By Jim Davis - Florida Catholic

MIAMI | A cheerful soul who looked into souls. A sociable man who excelled at heart-to-heart talks. A master organizer who always had time for you.

Such were the facets of Msgr. Michael J. Eivers as told by those who knew and loved him. The Irish-born monsignor died Tuesday morning surrounded by loved ones, a couple of weeks before his 88th birthday.

His passing capped six decades as a priest, most of it in South Florida.

Msgr. Eivers served mainly at two parishes in west Broward County - first St. Boniface, then St. Edward, both in Pembroke Pines. At both, he pioneered the establishment of parish cells, small, neighborhood-based prayer and study groups.

Yet on Tuesday, it was the more personal qualities of the man that his friends and fellow workers mentioned.

"There was an old-school Irish way about him," said Commissioner Angelo Castillo of Pembroke Pines, who has known Msgr. Eivers for two decades. "It was his accent, the twinkle in his eye, his depth of faith. And his ability to connect with everyday people."

Echoing Castillo's sentiments was Deacon Arnold DeLuca, who worked with Msgr. Eivers more than 30 years.

"He motivated hundreds of people, and he absolutely changed my life," said Deacon DeLuca, who accompanied Msgr. Eivers as he transferred from St. Boniface to St. Edward. "It was through a personal relationship with him that I got a closer relationship with Jesus."

Voicing it more simply was Eileen Henchy, who worked as St. Boniface's receptionist during his time there: "He was a wonderful priest. When he made the sign of the cross over you, it made you feel better."

A "missionary disciple"

Archbishop Thomas Wenski praised Msgr. Eivers for serving as a "missionary disciple" long before Pope Francis coined the term. 

"His passion was evangelization – especially through the formation of small groups or cells in which people could grow in the relationship with Christ by also growing in their relationship with their fellow disciples," Archbishop Wenski said in a statement. 

Born Jan. 21, 1928 in Longford, Ireland, Msgr. Eivers attended Holy Ghost College in Kimmage and University College in Dublin before his ordination in 1955. He first served as a missionary in Nigeria before coming to South Florida in 1968.

He assisted first at Blessed Trinity parish in Miami Springs, then St. Luke in Lake Worth (at the time part of the archdiocese). He was named administrator at St. Boniface in 1973, then pastor in 1978.

In 1995 he became founding pastor at St. Edward, where he served until his retirement in 2011.

While at St. Boniface, Msgr. Eivers developed the cell group system that was one of his best-known achievements. He and his staff visited churches in sites ranging from Orlando to Anaheim to Seoul, South Korea, to learn how the groups worked. On his return, he adapted the method for South Florida Catholics -- establishing it both at St. Boniface and St. Edward.

He even held annual workshops on how other priests could start such groups -- workshops that drew attendees from lands as distant as Fiji and Switzerland.

He gained a reputation for evangelization and for galvanizing parishioners in devotion and church life, with rhythmic, celebratory music and witty but meaty homilies. He also enjoyed teaching confirmands and holding Life in the Spirit seminars.

"Father Mike was a dynamo," Deacon DeLuca said. "Seldom did he ever take time off. He loved people and always mingled with them. And he did his best to bring them into church."

His taste for organization, however, didn’t impair his people skills. He lunched nearly every day with the parish staff at St. Boniface, said Henchy, who still works there as bookkeeper. She said he also helped plan the music with the choir director and sat in on rehearsals.

Like you were the only one

"He was always at practice," said Henchy, who sang in the choir as a soprano. "He didn’t sing very well, but he was there and enjoyed it."

Castillo remembers him entering a popular restaurant in western Pembroke Pines. Up went a standard chorus from other regulars: "Hi, Father, how are ya?"

"He had thousands of congregants, and he might have a thousand things to do," Castillo said. "But whenever you saw him, he'd make time. He focused on you like you were the only one there."

In the pulpit, as in conversation, he used jokes and little humorous stories. But he also taught scripture with the rigor of a master, his friends said.

"He knew the Bible backward and forward," Deacon DeLuca said.

Msgr. Eivers also dealt with deeper matters whenever needed. Henchy remembered a striking difference in people after going to counseling with him. They would enter his office depressed, then leave with smiles.

"You could see he had helped them," she said.  

Castillo, who attends St. Edward, occasionally asked the priest's advice on working for the city. Rather than tell him what to do, Msgr. Eivers typically answered: "Pray over this, and whatever Jesus tells you, that's what you should do."

In Castillo's view, "he was saying that if you're Catholic, the answers are already in you. Because he had already taught them to us."

Besides his parish work, Msgr. Eivers served in 1980 as board chair for the Family Life Center. He was also an alternate member for the South Broward Deanery during the Archdiocesan Synod in 1986.

In 2000, Pope John Paul II named him a Prelate of Honor with the title of Monsignor.

Even in retirement, he remembered his flock. Deacon DeLuca and his wife attended his Masses at his home. And Msgr. Eivers sent friends his thoughts and beliefs via email, with his signature blend of wit and spirituality.

"He was very much loved," Castillo said. "And he will be greatly missed."

A vigil for Msgr. Eivers is set for 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday, with a prayer service at 7:30. Funeral Mass is planned for 10 a.m. Friday. All will be held at St. Edward, 19000 Pines Blvd., Pembroke Pines.