Leonard James Olivier

Leonard James Olivier SVD (born October 12, 1923 in Lake Charles , Louisiana - † November 19, 2014 ) was auxiliary bishop in Washington .

Life

Leonard Olivier was the fifth of eight children (three sons, five daughters) of Mathilda Rochon Olivier and James L. Olivier. He grew up in a predominantly Catholic environment. After attending the Sacred Heart Elementary School in Lake Charles, in 1939 he entered the St. Augustine minor seminary of the Steyler Missionaries in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, and later the religious community of Steyler Missionaries (Society of the Divine Word) because they were one of only two Catholic religious orders in the USA at the time that accepted blacks (Olivier belonged to the Creole population). After studying philosophy and theology, he was ordained a priest on June 29, 1951 in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi . From 1952 to 1973 Olivier held various rector posts in the seminaries of his order. From 1974 to 1982 he was secretary for all religious seminaries in the United States and provincial in Iowa. He was pastor in Lafayette , Louisiana, and vicar for the black population in the Lafayette diocese .

Pope John Paul II appointed him auxiliary bishop in Washington and titular bishop of Legia on November 10, 1988 . The Archbishop of Washington James Aloysius Cardinal Hickey donated him episcopal ordination on December 20, 1988 ; Co- consecrators were Eugene Antonio Marino SSJ , Archbishop of Atlanta , and Álvaro Corrada del Rio SJ , Auxiliary Bishop in Washington. He was the 13th black bishop in the United States. On May 18, 2004, Pope John Paul II accepted his age-related resignation.

Leonard Olivier was a member of the African-American Catholic Bishops Subcommittee on Youth and the Ad Hoc Steering Committee for the National Strategy on Vocations and the US Bishops' Committee on Priestly Life and Ministry . He was a member of the Covenant House and the National Black Catholic Congress as well as the National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus and the Pan African Roman Catholic Clergy Conference . He belonged to the Knightly Order of Saint Peter Claver , the Sovereign Order of Malta and the Knights of Columbus .

Web links

Entry on Leonard James Olivier on catholic-hierarchy.org ; accessed on November 21, 2014.

Individual evidence

^ ^A ^b ^c Richard Szczepanowski: Bishop Leonard Olivier, retired Washington auxiliary bishop, dies at 91 , Catholic Standard, November 20, 2014
↑ ^a ^b "Bishop Olivier said he decided to enter the Society of the Divine Word after learning that the congregation" was the only order back then besides the Josephites to accept black men. Even dioceses would not take black men into the seminary. "" , Richard Szczepanowski: After 60 years as a priest, Bishop Leonard Olivier calls serving the Church 'a blessing and a joy' , Catholic Standard (Church newspaper of the Archdiocese of Washington), May 10, 2011.

personal data
SURNAME	Olivier, Leonard James
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Olivier, Leonard J.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	American religious, auxiliary bishop in Washington
DATE OF BIRTH	October 12, 1923
PLACE OF BIRTH	Lake Charles
DATE OF DEATH	19th November 2014

[cathstan-1] A ^b ^c Richard Szczepanowski: Bishop Leonard Olivier, retired Washington auxiliary bishop, dies at 91 , Catholic Standard, November 20, 2014

[cathstan2-2] "Bishop Olivier said he decided to enter the Society of the Divine Word after learning that the congregation" was the only order back then besides the Josephites to accept black men. Even dioceses would not take black men into the seminary. "" , Richard Szczepanowski: After 60 years as a priest, Bishop Leonard Olivier calls serving the Church 'a blessing and a joy' , Catholic Standard (Church newspaper of the Archdiocese of Washington), May 10, 2011.