Gravestone: "Galway 1923 - Hong Kong 1949 - Sydney 1984-2006. In thanksgiving for 65 years of devoted service. Friend - teacher - companion - priest - pastor."

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Fr David Strong SJ, The Australian dictionary of Jesuit biography 1848-2015, Second Edition, 2017:
Taylor, Donal

Missionary, teacher, pastor; born Portumna, Galway, Ireland, 6 November 1923; died Sydney, NSW, 10 October 2006, aged 82.

Donal Taylor, one of five children, desired to become a priest from an early age, and after an earlier education at the Cistercian College, Roscrea, he entered the Society of Jesus at Emo Park, Portlaoise, Leix, Ireland, 6 September 1941. He graduated in 1946 with an arts degree from University College, Dublin. Three years of philosophy studies followed at St Stanislaus College, Tullamore. He was assigned to the Hong Kong Mission for regency, 1949-52, during which he learned Chinese for two years and taught in Wah Yan College, Hong Kong, for a year. In 1950 the Communists detained him and two other Jesuit scholastics for two weeks after they accidentally entered Chinese territory from Macao, and were suspected of being spies as they had a camera. He returned to Ireland for theology, 1952-56, and tertianship at Rathfarnham before returning to Hong Kong.

He started his teaching career at Wah Yan College, Hong Kong, 1957-58, but believing that he needed to improve his Chinese he went back to Xavier House, Cheung Chau, where he not only studied Chinese, but was also given charge of the Retreat House as director and minister. During this time he established a successful parish network of retreat promoters.

Taylor's next assignment for nearly twenty years was teaching in Wah Yan College, Kowloon, from 1963, where he was also spiritual father to the junior boys. During this time he had two short breaks, 1967-68, studying 'Teaching of English as a Second Language', and, 1980-81, studying pastoral ministry.

He was a good teacher, serious in class, demanding attention, and a high commitment from himself and his students. This often led to frustration and impatience. As spiritual father he organised an exhibition on Jesuits and their vocation for the Diocesan Vocation Exhibition organized by the Serra Club. He obtained material from all over the world, with the result that the Jesuit exhibition was the largest and most attractive.

Taylor loved teaching and his students won prizes each year for recitation, poetry, reading and drama in the Hong Kong Schools Speech Festival. He produced 'Midsummer Night's Dream', and directed 'Pygmalion', which was well acclaimed. To help his students he produced a series of books called 'Living English' for the middle school years. He read widely, loved music and was an interesting companion in conversation. He was good at the Chinese language that made him welcome in Chinese company and especially with past students whom he had taught.

He suffered one setback in 1978 when he found it difficult to keep his balance when walking. He underwent an operation in USA for inner ear balance malfunction, but afterward had to learn to walk again. As a result of this, and because he had grown tried of teaching, his heart not being in it, he thought it best to change his career, and went to England for a course in pastoral ministry before applying to the Australian province to work in a parish. He was aged 60. During his time in Hong Kong he was experienced as a faithful and committed Jesuit who served others with great generosity and responsibility.

He arrived in Australia and the Lavender Bay parish in November 1983, and found the contrast with his former life startling. No bells or order of time, his time was largely his own. He soon found that he received better feedback in the parish than in the school, and he enjoyed celebrating the sacraments other than the Mass. He had only celebrated two weddings during his time in Hong Kong, and now he had many more, learning that instruction of adults was different from children. People enjoyed his liturgies, and he prepared his Sunday homily with great care, believing that it insulted people to preach without preparation. He tried to make his Mass as devotional and sacred as possible. He drew inner strength and fulfilment from his engagement with the people he met, admiring their faith, unselfishness, holiness and forbearance. A special ministry he undertook was to write to priests in prison convicted of sexual abuse. He believed that they needed to be befriended.

Taylor moved to the parish of St Canice's, Elizabeth Bay, 1990-96, as superior, and then St Joseph's, Neutral Bay, 1997-2001, and finally St Mary's, North Sydney, 2002-2006.

(Reproduced by permission of Fr David Strong SJ.)