George Vance Murry S.J. | |
|---|---|
| Bishop of Youngstown Titular Bishop of Fuerteventura | |
 Bishop Murry in September 2018 | |
| Church | Roman Catholic Church |
| See | Diocese of Youngstown |
| Appointed | January 30, 2007 |
| Installed | March 28, 2007 |
| Term ended | May 26, 2020 |
| Predecessor | Thomas J. Tobin |
| Successor | David Bonnar |
| Previous posts | Bishop of Saint Thomas (1999–2007) Coadjutor Bishop of Saint Thomas (1998–1999) Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago (1995–1998) |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | June 9, 1979 by William Donald Borders |
| Consecration | March 20, 1995 by Joseph Bernardin,Alfred Leo Abramowicz, andTimothy Joseph Lyne |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1948-12-28)December 28, 1948 Camden, New Jersey, USA |
| Died | June 5, 2020(2020-06-05) (aged 71) New York, New York, USA |
| Education | Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University George Washington University |
| Motto | Christ my light |
| Styles of George Vance Murry | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Reference style | His Excellency The Most Reverend |
| Spoken style | Your Excellency |
| Religious style | Bishop |
George Vance Murry,S.J. (December 28, 1948 – June 5, 2020)[1] was an American prelate of theCatholic Church and member of theSociety of Jesus. He served as bishop of theDiocese of Youngstown from 2007 to 2020.
Murry previously served as anauxiliary bishop of theArchdiocese of Chicago from 1995 to 1998 and as bishop of theDiocese of Saint Thomas in theU.S. Virgin Islands from 1998 to 2007 He submitted his resignation in May 2020 after suffering a relapse ofleukemia, but died before it was accepted.
Murry was born inCamden, New Jersey, on December 28, 1948, to Viola Murry and George Vance Murry II.[2] He originally belonged to theAfrican Methodist Episcopal Church but converted to Catholicism when he was a child while attending a parochial school inBaltimore,Maryland.[3] He later graduated fromCamden Catholic High School in Camden, New Jersey.[2]
Murry attendedSt. Joseph's College in Philadelphia, St. Thomas Seminary inBloomfield, Connecticut, andSt. Mary's Seminary in Baltimore, obtaining aBachelor of Philosophy degree in 1972.[2] In that same year, he was admitted as a member of the Society of Jesus.[2] After completing his period ofnovitiate in 1974, Murry obtained aMaster of Divinity degree from theJesuit School of Theology at Berkeley in Berkeley, California, and a Masters and Doctorate in American Cultural History fromGeorge Washington University in Washington, D.C.
On June 9, 1979, Murry was ordained to the priesthood for the Jesuits at the chapel ofLoyola College in Baltimore by ArchbishopWilliam Donald Borders[4]
Murry became anassistant professor of American studies atGeorgetown University in 1986, and taught at that institution for four years.[2] He also served as president ofArchbishop Carroll High School in Washington, D.C. from 1989 until 1994, when he was appointed associate vice president for academic affairs at theUniversity of Detroit Mercy.[2][5]
Pope John Paul II appointed Murry as anauxiliary bishop ofChicago andtitular bishop ofFuerteventura on January 24, 1995.[2][6] He wasconsecrated atHoly Name Cathedral in Chicago, Illinois, on March 20, 1995.[2] CardinalJoseph Bernardin served as the principal consecrator, assisted by Auxiliary BishopsAlfred Abramowicz andTimothy Lyne.[4][6]
Murry was appointedcoadjutor bishop ofSaint Thomas by John Paul II on May 5, 1998.[2] As such, he had the right of succession when the current bishop resigned.[2] Murry became bishop of Saint Thomas on June 30, 1999, after the resignation of BishopElliot Thomas.[4][2]
On January 30, 2007,Pope Benedict XVI appointed Murry as the fifth bishop of Youngstown.[4] Later in 2007, he was elected secretary of theUnited States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).[7] Murry was re-elected to a three-year term as secretary in 2008.[8] Murry served as chair of the USCCB Committee on Domestic Policy.[9] He was appointed chair of theNational Catholic Educational Association in 2015, serving until the end of 2017.[2]
In September 2015,Pope Francis appointed Murry to theSynod of Bishops that met in October 2015 to discuss family life.[10] At that meeting, he said he supported the view that church could change its practice toward the divorced and remarried without altering doctrine. Murry said he supported greater participation fromtheologians, cultural historians, and other experts, and that the Synod needed to find a way to hear the voices of the people who were the subject of its discussions. He also supported the creation of commission to consider allowing women to serve asdeacons. He said: "It would be a wise idea to look into it, to learn more about it and then to present a proposal to the Pope to say there either are theological problems, or not. And if not, let’s move forward."[11]
Murry served on several boards of directors and trustees:
In 2017, Murry was appointed the founding chairman of the USCCB's Ad Hoc Committee Against Racism, a role in which he remained until the next year.[15]In April 2018, Murry was diagnosed withacute myeloid leukemia.[16] He receivedchemotherapy treatment at theCleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio.[5] In September 2018, he returned to work part-time at the diocese.[17] After being inremission, Murry suffered arelapse in April 2020.[18]
Murry submitted his resignation as bishop of Youngstown to Pope Francis on May 26, 2020, four years before the mandatory retirement age of 75.[18][19] George Murry died on June 5, 2020, a few days after being admitted toMemorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City for treatment.[1][20]
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
| Catholic Church titles | ||
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| Preceded by | Bishop of Youngstown 2007–2020 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Bishop of St. Thomas 1999–2007 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by - | Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago 1995–1998 | Succeeded by - |
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