His Excellency John Connolly OP | |
|---|---|
| Bishop of New York | |
 | |
| Province | Baltimore |
| See | New York |
| Appointed | October 4, 1814 |
| Installed | November 1815 |
| Term ended | February 6, 1825 |
| Predecessor | Richard Luke Concanen, O.P. |
| Successor | John Dubois,S.S. |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | September 24, 1774 |
| Consecration | November 6, 1814 by Cardinal Cesare Brancadoro |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1750 (1750) |
| Died | (aged 74) |
| Buried | St. Patrick's Old Cathedral, New York, New York, United States |
| Nationality | Irish |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Signature | .png) |
John Connolly,O.P. (1750 – February 6, 1825), was anIrish-bornCatholic prelate who served asBishop of New York from 1814 until his death. He was a member of theDominicans.
John Connolly was born inCounty Meath,Ireland; according to various sources, he was born in eitherSlane[1] orDrogheda.[2][3] Dominican historian Victor O'Daniel reports that Connolly's family had a tenant farm on theHill of Slane.[4] After receiving his early education in his native country, he continued his studies in Belgium, and entered theOrder of Friars Preachers, more commonly known as the Dominican friars, at an early age.[2] He was subsequently sent toRome, where he wasordained to thepriesthood on September 24, 1774.[5] Among the various capacities he filled in Rome, Connolly served as a professor at the Dominican convent of St. Clement, of which institution he later becameprior.[1] He was also an agent of the Irish bishops, and saved the English and Irish colleges—as well as his own convent, church, and library—from being plundered by theFrench invaders.[1]
On October 4, 1814, Connolly was appointed the secondBishop of New York in theUnited States byPope Pius VII.[5] He received hisepiscopalconsecration on the following November 6 from Cardinal Cesare Brancadoro, with ArchbishopsGiovanni Francesco Guerrieri and Giovanni Marchetti serving asco-consecrators, in Rome.[5]
Connolly set sail from Italy and stopped in Ireland on the way. At St. Kieran's College in Kilkenny, he attempted to recruit priests for his new diocese.[6] He did not reach New York until November 24, 1815.[1] He arrived on board theSally from a transatlantic trip that took all of sixty-seven days, and Connolly had been presumed lost at sea.[4]
Since the first Bishop of New York,R. Luke Concanen, O.P., had been impeded from sailing for New York due to the embargo of Europe then in place, Connolly was the first bishop of the diocese to minister personally to his flock.[7] He is described as having been a "small-sized man" and a person of more than ordinary mildness and gentleness of character, who would travel the city on foot to attend to the poor and sick.[4]
According to historianPeter Guilday, "It may well be doubted if, in the entire history of the Catholic Church in the United States, any other bishop began his episcopal life under such disheartening conditions."[8] At the time of Connolly's arrival, the diocese covered all of New York and part ofNew Jersey, with four priests, three churches, and approximately 15,000 Catholics,[2] most of them Irish, along with some English, French and Germans. There were three churches:St. Peter's on Barclay Street,St. Patrick's on Mulberry St., andSt. Mary's in Albany.[4] During his tenure, he erected churches inUtica andRochester, founded anorphanage, and introduced theSisters of Charity.[3] He traveled over 1,000 miles on horseback, preaching and bringing the sacraments to half-starved immigrants, largely from Ireland, who were building theErie Canal.[8]
Connolly died on February 6, 1825, at age 74. He is interred atSt. Patrick's Old Cathedral[7] He body was later displaced to a vault by the trustees to make way for that of an influential layman. It was not rediscovered until the building was renovated in 1976.Terence Cardinal Cooke had it reinterred inSt. Patrick's Old Cathedral.[8]
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This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.| Catholic Church titles | ||
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| Preceded by | Bishop of New York 1814 – 1825 | Succeeded by |
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