Brother Aloysius Moliner, MM

Born: January 22, 1889
Oath: September 14, 1930
Died: March 11, 1978

Brother Aloysius Moliner died on March 11, 1978 at St. Teresa’s, Maryknoll, at the age of 89. The peace and serenity of his death reflected those same qualities in his entire life of service as a Maryknoller.

Brother Aloysius was born Horace Moliner in a small town near Havana, Cuba, on January 22, 1889. He came to the States in 1913 to work in the home of a wealthy acquaintance of a neighbor. For three years he worked with that family in Philadelphia but the vocation to religious life that he felt in his last years in Cuba continued to grow. In 1916, the family moved to New York and had no further use of Aloysius’ services. It was at that time that he heard about the beginnings of a new Mission Society, Maryknoll. He wrote to Father Walsh, the founder, about entrance into the Society. He was invited to come and see. He knew at once that this was the life to which God was calling him.

Brother Aloysius, from the beginning, was a model of prayer and dedication and his life in Maryknoll and service to mission spanned over 60 years. Throughout those years he constantly tried to make his personal surrender to God more complete but never saw this surrender as taking him away from his community. He frequently wrote short notes to each successive superior assuring them of his prayers. His last years at St. Teresa’s were years of continued growth in prayer and service to the community. His simplicity and humility were the foundation stones of a deep and constant spirituality.

In a brief autobiography written for the Cloistered Maryknoll Sisters, the first lines sum up beautifully Brother Aloysius’ life: “By the Mercy of God, I am what I am, and his Merciful Love has not been in vain for me.”

There was a wake in the Chapel at Maryknoll on Tuesday evening, March 14 at 7:30 p. m. and the Mass of the Resurrection was concelebrated in the Chapel at 11:45 a.m. on Wednesday, March 15. Burial followed in the Maryknoll Cemetery.