Found
this article on Rich Mullins, which originated with
Zach Frey. It's a reprint of a much older article, since it cites his
'Jesus Record,' which has been around for half a decade, as still due for publication. It includes an interview with a priest, Fr. Matt McGinnis, who was chaplain of a Newman Center in Wichita, and claims that Rich died two days before he was scheduled to receive his first confession and confirmation:
"There was a sense of urgency," said the priest. "He told me, 'This may sound strange, but I HAVE to receive the body and blood of Christ.'"
That's both exhiliarating and sad. Mullins was/is probably my favorite singer-songwriter of all time. His songwriting, especially that of the last decade of his life, is shot through with Catholicism, and the most traditional forms of Catholicism at that. St. Francis was his beacon of light; unfortunately, due to his egalitarian, independent upbringing as a Quaker, he never quite felt at home in the Church Catholic. Zach includes this quote from Mullins at a concert:
"I guess some of you have probably heard rumors that we started a religious order... (laughter from audience) (Rich chuckles) and they're probably true! Because the truth is, we'd all like to be Franciscans, but we don't even have the guts to really be Catholics."
We can hope that St. Francis returned the favor, and that Rich found his way home in the end. Requiem in pacem...
