Henry Joseph O'Brien
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Henry Joseph O'Brien (July 21, 1896 – July 23, 1976) 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 ...
. He served as the first Archbishop of Hartford from 1945 to 1968.


Biography

Henry O'Brien was born in
New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...
, to Michael and Anna (née Sweeney) O'Brien. After graduating from New Haven High School in 1914, he studied at St. Thomas Seminary in Bloomfield (1914-1917) and at St. Bernard's Seminary in Rochester,
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
(1917-1919). In 1919, he was sent to the
Catholic University of Leuven University of Leuven or University of Louvain (french: Université de Louvain, link=no; nl, Universiteit Leuven, link=no) may refer to: * Old University of Leuven (1425–1797) * State University of Leuven (1817–1835) * Catholic University of ...
in
Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
, where he was
ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...
to the priesthood on July 8, 1923. Following his return to the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
later that year, he served as a
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 ...
at St. Mary's,
Windsor Locks Windsor Locks is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 12,613. It is the site of Bradley International Airport, which serves the Greater Hartford-Springfield region and occupies approxim ...
until 1924, when he was transferred to St. Thomas Aquinas, Fairfield. He became a
professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...
at St. Thomas Seminary in 1926, later becoming its
vice-president A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...
(1932) and afterwards
president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
(1934). On March 19, 1940, O'Brien was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Hartford and
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 ''Sita'' by
Pope Pius XII Pope Pius XII ( it, Pio XII), born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli (; 2 March 18769 October 1958), was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death in October 1958. Before his e ...
. He received his
episcopal 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 ...
consecration Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...
on the following May 14 from Archbishop
Amleto Giovanni Cicognani Amleto Giovanni Cicognani (24 February 1883 – 17 December 1973) was an Italian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Vatican Secretary of State from 1961 to 1969, and Dean of the College of Cardinals from 1972 until his death. C ...
, with Bishops
Maurice F. McAuliffe Maurice Francis McAuliffe (June 17, 1875 – December 15, 1944) was an American clergyman of the Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Hartford from 1934 until his death in 1944. Biography Maurice McAuliffe was born in Hartford, Connecticut, ...
and
Joseph Edward McCarthy Joseph Edward McCarthy (November 14, 1876 – September 8, 1955) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the sixth bishop of the Diocese of Portland in Maine from 1932 until his death in 1955. Biography Early l ...
serving as
co-consecrators 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, ...
. Following the death of Bishop McAuliffe in December 1944, O'Brien was named ninth
Bishop of Hartford The Archdiocese of Hartford is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Hartford, Litchfield and New Haven counties in the U.S. State of Connecticut. The archdiocese includes about 470,000 Catholics, more ...
on April 7, 1945. The number of Catholics and parishes in Connecticut grew substantially during the post-
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
era. When the Diocese of Hartford was elevated to the rank of an
archdiocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...
on August 6, 1953, O'Brien was made its first
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 ...
. At the same time, O'Brien became Metropolitan of the Hartford Province (Hartford, Bridgeport, Norwich, Providence). The Cathedral of St. Joseph was destroyed by a fire of suspicious origin on 31 December 1956. The archbishop immediately began plans to construct a new cathedral on the same site. Ground was broken for the new edifice on 8 September 1958. The new structure was consecrated on 15 May 1962 by Auxiliary Bishop John F. Hackett; due to illness, Archbishop O'Brien was unable to preside. While O'Brien was staunchly opposed to
birth control Birth control, also known as contraception, anticonception, and fertility control, is the use of methods or devices to prevent unwanted pregnancy. Birth control has been used since ancient times, but effective and safe methods of birth contr ...
, the Archdiocese under his leadership gave $15,000 to a private birth control organization that advocated the symptothermic method, a refinement of the
rhythm method Calendar-based methods are various methods of estimating a woman's likelihood of fertility, based on a record of the length of previous menstrual cycles. Various methods are known as the Knaus–Ogino method and the rhythm method. The standard days ...
used by many Catholics to avoid pregnancy. He later joined his fellow Catholic bishops in Connecticut in opposing a bill that would have permitted
abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregn ...
s for pregnancies resulting from
rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ag ...
. He attended all four sessions of the
Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st Catholic ecumenical councils, ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions) ...
between 1962 and 1965. In 1965 he launched a campaign to end
employment discrimination Employment discrimination is a form of illegal discrimination in the workplace based on legally protected characteristics. In the U.S., federal anti-discrimination law prohibits discrimination by employers against employees based on age, race, g ...
by refusing to do business with discriminatory concerns. After twenty-three years as head of the Hartford Archdiocese, O'Brien resigned on November 20, 1968; he was appointed Titular Archbishop of ''Uthina'' on the same date. He was apostolic administrator of the Archdiocese until March 19, 1969, when his successor, John F. Whealon, was installed in the Cathedral of St. Joseph. He resigned his
titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbish ...
on January 5, 1971. He died at St. Francis Hospital in Hartford on July 23, 1976, two days after his 80th birthday. He was interred in the bishops' plot at Mount St. Benedict Cemetery,
Bloomfield, Connecticut Bloomfield is a suburb of Hartford in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The town's population was 21,535 at the 2020 census. Bloomfield is best known as the headquarters of healthcare services company Cigna. History Originally land ...
.


References


External links


Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Hartford
{{DEFAULTSORT:Obrien, Henry Joseph 1896 births 1976 deaths Participants in the Second Vatican Council Roman Catholic bishops of Hartford People from Fairfield, Connecticut Religious leaders from New Haven, Connecticut 20th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in the United States American Roman Catholic archbishops