Edward John Harper (July 23, 1910 — December 2, 1990) was an American member of the

Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer The Redemptorists officially named the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer ( la, links=no, Congregatio Sanctissimi Redemptoris), abbreviated CSsR,is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of pontifical right for men (priests and brother ...

(more commonly known as the Redemptorists) and a

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pre ...

of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. He was the first Bishop of Saint Thomas in the

Virgin Islands The Virgin Islands ( es, Islas Vírgenes) are an archipelago in the Caribbean Sea. They are geologically and biogeographically the easternmost part of the Greater Antilles, the northern islands belonging to the Puerto Rico Trench and St. Cro ...

, serving in that office from 1977 to 1985.

Life

Harper was born on July 23, 1910, in the

Bay Ridge Bay Ridge is a neighborhood in the southwest corner of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. It is bounded by Sunset Park to the north, Dyker Heights to the east, the Narrows and the Belt Parkway to the west, and Fort Hamilton Army Base an ...

neighborhood of

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

. He initially began a career as an accountant, but he later felt called to become a

missionary A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...

and entered the Redemptorists in 1933, making his temporary profession of religious vows as a member of the congregation on August 2 of the following year. He was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...

on June 18, 1939. He was then assigned by his superiors to serve on various islands of the Caribbean. On July 23, 1960, Harper was appointed by

Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII ( la, Ioannes XXIII; it, Giovanni XXIII; born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, ; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death in June 19 ...

as the first Apostolic Prefect of the newly erected Apostolic Prelature of the Virgin Islands and

Titular Bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox ...

Heraclea Pontica __NOTOC__ Heraclea Pontica (; gr, Ἡράκλεια Ποντική, Hērakleia Pontikē), known in Byzantine and later times as Pontoheraclea ( gr, Ποντοηράκλεια, Pontohērakleia), was an ancient city on the coast of Bithynia in Asi ...

. He received his episcopal consecration on the following October 6 from Bryan J. McEntegart, Bishop of

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, with Bishops

William Tibertus McCarty William Tibertus McCarty, C.Ss.R. (August 11, 1889 – September 14, 1972) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. A Redemptorist, he served as bishop of the Diocese of Rapid City in South Dakota from 1948 to 1969. He previous ...

and

James Edward McManus James Edward McManus (October 10, 1900 – July 6, 1976) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. A Redemptorist, he served as Bishop of Ponce in Puerto Rico (1947–1963) and as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of New York ( ...

serving as co-consecrators, at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Brooklyn. Upon the elevation of his prelature to the Diocese of Saint Thomas, Harper was named its first

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

on April 20, 1977. After twenty-five years of service in the Virgin Islands, he retired on October 16, 1985, upon which he was given the title of Bishop Emeritus of Saint Thomas. He died on December 2, 1990, at the age of 80 years.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harper, Edward John 1910 births 1990 deaths People from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn Mount St. Alphonsus Seminary alumni Redemptorist bishops Roman Catholic bishops of Saint Thomas Participants in the Second Vatican Council Place of death missing 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the Caribbean Catholics from New York (state) 20th-century American Roman Catholic bishops American Roman Catholic bishops by contiguous area of the United States