Joseph Nathaniel Perry (born April 18, 1948) is 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

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 ...

who has been serving as an auxiliary bishop for the

Archdiocese of Chicago The Archdiocese of Chicago ( la, Archidiœcesis Chicagiensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or archdiocese of the Catholic Church located in Northeastern Illinois, in the United States. It was established as a diocese in 1843 and ...

since 1998 Perry is a past vice-president of the board of the

National Black Catholic Congress The National Black Catholic Congress (NBCC) is a Black Catholic advocacy group and quinquennial conference in the United States. It is a spiritual successor to Daniel Rudd's Colored Catholic Congress movement of the late 19th and early 20th centur ...

, and chairman of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Subcommittee on African-American Affairs. He is also a supporter and celebrant of the

Traditional Latin Mass The Tridentine Mass, also known as the Traditional Latin Mass or Traditional Rite, is the liturgy of Mass in the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church that appears in typical editions of the Roman Missal published from 1570 to 1962. Celebrated alm ...

, and has celebrated pontifical high masses, ordinations, and confirmations according to the traditional rite.

Biography

Early life and education

A native of

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

, Joseph Perry attended various Catholic elementary schools in Chicago between 1954 and 1962. In 1963, he attended Carver High School in Chicago for one year before transferring to St. Lawrence Seminary High School in Mt. Calvary, Wisconsin. In 1967, Perry entered the Capuchin Seminary of St. Mary in

Crown Point, Indiana Crown Point is a city in and the county seat of Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 33,899 at the 2020 census. The city was incorporated in 1868. On October 31, 1834, Solon Robinson and his family became the first settlers to ...

where he studied through 1971. He then attended Saint Joseph's College in Rensselaer, Indiana, receiving a

Bachelor of Philosophy Bachelor of Philosophy (BPhil, BPh, or PhB; la, Baccalaureus Philosophiae or ) is the title of an academic degree that usually involves considerable research, either through a thesis or supervised research projects. Unlike many other bachelor's d ...

degree and a Bachelor of Theology degree. Perry then entered St. Francis Seminary in St. Francis, Wisconsin, receiving a Master of Divinity degree in 1975.

Ordination and ministry

On May 24, 1975, Perry was ordained a priest by Archbishop William Cousins for the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. After his ordination, he was assigned as

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 ...

at St. Nicholas Parish in Milwaukee. In 1976, Perry was appointed to the archdiocesan

tribunal A tribunal, generally, is any person or institution with authority to judge, adjudicate on, or determine claims or disputes—whether or not it is called a tribunal in its title. For example, an advocate who appears before a court with a single ...

. Between 1979 and 1981, Perry attended Catholic University of America, obtaining a

Licentiate of Canon Law Licentiate of Canon Law ( la, Juris Canonici Licentiatus; JCL) is the title of an advanced graduate degree with canonical effects in the Roman Catholic Church offered by pontifical universities and ecclesiastical faculties of canon law. Licentiat ...

. After receiving his licentiate, Perry returned to the tribunal, where he was appointed chief judicial officer in 1983. At the same time, he started teaching canon law at Sacred Heart School of Theology in

Hales Corners, Wisconsin Hales Corners is a village in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 7,692 at the 2010 census. History The land in the area that would eventually encompass the Village was first claimed as French, then British, and even ...

. In 1995, Perry permanently left the tribunal to return to pastoral work with an assignment as pastor of All Saints Parish in Milwaukee. In 1996. he began teaching canon law at

Marquette University Law School Marquette University Law School is the professional graduate law school of Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It is one of two law schools in Wisconsin and the only private law school in the state. Founded in 1892 as the Milwaukee Law ...

and in 1997 at

Mundelein 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 c ...

in Mundelein, Illinois.

Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago

On May 5, 1998,

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 Perry as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Chicago and 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 ...

Lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...

. He was consecrated on June 29, 1998 by Cardinal

Francis George Francis Eugene George (January 16, 1937 – April 17, 2015) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He was the eighth Archbishop of Chicago in Illinois (1997–2014) and previously served as bishop of the Diocese of Yakima and A ...

. He was then appointed the

episcopal vicar Episcopal may refer to: *Of or relating to a bishop, an overseer in the Christian church *Episcopate, the see of a bishop – a diocese *Episcopal Church (disambiguation), any church with "Episcopal" in its name ** Episcopal Church (United State ...

for Vicariate VI of the archdiocese.

Membership and appointments

In 2010, Cardinal

named Perry as the diocesan postulator for the sainthood cause of Father

Augustus Tolton John Augustus Tolton (April 1, 1854 – July 9, 1897), baptized Augustine Tolton, was the first Catholic priest in the United States publicly known to be Black. (The Healy brothers, who preceded him, all passed for White.) Tolton was ordaine ...

, a former slave who became the first known African-American priest in the Catholic church. Perry is chair of the USCCB Committee on African American Catholics. He has also served on several other USCCB committees, including those for Education, Home Missions; the Ad Hoc Committee on Catholics' Use of Holy Scripture; the Secretariat for Family, Laity, Women and Youth; and the Ad Hoc Committee for a Plenary Council, the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, the subcommittee for the Defense of Marriage and the subcommittee for Migrants, Refugees and Travelers. Since 1977, Perry has been a member of the

Canon Law Society of America The Canon Law Society of America or CLSA is a professional association dedicated to the promotion of both the study and the application of canon law in the Catholic Church. The Society's membership includes over fifteen hundred men and women who ...

(CLSA). In 1998, he sat on the Board of Advisors of

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. In addition, he is an episcopal

liaison Liaison means communication between two or more groups, or co-operation or working together. Liaison or liaisons may refer to: General usage * Affair, an unfaithful sexual relationship * Collaboration * Co-operation Arts and entertainment * Li ...

for

Catechetics Catechesis (; from Greek: , "instruction by word of mouth", generally "instruction") is basic Christian religious education of children and adults, often from a catechism book. It started as education of converts to Christianity, but as the ...

and Liturgical Training Publications (LTP) of the archdiocese, and is a judge sitting on the Ecclesiastical Court of Appeals for the dioceses in

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

References

External links

Biography from the Archdiocese of Chicago

Biography from the National Black Catholic Congress

National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago
{{DEFAULTSORT:Perry, Joseph 1948 births Living people 21st-century American Roman Catholic titular bishops Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago Christianity in Chicago Clergy from Chicago Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee Sacred Heart School of Theology alumni Saint Joseph's College (Indiana) alumni St. Francis Seminary (Wisconsin) alumni Marquette University faculty University of St. Mary of the Lake faculty African-American Roman Catholic bishops Religious leaders from Illinois Religious leaders from Milwaukee Catholics from Illinois 20th-century American Roman Catholic titular bishops 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American people