John Michael Bilock (June 20, 1916 – September 8, 1994) was a

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 ca ...

of the

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 ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. He served as the Auxiliary Bishop of

Byzantine Catholic Archeparchy of Pittsburgh The Byzantine Catholic Archeparchy of Pittsburgh ( la, Archieparchia Pittsburgensis Ritus Byzantini) is a Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church ecclesiastical territory or archeparchy of the Catholic Church that serves portions of the Eastern United ...

from 1973 to 1994.

Early life and education

Born in

McAdoo, Pennsylvania McAdoo is a borough and coal town in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, United States, south of Hazleton and seven miles north of Tamaqua. McAdoo contains the picturesque Silver Brook Meadow. In the past, anthracite coal mining and a shirt factory, ...

, John Michael Bilock was educated at St. Procopius College and Seminary in

Lisle, Illinois Lisle ( ) is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. The population was 22,390 at the 2010 census, and in 2019 the population was recorded to be 23,270. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Illinois Technology and Resea ...

. He was ordained a priest on February 3, 1946.

Priesthood

Bilock's pastoral assignments as a priest included St. John the Baptist in

Hazleton, Pennsylvania Hazleton is a city in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 29,963 at the 2020 census. Hazleton is the second largest city in Luzerne County. It was incorporated as a borough on January 5, 1857, and as a city on Decembe ...

and

St. John Chrysostom John Chrysostom (; gr, Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος; 14 September 407) was an important Early Church Father who served as archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his preaching and public speaking, his denunciation of ab ...

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

. In 1955 he became the personal secretary of Bishop

Nicholas Elko Nicholas Thomas Elko (December 14, 1909 – May 18, 1991) was the third bishop of the Byzantine Catholic Metropolitan Church of Pittsburgh, the United States, American branch of the Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church, Ruthenian Catholic Church. At ...

as well as the secretary to the Board of Consultors. A year later he became a consultor, and on May 7, 1957 he was named a

Papal Chamberlain A Papal Gentleman, also called a Gentleman of His Holiness, is a lay attendant of the pope and his papal household in Vatican City. Papal gentlemen serve in the Apostolic Palace near St. Peter's Basilica in ceremonial positions, such as escorting d ...

, with the title of

Monsignor Monsignor (; it, monsignore ) is an honorific form of address or title for certain male clergy members, usually members of the Roman Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" ca ...

, by

Pope Pius XII Pope Pius XII ( it, Pio XII), born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli (; 2 March 18769 October 1958), was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death in October 1958. Before his e ...

. In 1963 Bilock was appointed the

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

of St. John the Baptist Cathedral in

Munhall, Pennsylvania Munhall is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, on the west bank of the Monongahela River, south of the confluence of the Monongahela and the Allegheny rivers where the Ohio River begins. It abuts the borough of Homestead. ...

. Six years later he was named

vicar general A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ...

of the

archeparchy Eparchy ( gr, ἐπαρχία, la, eparchía / ''overlordship'') is an ecclesiastical unit in Eastern Christianity, that is equivalent to a diocese in Western Christianity. Eparchy is governed by an ''eparch'', who is a bishop. Depending on t ...

, and he was made a

Prelate of Honor A Prelate of Honour of His Holiness is a Catholic prelate to whom the Pope has granted this title of honour. They are addressed as Monsignor and have certain privileges as regards clerical clothing.Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his ...

Episcopacy

Pope Paul VI named Bilock as the

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 an ...

of ''Pergamum'' and Auxiliary Bishop of Pittsburgh (Ruthenian) on March 1, 1973. He was consecrated a bishop by Archbishop

Stephen Kocisko Stephen John Kocisko (June 11, 1915 – March 7, 1995) was the first Metropolitan Archbishop of the Byzantine Catholic Metropolitan Church of Pittsburgh, the American branch of the Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church Early life Born June 11, 191 ...

on May 15, 1973 at Holy Spirit Church in Pittsburgh. The principal co-consecrators were Bishops

Michael Dudick Michael Joseph Dudick (February 24, 1916 – May 30, 2007) was an American priest and bishop of the Byzantine Catholic Metropolitan Church of Pittsburgh, the U.S. branch of the Ruthenian Catholic Church. Biography He was born to Rusyn immigrant ...

Passaic Passaic ( or ) is a city in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city had a total population of 70,537, ranking as the 16th largest municipality in New Jersey and an increase of 656 from the 69,7 ...

and Emil Mihalik of

Parma Parma (; egl, Pärma, ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmigiano-Reggiano, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,292 ...

. Throughout his ministry as priest and bishop, Bilock celebrated the

Divine Liturgy Divine Liturgy ( grc-gre, Θεία Λειτουργία, Theia Leitourgia) or Holy Liturgy is the Eucharistic service of the Byzantine Rite, developed from the Antiochene Rite of Christian liturgy which is that of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of C ...

weekly over radio station

WEDO WEDO (810 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station licensed to McKeesport, Pennsylvania and serving Greater Pittsburgh. It carries a brokered programming radio format. Hosts buy segments of time on the station and may use their shows to advertis ...

. After the death of Archbishop

Thomas Dolinay Thomas Victor Dolinay (July 24, 1923 – April 13, 1993) was the second Metropolitan Archbishop of the Byzantine Catholic Metropolitan Church of Pittsburgh, the American branch of the Ruthenian Catholic Church. Early life Born July 24 to Rusy ...

he was elected by the Board of Consultors as the

Apostolic Administrator An Apostolic administration in the Catholic Church is administrated by a prelate appointed by the pope to serve as the ordinary for a specific area. Either the area is not yet a diocese (a stable 'pre-diocesan', usually missionary apostolic admi ...

of the archeparchy in 1993. Bilock died of a heart attack on September 8, 1994 at St. Francis Medical Center in Pittsburgh at the age of 78. His funeral was celebrated at St. John the Baptist Cathedral and he was buried at the Mount St. Macrina Motherhouse in

Uniontown, Pennsylvania Uniontown is a city in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, United States, southeast of Pittsburgh and part of the Greater Pittsburgh Region. The population was 10,372 at the 2010 census, down from 12,422 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat and ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bilock, John 1916 births 1994 deaths People from Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania Religious leaders from Pittsburgh Ruthenian Catholic bishops 20th-century Eastern Catholic bishops American Eastern Catholic bishops 20th-century American clergy