mr John Cooney, Mr Mike Burns, Mr Louis McRedmond, Mr Proinsias Mac Aonghusa and Mr Brian Dobson.
A large contingent of staff from Trinity College Dublin, where Mr Pyle was information officer for five years from 1978, were present. They included the Provost, Dr Thomas Mitchell; the Vice Provost, Professor David Spearman; the Registrar, Professor Andrew Mayes; the former Secretary, Dr Gerald Giltrap; Professor Barbara Wright, Mr Tommy Murtagh and Dr JeanPaul Pittion, all of the French department; Ms Susan Parkes, of the education department; Dr Patrick Keatinge, the Jean Monnet Professor of European Integration; Dr Sean Barrett, economics department; and former staff member Mr George Clarke.
Members of the Church of Ireland clergy present included the former Archbishop of Dublin, the Right Rev Donald Caird; the former Dean of Cork, the Very Rev Maurice Carey; the former Dean of Lismore, the Very Rev Gilbert Mayes; the former Archdeacon of Dublin, the Ven R.G.F. Jenkins; the Rev Canon Cecil Cooper, editor of the Church of Ireland Gazette; and the Rev Brendan Haythornthwaite, Rector of Shinrone, Co Offaly.
Members of the Catholic clergy included Father Enda McDonagh, retired professor of moral theology at St Patrick's College, Maynooth; and Father Bernard Treacy OP, editor of Doctrine and Life magazine.
Others present included the director of the National Gallery of Ireland, Mr Raymond Keaveney; the National Gallery's education officer, Ms Marie Bourke; the former: Lord Mayor of Dublin, Ms Carmentica Hederman; the assistant stage manager of the Abbey Theatre, Mr Stephen Dempsey; the former principal of Mount Temple School, Mr John Medleycott; Mr Dermot Scott, of the European Parliament office in Dublin; the international secretary of the Labour Party, Mr Tony Browne; the director of the Rape Crisis Centre, Ms Olive Braiden; and the auctioneer and Fine Gael director of elections, Mr Mark FitzGerald.
The service was conducted by the Dean of Christ Church Cathederal, the Very Rev John Paterson, assisted by Canon Baird and Canon Adrian Empey.