 Br.
Pius Edward Joseph Harris, OP
Br. Pius Harris was one of eight children born to Richard Eugene Harris and Margaret
Maloney. In fact, he had the distinction of
being a twin. He was born in Duluth, Minnesota
on April 3, 1906, and baptized Edward Joseph on April 30 of that year in Sacred Heart
Cathedral at Duluth. He attended the
elementary school at the cathedral and the Christian Brothers High School in Sacramento. This was followed by one year at Heald’s
Business School. The Christian Brothers in
Sacramento provided Pius with his first glimpse of religious life.
On
May 13, 1932, Fr. Charles V. Lamb gave him the habit at St. Dominic’s in Benicia,
California and professed him one year and a day later. Fr.
McMullen renewed his vows in Portland three years later and three years after that Fr.
William Lewis solemnly professed Pius. He
lived to be the oldest Brother in profession in the Province. He spent part of his religious life in such
esoteric Dominican locations as Metropolitan, Hidden Valley, and Kentfield. Pius was a brother of the old school and believed in
making himself useful. At one peak period of
his life Pius was associated with Bassett's Assets, an Oakland corporation. He cared for Geraldine and her puppies, behind the
scenes. After sales were consummated Pius
would deliver the puppy with his usual sad face and plant a goodbye kiss upon it’s
wet face.
In his middle years Pius discovered that periodically he would
succumb to an overwhelming urge to drink. A
stay at Duffy’s in Calistoga helped him to get a grip on himself and led him to join
Alcoholics Anonymous, a fellowship to which he was faithful for over twenty years. In fact on May 22, 1972, Pius was granted
permission to live outside the cloister and served as a director at Serenity House in San
Francisco. During these years Pius would spend
time each morning praying for sobriety with pen in hand. He shared one of these
compositions with the Province by having it published in PROVOP. These prayerful essays disclose a soul completely
given over to the care of God, and a man fully aware of his powerlessness. The last thing at night, when the chapel was dark
and empty, Pius would make a final visit for the day and recite the Rosary in thanksgiving
to God. He was conspicuous for his serenity. And this was the secret.
Two weeks before he died Pius was planning and researching how he
might find a job, and relieve the order of the cost of his maintenance. He was thoroughly aware that he carried a burden in
life; but was reluctant to be a burden to any.
-- Fr. John Fearon, O.P. |
