Thomas Francis Doran (October 4, 1856 – January 3, 1916) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic church who served as an auxiliary bishop for the

Diocese of Providence The Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence ( la, Dioecesis Providentiensis) is a diocese of the Catholic Church in the United States. The diocese was erected by Pope Pius IX on February 17, 1872 and originally comprised the entire state of Rhode ...

in Rhode Island from 1915 to 1916.

Biography

Early life

Thomas Doran was born in Barrington, Rhode Island on October 4, 1856, to James and Catherine Nolan Doran. He received his primary education in Barrington, then attended high school in

Warren, Rhode Island Warren is a town in Bristol County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 11,147 at the 2020 census. History Warren was the site of the Pokanoket Indian settlement of Sowams located on a peninsula within the Pokanoket region. The reg ...

and Barrington. Doran then entered Mount St. Mary's College in Emmitsburg, Maryland, graduating in 1876. He then continued his education at Mount St. Mary's, taking courses in philosophy and theology.

Priesthood

Doran was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Providence by Bishop Thomas F. Hendricken on July 4, 1880, in St. Charles Church in Woonsocket, Rhode Island. After his ordination, Doran was assigned temporarily to St. Mary's Parish in Taunton, Massachusetts. In November 1880, he was sent to St. Mary's Parish in Newport, Rhode Island, to serve as assistant pastor. In 1887, while still serving at St. Mary's, Doran was named chancellor for the diocese. He was named

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 ...

in 1894. Doran was transferred in 1894 from St. Mary's to Immaculate Conception Parish in Providence to be its pastor. Two years later, he left Immaculate Conception to serve as rector of the Cathedral in Providence. In 1888, Doran entered the Rhode Island Militia as a first lieutenant and chaplain. He went with the troops to their annual six-day encampments at Oakland Beach, Rhode Island. He continued with the militia until 1895. After St. Joseph's Hospital opened in Providence in 1892, Doran served as its treasurer and

chief financial officer The chief financial officer (CFO) is an officer of a company or organization that is assigned the primary responsibility for managing the company's finances, including financial planning, management of financial risks, record-keeping, and financ ...

. In 1899, Doran was appointed pastor of St. Joseph's Parish in Providence, a position he would hold for 17 years.

Pope Pius X Pope Pius X ( it, Pio X; born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto; 2 June 1835 – 20 August 1914) was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 to his death in August 1914. Pius X is known for vigorously opposing modernist interpretations of C ...

named Doran in 1905 as a

domestic prelate Monsignor (; it, monsignore ) is an honorific form of address or title for certain male clergy members, usually members of the Roman Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" ca ...

, with the title monsignor, and in 1911 as a

prothonotary apostolic In the Roman Catholic Church, protonotary apostolic (PA; Latin: ''protonotarius apostolicus'') is the title for a member of the highest non-episcopal college of prelates in the Roman Curia or, outside Rome, an honorary prelate on whom the pop ...

Auxiliary Bishop of Providence

On February 26, 1915, Pope Benedict XV named Doran as titular bishop of Halicarnassus and as an auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Providence. He was consecrated by Bishop

Matthew Harkins Matthew A. Harkins (November 17, 1845 – May 25, 1921) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the second Bishop of Providence from 1887 until his death in 1921. Biography Matthew A. Harkins was born in Boston, M ...

on April 28, 1915. Thomas Doran died of pneumonia in Providence on January 3, 1916, having served as bishop for only one year. The ''Providence Visitor'' had these comments about Doran:

His sterling character and admirable qualities of mind and heart made him known, and most favorably so, throughout the length and breadth of the State, and even beyond its borders. Every class and creed among the population, among whom he was held in the highest esteem, can consider his death in no other sense than a personal loss.

References

External links

Official site of the Holy See

Episcopal succession

1856 births 1916 deaths People from Barrington, Rhode Island Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Religious leaders from Rhode Island Catholics from Rhode Island {{US-RC-bishop-stub