John Brendan McCormack (August 12, 1935 – September 21, 2021) was an American prelate 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 served as the ninth

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 ...

of the Diocese of Manchester from 1998 until 2011.

Biography

Early life and education

John McCormack was born in

Winthrop, Massachusetts Winthrop is a town in Suffolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 19,316 at the 2020 census. Winthrop is an ocean-side suburban community in Greater Boston situated at the north entrance to Boston Harbor, close to Logan Int ...

, to Cornelius and Eleanor (née Noonan) McCormack. Raised in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...

, he attended

Boston College High School , motto_translation = ''So they may know You.'' , address = 150 Morrissey Boulevard , city = Boston , state = Massachusetts , zipcode = 02125 , country ...

and St. John's Seminary.

Ordination and ministry

McCormack 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 ...

to the priesthood by Cardinal

Richard Cushing Richard James Cushing (August 24, 1895 – November 2, 1970) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Boston from 1944 to 1970 and was made a cardinal in 1958. Cushing's main role was as fundraiser and builder ...

on February 2, 1960, and then served as an

associate pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

a
St. James Parish
in Salem. He was the

executive director Executive director is commonly the title of the chief executive officer of a non-profit organization, government agency or international organization. The title is widely used in North American and European not-for-profit organizations, though ...

of North Shore

Catholic Charities The Catholic Church operates numerous charitable organizations. Catholic spiritual teaching includes spreading the Gospel, while Catholic social teaching emphasises support for the sick, the poor and the afflicted through the corporal and spi ...

Center in Peabody from 1967 to 1981. During this time, he also pursued his

graduate studies Postgraduate or graduate education refers to academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachelor's) degree. The organization and stru ...

at Boston College, from where he obtained a Master's degree in social work in 1969. In 1981 he was appointed

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

o
Immaculate Conception Parish
in Malden. In 1984 he became

Secretary A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a ...

for Ministerial Personnel in the Archdiocese of Boston. In this position, McCormack was Cardinal

Bernard Francis Law Bernard Francis Law (November 4, 1931 – December 20, 2017) was an American cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church, known largely for covering up the serial rape of children by Catholic priests. He served as Archbishop of Boston, archpri ...

's point person on hearing complaints against priests accused of sexual misconduct and removing some of them from active duty. He was made pastor o
St. Francis Xavier Parish
in Weymouth in 1994.

Auxiliary Bishop of Boston, Massachusetts

On November 21, 1995, McCormack was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Boston 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 ...

of ''Cerbali'' by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

. He received his

episcopal consecration 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 ...

on the following December 27 from Cardinal Law, with Cardinal

William Wakefield Baum William Wakefield Baum (November 21, 1926 – July 23, 2015) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau in Missouri (1970–1973) and archbishop of the Archdiocese of Wa ...

and Bishop Alfred Clifton Hughes serving as co-consecrators. He chose for his episcopal

motto A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. Mot ...

: "Christ in all things." As an auxiliary, he served as regional bishop for the South Region of the Archdiocese.

Bishop of Manchester, New Hampshire

Senator Bob Smith with Bishop John McCormack

McCormack was later named the ninth

Bishop of Manchester The Bishop of Manchester is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Manchester in the Province of York.'' Crockford's Clerical Directory 2008/2009 (100th edition)'', Church House Publishing (). The current bishop is David Walker w ...

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the nor ...

, on July 21, 1998, succeeding the late Leo O'Neil. He was formally installed on September 22, 1998. In early 2002, McCormack publicly announced the names of 14 priests in the diocese who had been accused of sexually abusing children (cf Sexual abuse scandal in Manchester diocese). In 2003, the diocese reached a settlement with the New Hampshire Attorney General's Office, which was investigating the child sex abuse scandal. The settlement spared the diocese from being criminally charged. In all, in the period of 2002-03, the diocese agreed to a $15.5 million settlement involving 176 claims of sex abuse. The May 2003 settlement of 61 abuse claims for $6.5 million handled by Manchester attorney Ovide M. Lamontagne as counsel for the Manchester Diocese prevented the diocese from being criminally prosecuted. In December 2002, the diocese had admitted that its failure to protect children from sexual abuse may have been a violation of criminal law, becoming the first diocese in the United States to do so. Under threat of indictment by the New Hampshire Attorney General, McCormack signed an agreement acknowledging that the Attorney General office possessed evidence sufficient to win convictions as part of the settlement. Lamontagne claimed that McCormack and other prominent church members wanted a speedy settlement and, in an example of behaving "pastorally" rather than as a litigant, instructed their attorneys to take a moderate stance and eschew hardline legal tactics. Lamontagne said of the diocese's legal strategy, "That is not typical in terms of client requests."

Retirement and death

On August 10, 2010, in accordance with canon 401 §1 of the

1983 Code of Canon Law The 1983 ''Code of Canon Law'' (abbreviated 1983 CIC from its Latin title ''Codex Iuris Canonici''), also called the Johanno-Pauline Code, is the "fundamental body of ecclesiastical laws for the Latin Church". It is the second and current comp ...

, Bishop McCormack submitted his resignation to

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the soverei ...

as bishop of the Diocese of Manchester. His resignation was accepted on Monday, September 19, 2011, when

appointed then-Auxiliary Bishop Peter Anthony Libasci of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre The Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre ( la, Dioecesis Petropolitana in Insula Longa) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church that comprises the territory of Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Isl ...

, New York, as his successor. McCormack died in Manchester, New Hampshire on September 21, 2021, at the age of 86.Retired Diocese of Manchester Bishop John McCormack dies
/ref>

References

Works cited

External links

Profile at The Diocese of Manchester website
* ttp://www.nashuatelegraph.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070505/NEWS02/205050330/-1/HOME Nashua (NH) Telegraph: Catholic Church abuse policies need workbr>PBS Frontline "Hand of God"Roman Catholic Archdiocese of BostonRoman Catholic Diocese of Manchester

Episcopal succession

{{DEFAULTSORT:McCormack, John Brendan 1935 births 2021 deaths People from Winthrop, Massachusetts Saint John's Seminary (Massachusetts) alumni Boston College Graduate School of Social Work alumni Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston Roman Catholic bishops of Manchester 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Religious leaders from Massachusetts Boston College High School alumni Catholics from Massachusetts