Obituary of Michael J. Phillips, 71
Michael J. Phillips
6/3/54—4/26/26 (Age 71)
– Michael Philips lived in San Miguel until he was 18. He was proud of his upbringing there and cherished those friendships for the rest of his life. He was a 1973 graduate of Paso Robles High School, where he played the flute and marched in the band. After graduation, he Joined the U.S. Navy, where he served in the Chaplain Corps. At that point he met Father Bede Griffiths, who influence him greatly. In 1983, Father Bede ordained him as a monk of the Benedictine Order and, in India, also invested him as one of the Christian Sannayasa monks.
Throughout his life, he was active and devout, wholeheartedly dedicated to serving the poor, the sick and the dying. In the 1980s and 90s, he opened houses in eastern states for people with AIDS who had nowhere to go to in their final months of life. In 2013, he returned to San Luis Obispo County, where he formed the Father Bede House of Prayer, dedicated to feeding, housing, assisting, consoling and praying with those who are poor, sick, dying and grieving.
Brother Michael was an excellent public speaker, and used this talent to be active in important issues at many levels working with a wide variety of people, from local political forums and committees to Washington officials to international actors, including Mother Teresa, several Cardinals and the Dalai Lama.
In recent years, he was one of the movers behind the process of beatifying the BLESSED Justus Takayama Ukon of Manila. He was only prevented by poor health from accepting an offer from the Vatican to move to Rome, to be part of the team that administers the canonization process.
Michael was predeceased by his parents, Paul and Laura Phillips and older brother Paul Jr. (aka Bucky). He was survived by his sister Jean Marie (of Lake Havasu) and his brother Patrick (of San Diego), as well as nephews and nieces of whom he was very proud.
He was a kind and caring person who will be greatly missed by all who had the privilege on knowing him.
Michael passed away peacefully in Harlingen, Texas on April 26, 2026. Although his family will be handling the formal services and arrangements, friends in San Luis Obispo County area are planning an informal gathering in his memory at 2:00 on Saturday, May 16 at Pappy McGregor’s in Paso Robles.
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