Cormac Murphy-O'Connor

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Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor (2006)
Coat of arms of Cormac Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor

Cormac Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor (born August 24, 1932 in Reading , Berkshire , Great Britain , † September 1, 2017 in London ) was Archbishop of Westminster and Roman Catholic Primate of England and Wales .

Life

Murphy-O'Connor was born in Reading, England in 1932 as one of five children. Two of his brothers also became priests . He was trained at the Prior Park College in Bath and from 1950 onwards he prepared for the priesthood at the Venerable English College in Rome . There he received a degree in Philosophy and Catholic Theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University . On October 28, 1956, he received the sacrament of ordination in Rome through Cardinal Valerio Valeri . Initially he worked in parishes in Portsmouth and Fareham .

In 1966, Murphy-O'Connor became secretary and chaplain to the Bishop of Portsmouth , Derek Worlock , who later became Archbishop of Liverpool . In September 1970, he was appointed parish priest in Portswood ( Southampton appointed). Shortly thereafter, at the end of 1971, he was appointed rector of the Venerable English College in Rome, responsible for the formation of candidates for the priesthood.

Murphy-O'Connor was ordained bishop of the Diocese of Arundel and Brighton on December 21, 1977 by Archbishop of Southwark , Michael George Bowen . He held important positions in the network of European bishops and influenced ecumenism . From 1982 to 2000 he was co-chair of the International Anglican Catholic Commission ( ARCIC ). In 2000 he was awarded an honorary doctorate in theology by the Archbishop of Canterbury , George Leonard Carey, in recognition of his work for Christian unity .

Murphy-O'Connor was called on March 22, 2000 Archbishop of Westminster and in November 2000 elected President of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales . Pope John Paul II accepted him in February 2001 as a cardinal priest with the titular church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva in the college of cardinals .

In August 2001 the cardinal became an honorary citizen of the City of London . In 2002 he was the first member of the Roman Catholic Church since 1680 to preach to a Queen of England.

Murphy-O'Connor lamented the decline in piety forms such as fasting, abstinence, the Way of the Cross, rosary prayers and the adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, because they are good means of deepening the faith. The sacrament of confession is also little used. O'Connor encouraged believers to use all means rooted in the Catholic tradition; they are food for the faith and he encouraged it.

On April 3, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI. resigned as Archbishop of Westminster and appointed the previous Archbishop of Birmingham , Vincent Nichols, as his successor. In the same year Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor was also in discussion for a Life Peerage with which he would have become a member of the House of Lords . The British Prime Minister Gordon Brown intended at the time to call representatives of all relevant faiths in addition to the Anglican Church of England , which is traditionally represented in the House of Lords with the Spiritual Lords , to the House of Lords. The British Grand Rabbi Jonathan Sacks had already been appointed Life Peer and the appointment of Muhammad Abdul Bari , Secretary General of the British Council of Muslims, was under discussion but did not take place. Murphy-O'Connor ultimately refused to become a life peer, also because it would have required a dispensation from the Pope, as priests are normally prohibited from holding political offices. He stressed that he saw his future in the Congregation for Bishops , to which he was called at the time, and that he could better serve the Church there. Commentators were more likely to assume that Murphy-O'Connor would have wanted membership in the House of Lords, but that the Pope vetoed it. The call to the Congregation for the Bishops should be seen in this context rather as compensation for the loss of membership in the House of Lords.

Memberships

Cormac Murphy-O'Connor was a member of the following institutions of the Roman Curia :

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Cormac Murphy-O'Connor dies at 85th The Guardian, accessed September 2, 2017 .
  2. ↑ English cardinal wants to revive traditional forms of piety. Kath.net , January 12, 2007, accessed September 2, 2017 .
  3. ↑ Jonathan Wynne-Jones: Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor turns down peerage following Catholic row. The Telegraph, December 6, 2009, accessed September 2, 2017 .
  4. ↑ Pope 'personally blocked' Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor from joining House of Lords
  5. ^ Nomina di Cardinali Membri delle Congregazioni Romane. In: Daily Bulletin. Holy See Press Office , May 15, 2001, accessed September 2, 2017 (Italian).
  6. ^ A b Nomina di Membro della Congregazione per i Vescovi e della Congregazione per l'Evangelizzazione dei Popoli. In: Daily Bulletin. Holy See Press Office, October 30, 2009, accessed September 2, 2017 (Italian).
  7. ^ Nomina di Cardinali Membri dei Dicasteri della Curia Romana. In: Daily Bulletin. Holy See Press Office, May 18, 2001, accessed September 2, 2017 (Italian).
  8. ↑ Julius Müller-Meiningen, Raoul Löbbert: Hans-Gert Pöttering - patron saint of the good cause. zeit.de , March 3, 2017, accessed on September 2, 2017 .
predecessor Office successor
Michael George Bowen Bishop of Arundel and Brighton
1977-2000 		Kieran Thomas Conry
Basil Cardinal Hume OSB Archbishop of Westminster
2000–2009 		Vincent Cardinal Nichols
personal data
SURNAME Murphy-O'Connor, Cormac
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Murphy-O'Connor, Cardinal Cormac (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British clergyman, Archbishop of Westminster and Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church
DATE OF BIRTH August 24, 1932
PLACE OF BIRTH Reading , Berkshire , UK
DATE OF DEATH 1st September 2017
Place of death London