David Michael O'Connell (born April 21, 1955) is an

American Catholic The Catholic Church in the United States is part of the worldwide Catholic Church in communion with the pope, who as of 2025 is Chicago, Illinois-born Leo XIV. With 23 percent of the United States' population , the Catholic Church is the cou ...

prelate who has served as Bishop of Trenton since 2010. He is a member of the

Congregation of the Mission The Congregation of the Mission (), abbreviated CM and commonly called the Vincentians or Lazarists, is a Catholic Church, Catholic society of apostolic life of pontifical right for men founded by Vincent de Paul. It is associated with the Vin ...

and a past president of the

Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily a ...

Biography

Early life and education

David O'Connell was born on April 21, 1955, in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, one of the four sons of Arthur J. and June O'Connell. He was raised in nearby

Langhorne, Pennsylvania Langhorne Borough, formerly known as Attleboro, is a borough in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,643 at the time of the 2020 census. The mailing address "Langhorne" is used for Langhorne Borough but also broadly ...

. Feeling drawn at an early age to the

Catholic priesthood The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in common English usage ''priest'' refe ...

, he attended St. Joseph Preparatory High School in

Princeton, New Jersey The Municipality of Princeton is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It was established on January 1, 2013, through the consolidation of the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey, Borough of Princeton and Pri ...

. After graduating from high school, O'Connell entered

Niagara University Niagara University (NU) is a private Catholic university in the Vincentian tradition in the census-designated place Niagara University, New York, in the town of Lewiston near Niagara Falls. It is run by the Congregation of the Mission and ...

in Lewiston, New York. He received a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy from Niagara in 1978. He continued his studies for the priesthood at Mary Immaculate Seminary in Northampton, Pennsylvania, where he earned a

Master of Divinity For graduate-level theological institutions, the Master of Divinity (MDiv, ''magister divinitatis'' in Latin) is the first professional degree of the pastoral profession in North America. It is the most common academic degree in seminaries and ...

in 1981 and a

Master of Theology Master of Theology (, abbreviated ThM, MTh or MTheol, or ''Sacrae Theologiae Magister''; abbreviated STM) is a post-graduate degree offered by universities, divinity schools, and seminaries. It can serve as a transition degree for entrance into a ...

moral theology Ethics involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior.''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy''"Ethics" A central aspect of ethics is "the good life", the life worth living or life that is simply satisfyin ...

in 1983.

Ordination and ministry

O'Connell was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

a priest of the

(the Vincentians) by Joseph McShea on May 29, 1982, in the chapel of the Mary Immaculate Seminary. After his ordination, the Vincentians assigned O'Connell as a teacher at Archbishop Wood Catholic High School in Warminster, Pennsylvania, where he taught religion classes and served as director of student activities. O'Connell moved to Washington D.C. in 1985 to study at the CUA

School of Canon Law The Catholic University of America School of Canon Law is the only faculty of Catholic canon law in the United States. It is one of the twelve schools at Catholic University of America, located in Washington, D.C.,canon law Canon law (from , , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical jurisdiction, ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its membe ...

, theology, and philosophy at Mary Immaculate Seminary. O'Connell was awarded a

Licentiate of Canon Law Licentiate of Canon Law (; 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. Licentiate is the title of a person who ...

in 1987 and a

Doctor of Canon Law Doctor of Canon Law (, JCD) is the doctoral-level terminal degree in the studies of canon law of the Roman Catholic Church. It can also be an honorary degree awarded by Anglican colleges. It may also be abbreviated ICD or dr.iur.can. (''Iuris Can ...

in 1990. He also served as an ecclesiastical judge and canonical consultant for: * Diocese of Harrisburg (1987 to 1998) * Diocese of Birmingham (1987 to 1993) * Diocese of Scranton (1988 to 1998) Between 1990 and 1998, O'Connell served at St. John's University in New York City as associate

dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean * Dean Sw ...

, professor of theology and religious studies, academic dean and dean of faculty. O'Connell was named as associate

vice president A vice president or 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 vi ...

of the university in 1995 and assistant

legal counsel A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as wel ...

in 1996.

President of Catholic University of America

In 1998, O'Connell was appointed president of CUA. At his inauguration, O'Connell took the controversial Oath of Fidelity, expressing his support for ''Ex Corde Ecclesiae'', issued by Pope John Paul II in 1990. The document was criticized as an attack on

academic freedom Academic freedom is the right of a teacher to instruct and the right of a student to learn in an academic setting unhampered by outside interference. It may also include the right of academics to engage in social and political criticism. Academic ...

at Catholic Universities. O'Connell was named a consultor to the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Geography * Vatican City, an independent city-state surrounded by Rome, Italy * Vatican Hill, in Rome, namesake of Vatican City * Ager Vaticanus, an alluvial plain in Rome * Vatican, an unincorporated community in the ...

Congregation for Catholic Education The Congregation for Catholic Education (Institutes of Study) () was the pontifical congregation of the Roman Curia responsible for: universities, faculties, institutes and higher schools of study, either ecclesial or non-ecclesiastical depende ...

in 2005. In 2006, CUA appointed O'Connell as the John Joseph Keane University Professor for that year. On October 2, 2009, O'Connell announced that he was resigning as CUA president in August 2010.

Coadjutor Bishop and Bishop of Trenton

On June 4, 2010, O'Connell was appointed

coadjutor bishop A coadjutor bishop (or bishop coadjutor) ("co-assister" in Latin) is a bishop in the Latin Catholic, Anglican and (historically) Eastern Orthodox churches whose main role is to assist the diocesan bishop in administering the diocese. The coa ...

of Trenton by

Pope Benedict XVI Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...

to assist Bishop John M. Smith. O'Connell received his episcopal

consecration Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects ( ...

on July 30, 2010, from Smith, with Archbishops John J. Myers and

Donald Wuerl Donald William Wuerl (born November 12, 1940) is an American Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Washington from 2006 to 2018. He previously served as auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Seattle (1986 to 1987) and Bishop of Pit ...

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 Churche ...

, at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption in Trenton. O'Connell chose as 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 States ...

motto A motto (derived from the Latin language, Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian language, Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a Sentence (linguistics), sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of a ...

: ''Ministrare non ministrari'', meaning, "To serve and not to be served" (). As coadjutor bishop, O'Connell automatically succeeded Smith on December 1, 2010, when he retired. In 2014, the CUA named Father O'Connell Hall in honor of David O'Connell. In December 2014, after O'Connell suffered a severe

bone infection Osteomyelitis (OM) is the infectious inflammation of bone marrow. Symptoms may include pain in a specific bone with overlying redness, fever, and weakness. The feet, spine, and hips are the most commonly involved bones in adults. The cause is ...

, surgeons amputated his left leg. On February 19, 2017, O'Connell and Archbishop

Christophe Pierre Christophe Louis Yves Georges Pierre (, born 30 January 1946, is a French Catholic prelate and diplomat who has served as Apostolic Nuncio to the United States since 2016. He previously served as apostolic nuncio to Mexico, Uganda and Haiti. H ...

elevated St. Robert Bellarmine Church in Freehold, New Jersey, to the rank of co-cathedral. It is now known as the Co-Cathedral of St. Robert Bellarmine.

Transparency

In August 2012, O'Connell received records showing that Fr Matthew Riedlinger had exchanged sexually explicit text messages with a person he believed to be a 16-year-old boy, then tried to set up a meeting with him. O'Connell removed Riedlinger from the parish where he was serving, but did not inform parishioners of the reason for his removal. He only released the information after learning that ''

The Star-Ledger ''The Star-Ledger'' was the largest circulation newspaper in New Jersey. It is based in Newark, New Jersey. The newspaper ceased print publication on February 2, 2025, but continues to publish a digital edition. In 2007, ''The Star-Ledger''s ...

'' was publishing an article on Riedlinger.

References

External links

Bishop of Trenton BioCatholic Diocese of Trenton Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:OConnell, David M. 1955 births Living people Clergy from Philadelphia Vincentians Niagara University alumni Mary Immaculate Seminary alumni Catholic University of America alumni Canonical theologians St. John's University (New York City) faculty Mary Immaculate Seminary faculty Catholic University of America faculty Presidents of the Catholic University of America 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Roman Catholic bishops of Trenton Vincentian bishops Catholic University of America School of Canon Law alumni