Joseph Cassidy (29 October 193331 January 2013) was Bishop of Clonfert from 1982 to 1987 and

Archbishop of Tuam The Archbishop of Tuam ( ; ga, Ard-Easpag Thuama) is an archbishop which takes its name after the town of Tuam in County Galway, Ireland. The title was used by the Church of Ireland until 1839, and is still in use by the Catholic Church. Histor ...

from 1987 to 1994.

Biography

He was born in Charlestown,

County Mayo County Mayo (; ga, Contae Mhaigh Eo, meaning "Plain of the Taxus baccata, yew trees") is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Conn ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. He entered Maynooth in 1952, gaining a BD and BA(NUI), and was ordained a

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 particu ...

on 21 June 1959, in

Maynooth College St Patrick's Pontifical University, Maynooth ( ga, Coláiste Naoimh Phádraig, Maigh Nuad), is the "National Seminary for Ireland" (a Roman Catholic college), and a pontifical university, located in the town of Maynooth, from Dublin, Ireland. ...

, for the Diocese of Achonry. He later transferred to the slightly larger Diocese of Clonfert, where he taught at, and later became President of, St. Joseph's College,

Ballinasloe Ballinasloe ( ; ) is a town in the easternmost part of County Galway in Connacht. Located at an ancient crossing point on the River Suck, evidence of ancient settlement in the area includes a number of Bronze Age sites. Built around a 12th-ce ...

. He was appointed

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 ...

of Clonfert diocese on 24 August 1979 and received episcopal ordination on 23 September 1979, one week before the historic visit of

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 ...

to Ireland. The

Principal Consecrator 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, ...

was Archbishop Gaetano Alibrandi; his Principal Co-Consecrators were Archbishop

Joseph Cunnane Joseph Cunnane D.D. (5 October 1913 – 8 March 2001) was an Irish Catholic clergyman who served as the Archbishop of Tuam from 1969 to 1987. Born in the parish of Knock in County Mayo, he was educated at St. Jarlath's College, Tuam, and S ...

of Tuam and Bishop Thomas Flynn of Achonry. On 1 May 1982, he succeeded to the position of Bishop of Clonfert and spent much time visiting the scattered small communities that make up much of the diocese. His was an energetic and relatively youthful bishop and soon became media spokesperson for the Irish Episcopal Conference. This role built on his talent for language and communication which was an attribute picked up at his Requiem Mass by his successor "he used language with care, with discrimination and with feeling. He loved to play on words and to pun. His homilies were not only education but entertainment. His language was fresh, his vision poetic." On 22 August 1987 he was appointed to the position of

archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

of the Archdiocese of Tuam. He resigned the position on 29 June 1994 and took the title

Archbishop Emeritus In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of holy orders and is responsible for teaching doctrine, governing Catholics in his jurisdiction, sanctifying the world and representing the Chu ...

of Tuam. but he was anxious to maintain his pastoral ministry and became Parish Priest of Moore. Following his death at home in Ballinasloe on 31 January 2013, his funeral was held in the

Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Tuam The Cathedral Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Tuam, commonly called Tuam Cathedral, is the cathedral for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Tuam in Ireland. The geographic remit of the Archdiocese includes half of County Ga ...

and he was buried at Moore, County Roscommon where he served after his retirement as Archbishop.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cassidy, Joseph 1933 births 2013 deaths Christian clergy from County Mayo Roman Catholic archbishops of Tuam 20th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Ireland Roman Catholic bishops of Clonfert Alumni of St Patrick's College, Maynooth People from Charlestown, County Mayo