John Richard Keating (July 20, 1934 – March 22, 1998) 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 bishop of the

Diocese of Arlington The Diocese of Arlington ( la, Dioecesis Arlingtonensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the Mid-Atlantic United States. The Diocese of Arlington comprises 70 parishes across 21 counties and se ...

in Virginia from 1983 until his death.

Biography

Early life

John Keating was born on July 20, 1934, in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, to Robert and Gertrude Keating. He was educated at Queen of All Saints School,

Archbishop Quigley Preparatory Seminary Archbishop Quigley Preparatory Seminary was an American seminary preparatory school administered by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago for young men considering the priesthood. Located in downtown Chicago at 103 East Chestnut Street, a ...

in Chicago, and

St. Mary of the Lake Seminary The University of Saint Mary of the Lake (USML) is a private Roman Catholic seminary in Mundelein, Illinois. It is the principal seminary and school of theology for the formation of priests in the Archdiocese of Chicago in Illinois. It was ...

in Mundelein, Illinois. Keating continued his studies at the

Pontifical Gregorian University The Pontifical Gregorian University ( it, Pontificia Università Gregoriana; also known as the Gregorian or Gregoriana,) is a higher education ecclesiastical school ( pontifical university) located in Rome, Italy. The Gregorian originated as ...

in Rome, obtaining a

Licentiate of Sacred Theology Licentiate in Sacred Theology ( la, Sacrae Theologiae Licentiatus; abbreviated STL) is the second of three ecclesiastical degrees in theology (the first being the Baccalaureate in Sacred Theology and the third being the Doctorate in Sacred Theol ...

in 1959.

Priesthood

On December 20, 1958, Keating 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 va ...

to the priesthood in Rome for the Archdiocese of Chicago by Bishop Martin O'Connor. Following his return to Chicago, Keating served as associate pastor at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish until 1960, when Cardinal

Albert Meyer Albert Meyer may refer to: *Albert Meyer (politician) (1870–1953), member of the Swiss Federal Council, 1929–1938 * Albert Gregory Meyer (1903–1965), Archbishop of Chicago * Albert J. Meyer (economist) (1919–1983), American economist * Albe ...

sent him back to Rome to study

canon law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...

. Keating earned a

Doctor of Canon Law Doctor of Canon Law ( la, Juris Canonici Doctor, JCD) is the doctoral-level terminal degree in the studies of canon law of the Roman Catholic Church. It can also be an honorary degree awarded by Anglican colleges. It may also be abbreviated ICD ...

degree from the Gregorian University in 1963. Back in Chicago, Keating served as assistant chancellor of the archdiocese and associate pastor at Immaculate Conception Parish. He was also associate pastor at St. Germaine Parish in

Oak Lawn, Illinois Oak Lawn is a Village (Illinois), village in Cook County, Illinois, Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 58,362 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Oak Lawn is a suburb of Chicago, located southwest of the city. It ...

(1968–1969), St. Mary Parish in

Riverside, Illinois Riverside is a suburban village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. A significant portion of the village is in the Riverside Historic District (Riverside, Illinois), Riverside Landscape Architecture District, designated a National Historic La ...

(1969–1970), St. Clement Parish in Chicago (1970–1975), and St. Louise de Marillac Parish in

La Grange Park, Illinois La Grange Park is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 13,475. Geography La Grange Park is located at (41.829831, -87.869233). According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, La Grange Park ha ...

(1975–1983). In 1971, Keating was appointed co-chancellor for priest personnel and a member of the clergy personnel board. He became

chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

of this board in 1977. In 1979, Keating 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 ...

and chancellor of the archdiocese. After the death of Cardinal

John Cody John Patrick Cody (December 24, 1907 – April 25, 1982) was an American bishop and cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. A native of St. Louis, he served as Bishop of Kansas City–Saint Joseph (1956–1961), Archbishop of New Orleans (1964� ...

in April 1982, Keating served as

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 Chicago until the appointment of Archbishop

Joseph Bernardin Joseph Louis Bernardin (April 2, 1928 – November 14, 1996) was an American Cardinal of the Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Cincinnati from 1972 until 1982, and as Archbishop of Chicago from 1982 until his death in 1996 from ...

Bishop of Arlington

On June 7, 1983,

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 ...

appointed Keating as the second bishop of the Diocese of Arlington. He was consecrated on August 4, 1983, by Archbishop

Pio Laghi Pio Laghi (21 May 1922 – 10 January 2009) was an Italian cardinal of the Catholic Church. His service was primarily in the diplomatic service of the Holy See and the Roman Curia. He served as Apostolic nuncio to several countries and as the P ...

, with Bishops Thomas Murphy and Thomas Welsh 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, ...

. At the beginning of his tenure, the diocese had 188,000 Catholics and 57 parishes; at the time of his death, there were over 336,000 Catholics, 65 parishes, and 5 missions. Keating issued six

pastoral letter A pastoral letter, often simply called a pastoral, is an open letter addressed by a bishop to the clergy or laity of a diocese or to both, containing general admonition, instruction or consolation, or directions for behaviour in particular circumst ...

s and ordained 84 priests. In 1994, he and Bishop

Fabian Bruskewitz Fabian Wendelin Bruskewitz (born September 6, 1935) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as bishop of the Diocese of Lincoln in Nebraska, from 1992 to 2012. He is known for often taking conservative stands on social i ...

made national headlines when they insisted on maintaining exclusively male

altar server An altar server is a lay assistant to a member of the clergy during a Christian liturgy. An altar server attends to supporting tasks at the altar such as fetching and carrying, ringing the altar bell, helps bring up the gifts, brings up the bo ...

s in their dioceses.

Death

In March 1998, Keating made an ''

ad limina A quinquennial visit ''ad limina'', or simply an ''ad limina'' visit, is the required visit of Catholic residential diocesan bishops and certain prelates with territorial jurisdiction (such as territorial abbots) to the ''thresholds of the'' om ...

'' visit to Rome to meet with John Paul II and report on his diocese. He died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

on March 22, 1998, at the residence of the Oblate Fathers of St. Francis in Rome. Keating was buried at

Columbia Gardens Cemetery The Columbia Gardens Cemetery is a cemetery located in the Ashton Heights Historic District of Arlington, Virginia Cemetery The Columbia Gardens Cemetery is located at the southern boundary of the Ashton Heights Historic District and is one o ...

in Arlington. He was later entombed at the Cathedral of Saint Thomas More.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Keating, John Richard 1934 births 1998 deaths Clergy from Chicago Roman Catholic bishops of Arlington University of Saint Mary of the Lake alumni 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Catholics from Illinois