Peter John Byrne (born July 24, 1951) 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 'pref ...

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 of the Archdiocese of New York since 2014.

Biography

Early life

Peter Byrne was born on July 24, 1951, in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

, the son of John and Dorothy Byrne. He grew up in Stuyvesant Town in Manhattan and attended Immaculate Conception School Elementary School in Manhattan and Cardinal Hayes High School in the

Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

. Bryne earned a bachelor's degree from

Fordham University Fordham University () is a Private university, private Jesuit universities, Jesuit research university in New York City. Established in 1841 and named after the Fordham, Bronx, Fordham neighborhood of the The Bronx, Bronx in which its origina ...

in New York City in history and social studies. In 1974, Byrne entered St. Joseph's Seminary in Yonkers, New York. However, he soon left to teach at Catholic schools and confirm that he wanted to become a priest. In 1983, Byrne returned to the seminary and completed the program there.

Priesthood

Byrne was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of New York by Cardinal John O'Connor on December 1, 1984. His pastoral assignments included

parochial vicar A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pre ...

at St. Teresa of Avila Parish in

Sleepy Hollow, New York Sleepy Hollow is a village in the town of Mount Pleasant, in Westchester County, New York, United States. The village is located on the east bank of the Hudson River, about north of New York City, and is served by the Philipse Manor stop on ...

from 1984 to 1992, administrator of St. Thomas Aquinas Parish in the Bronx from 1992 to 1994 and administrator at St. John the Baptist de La Salle Parish in Staten Island, New York, in 1995. Byrne then served as

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 Immaculate Conception Parish on Staten Island from 1995 to 2013. After the attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, Byrne worked for several weeks with families that lost relatives there. Byrne served at St. Elizabeth's Parish in Washington Heights, Manhattan from 2013 to 2014.

Auxiliary Bishop of New York

Byrne was named 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 an ...

of Cluain Iraird and auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of New York by

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

on June 14, 2014. He was consecrated a bishop by Cardinal

Timothy Dolan Timothy Michael Dolan (born February 6, 1950) is an American cardinal of the Catholic Church. He is the tenth and current Archbishop of New York, having been appointed by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009. Dolan served as the president of the United S ...

in St. Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan on August 4, 2014. New York auxiliary bishops Gerald Walsh and Dominick Lagonegro were the co-consecrators. Byrne chose as his episcopal motto "God is Faithful".

References

External links

Episcopal succession

{{DEFAULTSORT:Byrne, Peter John 1951 births Living people People from Manhattan Fordham University alumni Saint Joseph's Seminary (Dunwoodie) alumni People of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York 21st-century American Roman Catholic titular bishops Catholics from New York (state) Bishops appointed by Pope Francis