John Joseph Wright
John Joseph Cardinal Wright (born July 18, 1909 in Dorchester , Suffolk County , Massachusetts , United States , † August 10, 1979 in Cambridge , Middlesex County , Massachusetts) was an American clergyman and Curial Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church .
Life
Youth and priests
The son of John Wright, a paper mill employee, and his wife Harriet (née Cokely) worked evening and summer magazine boys at the Hyde Park Branch of the Boston Public Library while attending the Boston Latin School . He graduated from Boston College in 1931 and then entered Saint John's Seminary in Brighton . At the end of his first year at St. John's, he was sent to Rome to continue his studies at the Pontifical North America College and the Pontifical Gregorian University . The Cardinal Vicar , Archpriest of the Lateran Basilica and Secretary of the Holy Office , Francesco Cardinal Marchetti Selvaggiani , consecrated him as a priest on December 8, 1935 in the chapel of the North America College .
After his ordination he attended the Graduate College of the Gregoriana, received a licentiate in theology in 1936 and was awarded a doctorate theologiae in 1939 . He taught philosophy and theology at Saint John's Seminary until he became private secretary to the Archbishop of Boston , William Henry O'Connell , in 1943 . He kept this post under O'Connell's successor, Richard James Cushing . On December 17, 1944, he was appointed chaplain to His Holiness .
Auxiliary bishop and bishop
Pope Pius XII appointed him on May 10, 1947 auxiliary bishop in Boston and titular bishop of Aegeae . The archbishop of Boston, Richard James Cushing, donated to him on 30 June of the same year in the Cathedral of the Holy Cross , the episcopal ordination ; Co- consecrators were Ralph Leo Hayes , Bishop of Davenport , and James Louis Connolly , Coadjutor Bishop of Fall River . His motto was Resonare Christum .
He became the first Bishop of Worcester on January 28, 1950 . In that position, he criticized both utopians and doomsday evangelizers, saying that an exemplary Christian [recognizes] the great mistakes human nature is capable of ... but [knows] that grace is stronger than sin.
In 1953 Wright was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences .
Pope John XXIII appointed him Bishop of Pittsburgh on January 23, 1959 . He attended all the sessions of the Second Vatican Council and was the decisive force behind some of the documents. After advances in ecumenism at the council, he believed that there would be an immediate unity in good works and love between Catholics and Protestants.
cardinal
Pope Paul VI took him on April 28, 1969 as a cardinal priest with the titular Church Gesù Divino Maestro alla Pineta Sacchetti in the College of Cardinals and at the same time appointed him Prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy . He was one of the four cardinals who toured Auschwitz in 1972 in memory of Maximilian Kolbe ; besides John Joseph Krol , he was the only other American cardinal visiting Poland. He did not attend the conclave in August 1978 because he was recovering from surgery, but did attend the conclave in October of the same year . He died of polymyositis at the age of 70 and was buried in Holyhood Cemetery in Brookline .
Views
The cardinal's legacy remains undisputed. He was an intellectual who was liberal on social but conservative on theological issues. He stood up for civil rights and condemned the Vietnam War, but rejected women's ordination and contraception. He also believed that the annual Synods of Bishops were useless and burdensome and that seven years was the appropriate age for children to receive the sacrament of penance because they would be able to correct sinful behavior at an early age.
Trivia
- He believed that Pope John Paul I was a funny Pope who, through a love of literature and the love of words, combines God's joys .
- He was very knowledgeable about Joan of Arc .
Web links
- Entry on John Joseph Wright on catholic-hierarchy.org ; Retrieved July 20, 2016.
- Wright, John Joseph. In: Salvador Miranda : The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church. ( Florida International University website), accessed July 20, 2016.
Individual evidence
- ^ Members of the American Academy. Listed by election year, 1950-1999. Retrieved September 23, 2015
| predecessor | Office | successor |
|---|---|---|
| --- |
Bishop of Worcester 1950–1959 |
Bernard Joseph Flanagan |
| John Francis Dearden |
Bishop of Pittsburgh 1959–1969 |
Vincent Martin Leonard |
| Jean-Marie Cardinal Villot |
Prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy 1969–1979 |
Silvio Angelo Pio Cardinal Oddi |
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Wright, John Joseph |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Wright, John Joseph Cardinal (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American clergyman, Cardinal Curia of the Roman Catholic Church |
| DATE OF BIRTH | July 18, 1909 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Dorchester , Suffolk County , Massachusetts , USA |
| DATE OF DEATH | August 10, 1979 |
| Place of death | Cambridge , Middlesex County , Massachusetts |