Donald Cozzens (May 17, 1939 – December 9, 2021) was an American Roman Catholic priest, author, and lecturer.

Biography

Cozzens was a president-rector and professor of

pastoral theology Pastoral theology is the branch of practical theology concerned with the application of the study of religion in the context of regular church ministry. This approach to theology seeks to give practical expression to theology. Normally viewed as a ...

Saint Mary Seminary and Graduate School of Theology Saint Mary Seminary and Graduate School of Theology in Wickliffe, Ohio, is a Roman Catholic seminary that serves the Roman Catholic Diocese of Cleveland. It was established in 1848 by the first bishop of the Diocese of Cleveland, Louis Amadeus ...

Wickliffe, Ohio Wickliffe is a city in Lake County, Ohio, United States. The population was 12,750 at the 2010 census. A post office called Wickliffe has been in operation since 1843. The city was named after Charles A. Wickliffe, 11th United States Postmaster ...

. In his writings, he tackled the themes of priestly celibacy,

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to pe ...

and sexual abuse in the Catholic Church. Cozzens died from complications of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickly ...

on December 9, 2021, at the age of 82.

Bibliography

* ''The Spirituality of the Diocesan Priest'', 1997 * ''The Changing Face of the Priesthood'', 2000 * ''Sacred Silence: Denial and the Crisis in the Church'', 2002 * ''Faith That Dares to Speak'', 2004 * ''Freeing Celibacy'', 2006 * ''Master of Ceremonies'', 2014 (novel) * ''Under Pain of Mortal Sin'', 2018 (novel)

References

1939 births 2021 deaths American Roman Catholic priests Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in Ohio {{RC-clergy-stub