Msgr. Joseph J. Boyd

Msgr. Joseph J. Boyd, pastor emeritus of SS. John and Paul parish in Larchmont and former pastor of St. Boniface parish in Wesley Hills, died Dec. 20 at Our Lady of Consolation Residence in the Bronx. He was 85.

Archbishop Dolan offered the Funeral Mass Dec. 23 at SS. John and Paul Church. The homilist was Msgr. William Belford, vicar for clergy.

Msgr. Boyd was pastor of SS. John and Paul from 1985 until his retirement in 2003. He had been pastor of St. Boniface in Wesley Hills—its location was known then as Monsey—from 1973 to 1985, and built its new parish church.

His assignments as a parochial vicar were at St. Mary of the Assumption in Katonah, 1969-1973; Most Holy Trinity in Mamaroneck, 1954-1969; and St. Paul’s in Congers, 1950-1954.

Father Robert J. Verrigni, parochial vicar at Resurrection parish in Rye, was parochial vicar at SS. John and Paul for 13 years while Msgr. Boyd was pastor.

“He was a priest’s priest,” Father Verrigni told CNY. “There was nobody kinder, nobody gentler, nobody more generous that I’ve ever known.” He described Msgr. Boyd as a devoted pastor who never failed to visit parishioners who were ill at home or in the hospital, never missed the children’s games and special events at the parish school, and often helped those in financial need.

“He gave of himself like a candle burning before the Blessed Sacrament,” Father Verrigni said.

If a family at the parish school was unable to pay tuition, Msgr. Boyd found a way to cover the cost, “even if he had to pay it himself,” he added. He also said that Msgr. Boyd “kept some families from losing their homes” by helping them through difficult times.

Msgr. Boyd had suffered a serious illness many years ago, and that gave him great compassion for the sick and the dying, Father Verrigni said. He added that Msgr. Boyd “rehabilitated” a number of priests who suffered from emotional illness and “got them back to the ministry.”

Father John F. Reardon, pastor emeritus of St. Rita’s on Staten Island, was a classmate of Msgr. Boyd’s at St. Joseph’s Seminary. “He was a very humble and a very grateful man,” Father Reardon told CNY. “People loved him because he was always there…he was sympathetic to their needs.”

He remarked that Msgr. Boyd was proud of the church whose construction he led at St. Boniface parish; it replaced “a bungalow church” which was inadequate for parish needs, he said.

Msgr. Belford, in his homily, noted that Msgr. Boyd carried the cross of his final illness with grace. “Calm demeanor, positive outlook, sense of humor—these were gifts from God to him, and in turn he chose to share his gifts with his people,” he said.

Msgr. Boyd was born in Newark, Ohio, and grew up in Manhattan, where he attended Immaculata High School before entering Cathedral College to prepare for priesthood. He went on to St. Joseph’s Seminary, Dunwoodie, and was ordained in 1950. He was named a monsignor in 1986.

SS. John and Paul parish honored him at a Mass and dinner in 2000 for his 50th anniversary of ordination. The parish hall is named in his honor.

After retiring in 2003, he resided at the John Cardinal O’Connor Residence in the Bronx until he moved to Our Lady of Consolation in 2007.

He held a master’s degree in pastoral counseling from Iona College and was a certified hospital chaplain. While serving at St. Boniface, he was a chaplain at Rockland County Infirmary.

He was predeceased by two sisters and two brothers, including Father Theophane Boyd, O.C.S.O., a Trappist monk and author. Burial was at Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Hawthorne.