John Raymond McGann (December 2, 1924 – January 29, 2002) was an American

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

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

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 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 Isla ...

, in New York from 1976 to 2000. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the same diocese from 1970 to 1976.

Biography

Early life and education

John McGann was born on December 2, 1924, in

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 ...

, New York, to Thomas and Mary (née Ryan) McGann. His twin sister, who took the name Sr. John Raymond McGann joined the Sisters of Saint Joseph in Brentwood, Long Island, becoming general superior of the congregation in 1978. A second sibling, Sr. Thomas Joseph, also joined the Sisters of Saint Joseph. He received his early education at the parochial school of Our Lady of Good Counsel Church, graduating in 1938. He then began his studies for the priesthood at Cathedral College in Brooklyn, and afterwards attended Immaculate Conception Seminary in Huntington, New York, from 1944 to 1950.

Ordination and ministry

On June 3, 1950, McGann 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 ...

a priest for the

Diocese of Brooklyn The Diocese of Brooklyn is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the U.S. state of New York. It is headquartered in Brooklyn and its territory encompasses the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens. ...

by Bishop Thomas E. Molloy. His first assignment was as a curate at St. Anne's Parish in

Brentwood, New York Brentwood is a hamlet in the Town of Islip in Suffolk County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 62,387 at the 2020 Census, making it the most populous in Suffolk County and on all of Long Island outside of New York ...

, where he served for seven years. He also served as an assistant chaplain at Pilgrim State Hospital and a professor at St. Joseph's Academy, both in Brentwood (1950–1954). In 1957, McGann was named assistant personal secretary to Bishop

Walter P. Kellenberg Walter Philip Kellenberg (June 3, 1901 – January 11, 1986) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Ogdensburg, Diocese of Ogdensburg in Northern New York (1954–1957) and bi ...

and assistant

chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

of the newly erected Diocese of Rockville Centre. He became personal secretary to Bishop Kellenberg in 1959, and 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 ...

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 ...

that same year. In addition to his pastoral work at St. Agnes Cathedral, he was made vice-chancellor of the diocese in 1967 and served as secretary of the diocesan board of consultors.

Auxiliary Bishop and Bishop of Rockville Centre

On November 12, 1970, McGann was appointed auxiliary bishop of Rockville Centre 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 an ...

of ''Morosbisdus'' by

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 ...

. He received his episcopal

consecration Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

on January 7, 1971 from Bishop Kellenberg, with Bishops Vincent Baldwin and Charles Mulrooney serving as

co-consecrators A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churches, ...

. On May 3, 1976, McGann was appointed bishop of Rockville Centre by Paul VI. He was elected treasurer of the

National Conference of Catholic Bishops The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Conference (US ...

in 1984.

Retirement and death

Pope John Paul II accepted McGann's resignation as bishop of the Diocese of Rockville Centre on January 4, 2000. He was succeeded by Bishop

James T. McHugh James Thomas McHugh (January 3, 1932 – December 10, 2000) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church who served as bishop of Diocese of Rockville Centre in New York during the year 2000. McHugh previously served as an auxiliary bishop ...

, who had served as his

coadjutor bishop A coadjutor bishop (or bishop coadjutor) is a bishop in the Catholic, Anglican, and (historically) Eastern Orthodox churches whose main role is to assist the diocesan bishop in the administration of the diocese. The coadjutor (literally, "co ...

since 1999. John McGann died at Mercy Medical Center in Rockville Centre on January 31, 2002, at age 77. The Radiology & Imaging Center at Mercy Medical Center is named for Bishop McGann, as is Bishop McGann-Mercy High School. Bishop John R. McGann Village is a senior

low income housing Subsidized housing is government sponsored economic assistance aimed towards alleviating housing costs and expenses for impoverished people with low to moderate incomes. In the United States, subsidized housing is often called "affordable housin ...

apartment in

Bay Shore, New York Bay Shore is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Islip, New York, United States. It is situated on the South Shore of Long Island, adjoining the Great South Bay. The population of the CDP was 29,244 at the time of the 2020 ...

. Two unnamed women alleged in 2019 through an attorney that McGann and other clergy and personnel of the diocese sexually abused them as children in the 1960s and '70s.

References

External links

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre
{{DEFAULTSORT:McGann, John R. 1924 births 2002 deaths American Roman Catholic clergy of Irish descent People from Brooklyn People from Brentwood, New York Catholics from New York (state) 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Burials at the Cemetery of the Holy Rood