Joseph Mark McShea
Joseph Mark McShea (born February 22, 1907 in Lattimer , Pennsylvania , † November 28, 1991 in Allentown , Pennsylvania) was an American Roman Catholic clergyman. McShea was bishop of the Allentown diocese .
Life
Born as one of seven children to Roger and Jeanette McShea, McShea grew up in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. He enjoyed his education at the denominational school of the Transfiguration of Our Lord Church in Philadelphia .
After graduating from West Philadelphia Catholic High School for Boys in 1923, he began studying for the priesthood at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary . In 1926, at the age of 19, McShea came to Rome , where he completed his studies at the Pontifical Roman Seminary and the Pontifical Lateran University . On December 6, 1931 he received in Rome by Cardinal Francesco Marchetti Selvaggiani the priesthood . A year later, in 1932, he earned a doctorate in theology .
In 1932 he came back to the USA. Here he taught Latin and Italian at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Philadelphia until 1935 . In 1935 he went back to Rome, where he worked as a minutant , a kind of clerk, in the Congregation for the Oriental Churches at the Roman Curia until 1938 . He then returned to the United States, where he was employed from 1938 to 1952 as a secretary at the Apostolic Nunciature in Washington, DC . In August 1938 he received the title of Papal Chamberlain , in April 1948 the honorary title of Monsignor .
Pope Pius XII appointed McShea on February 8, 1952 Titular Bishop of Mina and Auxiliary Bishop in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia . The episcopal ordination donated him the Apostolic Delegate in the United States, Archbishop Amleto Giovanni Cicognani , on March 19, 1952. co-consecrators were the Bishop of Oklahoma City and Tulsa , Eugene Joseph McGuinness , and William David O'Brien , auxiliary bishop in Chicago . As auxiliary bishop, he also served as chaplain at St. Francis de Sales Roman Catholic Church in Philadelphia.
On February 11, 1961, Pope John XXIII founded from areas of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, the new diocese Allentown, whose first bishop McShea was elected. His inauguration at the Cathedral of Saint Catharine of Siena took place on April 11, 1961. McShea attended the first three sessions of the Second Vatican Council as the Council Father. McShea was one of 18 American bishops who were elected to those commissions and committees that were to work out the goals of the council by 1965.
During his tenure as bishop, McShea oversaw the construction and renovation of 300 buildings owned by the Church. In 1964 he founded together with the Order of the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales the Catholic private DeSales University . Between 1961 and 1975 he ordained 130 men as priests.
On February 3, 1983, after 22 years at the head of the Allentown diocese, Pope John Paul II permitted him to retire. The bishop emeritus suffered from diabetes for the last years of his life . He died in November 1991 at the age of 84.
Web links
- Entry on Joseph Mark McShea on catholic-hierarchy.org ; accessed on August 17, 2016.
- Joseph Mark McShea in the Find a Grave database . Accessed August 17, 2016.
Individual evidence
- ^ The World Almanac & Book of Facts. Newspaper Enterprise Association, 1949, p. 288, entry Apostolic Delegate to the United States.
| predecessor | Office | successor |
|---|---|---|
| New office |
Bishop of Allentown 1961–1983 |
Thomas Jerome Welsh |
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | McShea, Joseph Mark |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | McShea, Joseph |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American clergyman, Bishop of Allentown |
| DATE OF BIRTH | February 22, 1907 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Lattimer , Pennsylvania |
| DATE OF DEATH | November 28, 1991 |
| Place of death | Allentown , Pennsylvania |