PEQUANNOCK When the news that a possible second miracle could bring the humble Capuchin friar Blessed Solanus Casey closer to sainthood rang out around the world earlier this month, it landed in the Diocese to the delight of the Murphy family — several of whom are from Pequannock — who are related to the would-be saint. Over the years, many of the Murphys have had a connection with Holy Spirit Parish here.
On Nov. 1, the diocesan newspaper of the Diocese of Lansing, Mich., published a story of a married father of three, who claimed to have made a miraculous recovery from COVID-19 after two bedside visits by Blessed Solanus.
The hopeful story overjoyed members of the Murphy clan, many of whom have a strong devotion to their relative, Blessed Solanus. For All Saints Day on Nov. 1, Holy Spirit Parish opened a redesigned shrine in an alcove of the church, which features images of Blessed Solanus, to honor the Murphy’s connection to him, and of Martin and Marie-Azélie Guérin, parents of St. Therese of Lisieux, to pray for a return of a strong family life in society. If the Vatican were to approve this recent account of a miraculous healing, Blessed Solanus would be a step closer to sainthood.
“I hope that this [account] brings Blessed Solanus closer to becoming a saint,” Jim Murphy, 84, a former Holy Spirit parishioner, widower, and retired Pequannock police officer, who now lives in Toms River, told The Beacon about his cousin who died on July 31, 1957 at 86. He traces Brother Solanus, born with the first name “Bernard,” back as the grandson of his grandfather’s sister, Margaret Sheils Murphy. Blessed Solanus is a third cousin to the local family’s oldest generation. “I would like to see him become a saint in my lifetime,” he said.
Meanwhile, Jim’s older brother, Robert, an active Holy Spirit parishioner who is retired from the U.S. Post Office, told The Beacon, “If it [the second possible miracle] helps the cause, then that’s good.”
In his account, Nolan Ostrowski, 52, a construction worker and a Catholic from Eaton Rapids, Mich., said he was admitted to a Lansing hospital July 25 due to worsening COVID-19 symptoms. One night, he woke up in darkness and despair and saw a person sitting at the side of his headboard but could not identify the person — only seeing his legs and his brown robe, during an apparent visitation that took place on July 30, Blessed Solanus’ feast day. The next night, the figure reappeared but this time sat at the foot of his bed with his hands on his thighs. Ostrowski thought, “This is a saint. This is someone special.” He started to pray and plead for his life — with no response from the image.
“And then he jumped up like he won the Lotto. I mean, it was kind of startling. And he ran around the side of my bed. And when he ran, it was like a skipping, floating motion. And he reached out and he touched my rib cage under my arm and then at the bottom of my rib cage. I remember kind of lifting my arm a little bit, but it was all very quick. And then he just stepped back a couple steps, and I felt like there was this ease that came over me and I felt very relaxed and comfortable. I knew I was saved,” said Ostrowski.
The next day, Kathleen, Ostrowski’s wife, showed him a photo of Blessed Solanus, whom he recognized as the figure, who visited him twice. At the time, his family was praying for him through Blessed Solanus. On Aug. 3, he was placed on a ventilator and into an induced coma as his condition worsened. Two days later, he was airlifted to a hospital in Fort Wayne, Ind., where he was placed on an Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) machine, which operates an artificial lung for patients with severe respiratory issues. The hospital in Fort Wayne sits 20 miles from the former St. Felix Friary in Huntington, where Blessed Solanus spent most of the last 10 years of his life in retirement. After a month, Ostrowski was able to walk again with the help of the ECMO machine, according to the CNA report.
“And the other doctors in the ICU, they said it was a miracle and they couldn’t believe how well I was doing. They took me off the ventilator. I was able to breathe on my own. They said that this never happens,” said Ostrowski, who was able to return home Oct. 1. In addition, his family made a pilgrimage of thanksgiving to Blessed Solanus’ tomb in Detroit and wrote to Church authorities about their story in support of Blessed Solanus’ cause.
“Blessed Solanus lived a simple life. People still came to him for advice. They saw something special in him,” said Father Stephen Prisk, Holy Spirit’s pastor, when talking to The Beacon about the inspiration for including Blessed Solanus in the reorganized shine in Holy Spirit Church.
On Nov. 18, 2017, Jim and Robert Murphy joined their other surviving brother — Frank— and 15 other Murphys for the beatification of Blessed Solanus, along with other family from the U.S. and Ireland, along with 60,000 Catholics for a Mass at Ford Field in Detroit. The beatification was made even more joyous, as the three brothers remembered the somewhat startling prediction that their father, Michael, made when they were young: “Someday, your cousin will become a saint.”
“Father Solanus loved and related to the poor and the sick. He would meet with people until all hours of the night — people, who would tell him their hard luck stories. Today, Brother Solanus continues to help people who pray to him. We hear the stories all the time. If a man loses his job and prays to him, he finds a job. I believe those stories,” Frank Murphy told The Beacon in 2007, when he was declared “venerable.”
“I talk to him every day. I believe he’s a saint,” he said.