Thomas Vose Daily (September 23, 1927 – May 14, 2017) was 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 served as

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

of the

Diocese of Brooklyn The Diocese of Brooklyn is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the U.S. state of New York. It is headquartered in Brooklyn and its territory encompasses the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens. ...

in New York from 1990 to 2003. He previously served as bishop of the

Diocese of Palm Beach The Diocese of Palm Beach ( la, Dioecesis Litoris Palmensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the U.S. state of Florida. The patron saint of the diocese is the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title Que ...

in Florida from 1984 to 1990 and as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Boston in Massachusetts from 1975 to 1984

Biography

Early life

Thomas Daily was born in Belmont, Massachusetts to John F. and Mary McBride (née Vose) Daily, on September 23, 1927. He attended at

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classifie ...

and later St. John's Seminary in Boston, Massachusetts.

Priesthood

Daily was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of Boston on January 10, 1952, by Cardinal

Richard Cushing Richard James Cushing (August 24, 1895 – November 2, 1970) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Boston from 1944 to 1970 and was made a cardinal in 1958. Cushing's main role was as fundraiser and builder ...

at Boston's Cathedral of the Holy Cross. Following ordination, he was assigned as

curate A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...

for St. Ann's Parish in

Quincy, Massachusetts Quincy ( ) is a coastal U.S. city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the largest city in the county and a part of Greater Boston, Metropolitan Boston as one of Boston's immediate southern suburbs. Its population in 2020 was 1 ...

. He remained in that post through the rest of that decade. In 1960, Daily joined the Missionary Society of St. James the Apostle and moved to the Limatambo area of

Cusco, Peru Cusco, often spelled Cuzco (; qu, Qusqu ()), is a city in Southeastern Peru near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region and of the Cusco Province. The city is the seventh most populous in Peru ...

. He spent five years as a missionary in Peru. After returning to Boston, Daily was assigned again to St. Ann's, where he served as assistant pastor until 1971. He was appointed to the position of secretary to Cardinal

Humberto Medeiros Humberto Sousa Medeiros, GCIH (October 6, 1915 – September 17, 1983) was a Portuguese-American clergyman of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Boston from 1970 until his death in 1983, and was created a cardinal in 1973 ...

and later vicar for temporalities.

Auxiliary Bishop of Boston

On December 28, 1974,

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his ...

appointed Daily as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Boston. He was consecrated on February 11, 1975 by Cardinal Medeiros. In 1976, Daily was appointed

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 ...

of the archdiocese. Because of his fluency in

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

, he was given special duties regarding the Spanish-speaking members of the archdiocese.

Bishop of Palm Beach

On July 17, 1984, Daily was appointed by Pope John Paul II as the first bishop of the new

. Among his most noteworthy actions were his leading of

anti-abortion Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life or abolitionist movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in respons ...

prayer vigils at local women’s health clinics. From 1987 to 2005, Daily also served as the supreme chaplain of the

Knights of Columbus The Knights of Columbus (K of C) is a global Catholic fraternal service order founded by Michael J. McGivney on March 29, 1882. Membership is limited to practicing Catholic men. It is led by Patrick E. Kelly, the order's 14th Supreme Knight. ...

Bishop of Brooklyn

On February 20, 1990, John Paul II appointed Daily as the sixth bishop of the Diocese of Brooklyn, succeeding Bishop Francis J. Mugavero. Daily was installed on April 18,m 1990. Shortly after his installation, he responded to a reporter's question by stating that the then-Governor of New York,

Mario Cuomo Mario Matthew Cuomo (, ; June 15, 1932 – January 1, 2015) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 52nd governor of New York for three terms, from 1983 to 1994. A member of the Democratic Party, Cuomo previously served as ...

, would not be welcomed as a speaker in the diocese's parishes because of Cuomo's

pro-choice Abortion-rights movements, also referred to as pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their pre ...

position on

abortion rights Abortion-rights movements, also referred to as pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their pre ...

for women.

Retirement and legacy

On August 1, 2003, Daily announced his resignation as a bishop had finally been accepted by the Vatican, ten months after he had submitted a letter of resignation upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75. Daily served as a member of the

Pontifical Commission for Latin America The Pontifical Commission for Latin America is a department of the Roman Curia that since 1958 has been charged with providing assistance to and examining matters pertaining to the Catholic Church in Latin America. The Commission operates under t ...

and as a board member of the Society of St. James the Apostle in Boston and the National Catholic Office for Persons with Disabilities in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

Thomas Daily died on May 15, 2017 at the Bishop Mugavero Residence in Douglaston, Queens in New York City He was 89.

References

External links

Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn Official Site

Episcopal succession

{{DEFAULTSORT:Daily, Thomas Vose 1927 births 2017 deaths 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States American Roman Catholic clergy of Irish descent Boston College alumni People from Belmont, Massachusetts Roman Catholic bishops of Palm Beach Roman Catholic bishops of Brooklyn Saint John's Seminary (Massachusetts) alumni Catholics from Massachusetts People from Douglaston–Little Neck, Queens