David M. O'Connell

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His Excellency, The Most Reverend

David M. O'Connell

CM
Bishop of Trenton
David M. O'Connell at Mass.jpg
Archdiocese Newark
Diocese Trenton
AppointedJune 4, 2010
InstalledDecember 1, 2010
Predecessor John M. Smith
Previous post(s) President of The Catholic University of America (1998–2010)
Orders
OrdinationMay 29, 1982
by  Joseph Mark McShea
ConsecrationJuly 30, 2010
by  John M. Smith, John J. Myers, and Donald Wuerl
Personal details
Born (1955-04-21) April 21, 1955 (age 69)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Nationality American
Denomination Roman Catholic Church
Residence Trenton, New Jersey, United States
ParentsArthur J. and June O'Connell
Alma mater
MottoMinistrare non ministrai
(To serve and not to be served)
Styles of
David M. O'Connell
Coat of arms of David Michael O'Connell.svg
Reference style
Spoken style Your Excellency
Religious style Bishop

David Michael O'Connell CM (born April 21, 1955) is an American Catholic prelate who has served as Bishop of Trenton since 2010. He is a member of the Congregation of the Mission and a past president of the Catholic University of America.

Contents

Biography

Early life and education

David O'Connell was born on April 21, 1955, in Philadelphia, one of the four sons of Arthur J. and June O'Connell. He was raised in nearby Langhorne, Pennsylvania. Feeling drawn at an early age to the Catholic priesthood, he attended St. Joseph Preparatory High School in Princeton, New Jersey. [1]

After graduating from high school, O'Connell entered Niagara University in Lewiston, New York. He received a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy from Niagara in 1978. He continued his studies for the priesthood at Mary Immaculate Seminary in Northampton, Pennsylvania, where he earned a Master of Divinity in 1981 and a Master of Theology in moral theology in 1983. [1]

Ordination and ministry

O'Connell was ordained a priest of the Congregation of the Mission (the Vicentians) by Joseph McShea on May 29, 1982, in the chapel of the Mary Immaculate Seminary. After his ordination, the Vicentians assigned O'Connell as a teacher at Archbishop Wood Catholic High School in Warminster, Pennsylvania, where he taught religion classes and served as director of student activities. [1]

O'Connell moved to Washington D.C. in 1985 to study at the CUA School of Canon Law. During this period, he also worked as registrar and an assistant professor of canon law, theology, and philosophy at Mary Immaculate Seminary. O'Connell was awarded a Licentiate of Canon Law in 1987 and a Doctor of Canon Law in 1990. [1] He also served as an ecclesiastical judge and canonical consultant for:

Between 1990 and 1998, O'Connell served at St. John's University in New York City as associate dean, professor of theology and religious studies, academic dean and dean of faculty. O'Connell was named as associate vice president of the university in 1995 and assistant legal counsel in 1996. [1]

President of Catholic University of America

In 1998, O'Connell was appointed president of CUA. At his inauguration, O'Connell took the controversial Oath of Fidelity, expressing his support for Ex Corde Ecclesiae, issued by Pope John Paul II in 1990. The document was criticized as an attack on academic freedom at Catholic Universities. [2]

O'Connell was named a consultor to the Vatican Congregation for Catholic Education in 2005. In 2006, CUA appointed O'Connell as the John Joseph Keane University Professor for that year. On October 2, 2009, O'Connell announced that he was resigning as CUA president in August 2010. [1]

Coadjutor Bishop and Bishop of Trenton

On June 4, 2010, O'Connell was appointed coadjutor bishop of Trenton by Pope Benedict XVI to assist Bishop John M. Smith. O'Connell received his episcopal consecration on July 30, 2010, from Smith, with Archbishops John J. Myers and Donald Wuerl serving as co-consecrators, at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption in Trenton. [3] O'Connell chose as his episcopal motto: Ministrare non ministrari, meaning, "To serve and not to be served" (Mark 10:45). [4] As coadjutor bishop, O'Connell automatically succeeded Smith on December 1, 2010, when he retired.

In 2014, the CUA named Father O'Connell Hall in honor of David O'Connell. [5] In December 2014, after O'Connell suffered a severe bone infection, surgeons amputated his left leg. On February 19, 2017, O'Connell and Archbishop Christophe Pierre elevated St. Robert Bellarmine Church in Freehold, New Jersey, to the rank of co-cathedral. It is now known as the Co-Cathedral of St. Robert Bellarmine. [1]

Transparency

In August 2012, O'Connell received records showing that Fr Matthew Riedlinger had exchanged sexually explicit text messages with a person he believed to be a 16-year-old boy, then tried to set up a meeting with him. O'Connell removed Riedlinger from the parish where he was serving, but did not inform parishioners of the reason for his removal. He only released the information after learning that The Star-Ledger was publishing an article on Riedlinger. [6]

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Bishop David M. O'Connell, C.M., J.C.D., D.D." Diocese of Trenton. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
  2. ↑ "Very Rev David M O Connell C M - CUA In the Media". The Catholic University of America. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
  3. ↑ "Outgoing Catholic University president to become coadjutor of Trenton". Catholic News Service . June 4, 2010. Archived from the original on June 8, 2010.
  4. ↑ "Pope Appoints CUA President as Bishop". The Catholic University of America . June 4, 2010.
  5. ↑ "Remarks at Dedication of Father O'Connell Hall". The Catholic University of America. October 17, 2014. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
  6. ↑ Schmalz, Timothy (November 21, 2013). "I exposed priest in sexting sting. Now church must reform". NJ.com.
Catholic Church titles
Preceded by Bishop of Trenton
2010–present		Incumbent
Academic offices
Preceded by President of the
Catholic University of America
1998–2010		Succeeded by
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