| Admin_History | Fr John Robert Joyce SJ was born on 15 October 1909. He attended Preston Catholic College for five years and enlisted to the Society of Jesus as a Novitiate on 7 September 1927 at the age of 18, and spent several years as a Junior in France. Following his time in France, he went to Petworth for a month and then to Heythrop College for Christmas. Fr Joyce’s studies were postponed until the end of his Philosophy 1932-1935. After Heythrop, he spent some time at Southwell House on Endsleigh Street in London, where he focused on his studies.
In 1936, he was posted to Hodder House at Stonyhurst, Lancashire. He spent a short period back at Southwell House to continue with his studies, but returned to Stonyhurst to teach for a year, before going onto Heythrop for wartime Philosophy from 1940-1944. Fr Joyce was ordained a deacon in April 1943, and priest on the 2nd July of the same year at St Wilfrid’s, Preston by Bishop Flynn of Lancaster. Following this, he returned to teaching, this time at St Ignatius College, Enfield from 1944-47. In 1948, he went to Birchikara, the Jesuit College in Malta, for one year.
In September 1949, he joined the Parish Staff at St Aloysius’ in Glasgow. He retired to Southwell House in 1952 to rest for several years following an on-going illness and used this time to translate French books. In an effort to return to work, in 1954 he went to Manresa House at Roehampton, taking on the duties of House Librarian. He became a well-known member of the Manresa community, regularly keeping as active as his health would allow by swimming and riding a little motorcycle. In 1959 he moved briefly to Heythrop and Petworth before settling in Wimbledon. In 1965, he moved back to Petworth with the status of a Scriptor.
When Petworth closed in 1977 Fr Joyce spent a brief period at St John’s and Elizabeth hospital, before moving into the Alexian Brothers at Twyford Abbey, West London, where he lived the remainder of his until he died on 24 October 1981. |