Rev. Edward J. Byington

A proud son of Sacred Heart Parish in Fall River, following his graduation from B.M.C. Durfee High School he attended Boston College. From there he entered the U.S. Army, serving in counterintelligence in West Germany at the height of the Cold War.

After briefly pursuing careers in the FBI and garment industry, he undertook studies for the priesthood at St. Mary’s Seminary in Baltimore. He would later recall that an experience at a monastery showed him the joy and peace that came from dedicating one’s life to the Lord, in comparison with the frenetic pace and spiritual emptiness of the business world. The Most Rev. James L. Connolly, his former pastor, ordained him a priest on August 15, 1970.

Fr. Byington served as parochial vicar at St. John, Attleboro; Sacred Heart, Taunton; St. Patrick, Fall River; St. Paul, Taunton; St. George, Westport; and Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, Seekonk; as well as a brief but memorable stint as editor of The Anchor diocesan newspaper.

In 1984 he took a sabbatical in Poland, during which time he temporarily served as the pro-provincial of the Augustinian Province which was hosting him.

Returning stateside, he became pastor of his home parish of Sacred Heart in Fall River. Later he was assigned to St. Francis Xavier in Hyannis, where he founded St. Francis Xavier Preparatory School in 1996. It should be noted that this school already numbers three priests among its graduates. He next served as pastor of St. Thomas More in Somerset before retiring in June 2006. After retirement, he assisted at St. Augustine in Providence and thereafter at St. Joseph in West Warwick.

Fr. Byington is preceded in death by his parents, Maurice “Bud” Byington and Ethel (McCoomb) Byington, his brother, H. Douglas Byington, and his niece, Deborah A. Byington. He is survived by his niece Jane E. Byington and her daughter Ava Bacsa of Lake Villa, Illinois.

Funeral services for Fr. Byington were private. Please remember him in your prayers.