From Cleric To Relic

[Joey Russ 7,229]

6 hours ago, alt obits guy said:

Arthur Gay, the National Association of Evangelicals leader who introduced President Ronald Reagan's 'Evil Empire' speech, has died. He was 86.

 

https://religionnews.com/2023/07/28/evangelical-leader-arthur-gay-introduced-reagans-evil-empire-speech-dead-at-86/

 

 

One for the “what a moniker!” thread especially given his job

[arghton 6,773]

On 21/07/2023 at 02:13, Ulitzer95 said:

Bloody young death for a Mormon. Must've been engaging in sodomy on the sly or something for god to strike her down at such a young age.

Interestingly, her more famous husband has had a serious of major health issues lately. Announced he was "taking a break" in April 2023 because of kidney problems, and he had contracted COVID-19. 83 in December. One to watch.

 

On 21/07/2023 at 01:21, alt obits guy said:

Patricia Holland, wife of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Apostle Jeffery R. Holland, has died. She was 81.

 

https://ksltv.com/569498/patricia-holland-wife-of-jeffery-r-holland-dies-at-81/

Mormon elder apostle Jeffrey Holland hospitalised.

[arghton 6,773]

On 17/11/2021 at 17:35, arghton said:

Assembly of Experts member since 1983, longtime parliament member in Iran. First Ayatollah/Maraji to die since September, but there are quite many above 90:

 

1. Grand Ayatollah Lotfollah Safi Golpaygani (20 Feb 1919-31 Jan 2022) Secretary of the Guardian Council 1980-1985, once issued a fatwa calling for the death of a rapper.

2. Grand Ayatollah Sheikh Hossein Wahid Khorasani (1 Jan 1921-) "Most learned Shia authority alive" and critic of Khamenei. With Noori-Hamedani, the last Ayatollah/Maraji born in Qajar Persia/Qajar Iran/The Sublime State of Iran that stopped existing in 1925.

3. Shamsodin Mujtahidi Najafi (17 April 1923-27 Feb 2022)

4. Grand Ayatollah Hossein Noori-Hamedani (1925-) Hardliner and a total piece of shit.

-. Sheikh Ayatollah Ali Tehrani (22 April 1926-19 October 2022) Theologian, critic of Khamenei's rule - but also his brother-in-law.

5. Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Muhammad-Sadiq Husayni Rohani (16 July 1926-16 December 2022)

-. Ayatollah Mohammad-Bagher Bagheri (1926-) Ancient assembly of experts member.

-. Ayatollah Sheikh Ahmad Mohseni Garakani (1926-) Friday Prayer Imam of Tuyserkan since 1979.

6. Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati (23 Feb 1927-) Conservative, one of the top politicians in Iran. Chairman of the Assembly of Experts and Secretary of the Guardian Council.

7. Grand Ayatollah Naser Makarem Shirazi (25 Feb 1927-) Holocaust denialist, member of the assembly of experts in 1979

8. Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Mousa Shubairi Zanjani (2 March 1928-)

9. Grand Ayatollah Abbas Mahfouzi (1928-)

10. Grand Ayatollah Mohammad Rahmati Sirjani (1928-)

11. Ayatollah Seyed Ali Akbar Ghoreishi (1928-) Assembly of Experts member since 1983

12. Grand Ayatollah Jafar Sobhani (8 April 1929-) Founder of Imam Sadiq Institute in Qom

-. Ayatollah Sayyid Murtadha al-Musawi al-Qazwini (1 Aug 1930-) Iraqi Shia ayatollah. Assasination attempt in 2007.

13. Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Ali al-Husayni al-Sistani (4 Aug 1930-) Called the "Leading spiritual leader of Iraqi Shia muslims" and the "electronic Grand Ayatollah", one of the rare liberal Ayatollahs.

14. Grand Ayatollah Muhammad Is'haq al-Fayadh (1930-) Also a liberal Ayatollah. Born in Afghanistan. Seemingly barely survived covid in 2021 and was rumored dead.

15. Muhammad Taqi Majlesi Isfahani (1930-) Seems like pretty much a nobody.

16. Mohammed Emami-Kashani (3 Oct 1931-) Assembly of Experts member since 1983

17. Ayatollah Mohammad Ali Movahedi-Kermani (1931-) Tehran's Ephemeral Friday Prayer Imam since 2012 succeeding Ali Khamenei. Looks ancient and says that messaging service Telegram is haram.

-. Ayatollah Sheikh Ali Akbar Masoudi Khomeini (1931-)

Ayatollah Muhammad Taqi Majlesi Isfahani (the by far least notable person on that list with Mujtahidi Najafi) apparently died in May at around 92. Not to be confused with Ayatollah Hossein Mazaheri Isfahani, born 1933, who was a DDP pick in 2021. Leaves three ayatollahs born in 1930 - al-Qazwini has been in ill health for a while, al-Sistani (most notable Shia leader living) has been suffering from severe heart problems for atleast two decades and al-Fayadh was dying in 2021.

[alt obits guy 3,371]

Marcel Gervais, Canadian Roman Catholic prelate, auxiliary bishop of London, Ontario (1980–1985), bishop of Sault Sainte Marie, Ontario (1985–1989) and archbishop of Ottawa-Cornwall (1989–2007), has died. He was 91.

 

https://www.cccb.ca/media-release/death-of-most-reverend-marcel-a-gervais-archbishop-emeritus-of-ottawa/

[alt obits guy 3,371]

Joseph Ganda, Sierra Leonean Roman Catholic prelate, bishop of Kenema (1970–1980) and archbishop of Freetown (1980–2007), has died.  He was 91.

 

https://www.aciafrica.org/news/8848/first-catholic-priest-in-sierra-leone-and-pioneer-native-bishop-dies-aged-90

[alt obits guy 3,371]

On 25/05/2021 at 14:17, arghton said:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/294260820668664/permalink/3987905387970837/

Gregory Peter XX Ghabroyan, Catholicos-Patriach Cicilia since 2015 dead at 86.

 

Also thought I'd make a list of some of the most influential 20st and 21st century religious leaders (and some bonus ones), monarchs not included (only 70+ people included, plus younger ones with health and other issues) Most of the names from Wikipedia's list:

 

 

 

 

 

On 25/05/2021 at 14:17, arghton said:

Michael Peers (b. 1934) Former Primate of Canada.

 

 

 

 

 

Michael Peers dead: https://www.anglicannews.org/news/2023/08/former-primate-of-the-anglican-church-of-canada,-archbishop-michael-peers,-dies,-aged-88.aspx

[arghton 6,773]

On 25/05/2021 at 21:17, arghton said:

...

Filaret (b. 1929) Patriach of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church Kyiv Patriarchate since 1995.

Daniel (Nushiro) (b. 1938) Archbishop of Tokyo since 2000

Hilarion (Kapral) (1948-2022) ROCOR leader 2008-2022

Daniel (Nushiro), head of the Japanese Orthodox Church, dead on Wikipedia at 84. Can't find any non-Russian source reporting it yet.

[Gisooo 3,387]

Antonio Bottoglia (Wiki), Italian bishop dead at 103

 

[arghton 6,773]

On 18/07/2023 at 20:53, arghton said:

Tarvo "rock priest" Laakso, Finnish lutheran priest and musician in palliative care with terminal cancer. I met him at events two or three times (over a decade ago) really nice and polite guy with an upbeat personality.

Laakso dead at 67.

[gcreptile 10,979]

Liam McDaid, the former bishop of Clogher, dead at 78:

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-66528231

[arrowsmith 448]

9 hours ago, Gisooo said:

Antonio Bottoglia (Wiki), Italian bishop dead at 103

 

Not a bishop. Seriously, read things before posting. 

[Gisooo 3,387]

9 minutes ago, arrowsmith said:

Not a bishop. Seriously, read things before posting. 

 

Grazie tesoro!

[drol 11,986]

Former bishop of Albany and suspected sex offender Howard James Hubbard (wiki) on life support after stroke.

 

He married in June after a period of declining health, having suffered a stroke last year and a heart attack in 2015.

[drol 11,986]

On 18/08/2023 at 18:42, drol said:

Former bishop of Albany and suspected sex offender Howard James Hubbard (wiki) on life support after stroke.

 

He married in June after a period of declining health, having suffered a stroke last year and a heart attack in 2015.

Howard Hubbard dead at 84.

[Ulitzer95 12,665]

On 17/11/2021 at 15:35, arghton said:

*snip*

Adding the two names from 1932...

Grand Ayatollah Muhammad Hussain Najafi Dhakku (10 April 1932-) Only Pakistani marja.

*snip*

Muhammad Hussain Najafi (wiki) dead on Twitter:
 

 

[alt obits guy 3,371]

Adam Exner, the Bishop of Kamloops from 1974 to 1982, the Archbishop of Winnipeg from 1982 to 1991 and the Archbishop of Vancouver from 1991 to 2004, has died. He was 94.

 

https://bccatholic.ca/news/catholic-van/archbishop-adam-exner-omi-dies-at-age-94

[gcreptile 10,979]

Wikipedia has the grand Ayatollah dead. I'm not at home though to check.

Edit: guess It's one of the twelve, so just an Ayatollah, not THE.

[Ulitzer95 12,665]

9 minutes ago, gcreptile said:

Wikipedia has the grand Ayatollah dead. I'm not at home though to check.

There is no such thing as “the grand ayatollah”. Grand ayatollahs (or maraji) are senior Islamic clerics in Iran and Iraq (plus there are one or two in some other countries). In total there are over 50 of them living at current.
 

You’re thinking of Khameini, the Supreme Leader of Iran, who the Western media frequently and rather confusingly call “the grand ayatollah”. He’s not listed as dead on Wikipedia. An obscure grand ayatollah from Iraq has died in his mid 90s.

[arghton 6,773]

It's Grand Ayatollah Khorasani.

 

Not Hossein Wahid Khorasani (who has been mentioned here many times, one of the leading Ayatollahs and the "most educated one", very frail, rumored dead many times, 102 years old etc) but Muhammad Mahdi al-Khorasani, who was some obscure cleric from Iraq who got a Wikipedia page after his death.

 

Another (Iraqi) Grand Ayatollah died yesterday, but he was only in his 60s, more than 30 years younger than most of the Ayatollahs mentioned here.

Grand Ayatollah, Ayatollah and Hujjatulislam are ranks in the Twelver Shia branch of Shia Islam. I read something on it and from what I understand, they believe there's a 1100-year-old Twelfth Shia Imam (Muhammad al-Mahdi) "who will emerge in the end of time to establish peace and justice and redeem Islam".

 

Grand Ayatollah is the highest of those 3 ranks mentioned above and as Ulitzer mentioned there are around 53? living, (atleast according to Wikipedia but Wikipedia is usually inaccurate with these things), ages between 102 and 61. 

The most notable are those in Iran, Bahrain opposition cleric Isa Qassim and Iraq's al-Sistani and al-Fayadh, two who could be considered "liberals" atleast compared to the others...

 

Iran's Ayatollahs/Grand Ayatollahs tend to live very long. Here's three hardline Grand Ayatollahs (assholes) pictured last decade, Lotfollah Safi Golpaygani (who died last year at 102), Hossein Noori Hamedani (now 98) and Naser Makarem Shirazi (now 96):

 

Bahai leader Jamaloddin Khanjani detained again

[Gisooo 3,387]

On 11/11/2022 at 21:20, arghton said:

Stanisław Szymecki: 98, Polish catholic archbishop.

Ailments: Obese, wheelchairbound, seriously ill in 2018.

 

Stanisław Szymecki (Wiki) dead at 99

[drol 11,986]

On 02/04/2009 at 14:43, Guest Grave Mistake said:

 

1939 Telesphore Toppo Indian

 

 

Telesphore Toppo dead at 83.

[drol 11,986]

On 15/07/2021 at 15:15, arghton said:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absattar_Derbisali

Now Absattar Derbisali, Kazakhstan's grand mufti 2000-2013 has died aged 73.

 

 

I should make a small list of these, as a lot of them seem to be dying lately...

 

Ahmad Al-Khalili (b. 1942) Grand Mufti of Oman, old frail guy who walks with a cane and seems to be asleep in some pictures of him.

Taj El-Din Hilaly (b. ca. 1941) "Grand Mufti of Australia and New Zealand" according to some from 1992 to 2007. "Controversial" (asshole), sometimes hospitalized.

Osman Nuhu Sharubutu (b. 1919) Chief Imam of Ghana. Ancient.

Sheikh Abubakr Ahmad A. P. Aboobacker Musliyar (b. 1930/1939) Grand Mufti of India since 2019.

Othman Battikh (1941-2022) Grand Mufti of Tunisia, appointed by late dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in 2008.

Sheikh Abdulaziz al-Sheikh (b. 1943) Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia since 1999. Blind, looks like a reanimated corpse and also "controversial"

Sadiq Al-Ghariani (b. 1942) Grand Mufti of Libya since 2012. On a terrorism watchlist and says that suicide bombings are permitted by sharia law. Also looks like a corpse.

Ibrahim Ibn Saleh al-Hussaini (b. 1938) Grand Imam of Nigeria, old and overweight.

 

15th of August 2021 additions:

Abdul Aziz Juned (b. 1941) State Mufti of Brunei since 1994.

Allahshukur Pashazadeh (b. 1949) Grand Mufti of the Caucasus since the collapse of the Soviet Union. This includes Azerbaijan, Georgia and parts of Russia (Dagestan, Kabardino-Balkaria, Ingushetia, Chechnya, Karachay–Cherkessia and Adygea)

Taj El-Din Hilaly dead at 82.

[gcreptile 10,979]

HUGE article about and with Sister Helen Prejean, the anti-death penatly-campaigning nun:

https://www.thedailybeast.com/dead-man-walking-icon-sister-helen-prejean-i-came-alive-on-death-row

 

84 years old now, she sees death approaching, but there doesn't seem to be any health issues.

[arghton 6,773]

On 13/07/2023 at 03:14, arghton said:

13. Tep Vong - Cambodian leading buddhist monk who survived Pol Pot's times and became an unconditional supporter of dictator Hun Sen. Critically ill with fall complications (and a series of strokes) in 2020 and his health has been very bad for years now. Looks like a corpse.

Tep Vong, Cambodia's most powerful religious leader, recently hospitalised in ICU, underwent blood transfusion due to anemia and pacemaker battery change but already discharged and looks almost as healthy as a mummified corpse.

 

Edit: Now apparently re-hospitalised, but already discharged again.

[YoungWillz 21,076]

Paul Bryer, Archdeacon of Cornwall and acting Archdeacon of Bodmin, reportedly dead aged 65: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cje9jzn8d5qo