John Joseph Graham (September 11, 1913—August 4, 2000) 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 'pre ...

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 an auxiliary bishop of the

Archdiocese of Philadelphia The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Philadelphia is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in southeastern Pennsylvania, in the United States. It covers the City and County of Philadelphia as well a ...

from 1964 to 1988.

Early life and education

John Graham was born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, one of seven children of James and Margaret Graham. His parents were

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

immigrants from

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population o ...

. He received his early education at the parochial school o
St. Michael's Church
in his native city. He then attended St. Joseph's Preparatory School, also in Philadelphia. Graham began his studies for the priesthood at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Overbrook. He continued his studies at the

Pontifical Lateran University The Pontifical Lateran University ( it, Pontificia Università Lateranense; la, Pontificia Universitas Lateranensis), also known as Lateranum, is a pontifical university based in Rome. The university also hosts the central session of the Pont ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, where he earned a doctorate in theology.

Priesthood

On February 26, 1938, Graham 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 ...

a priest by Archbishop Luigi Traglia at the

Pontifical Roman Seminary , type = Major seminary , established = , founder = Pope Pius IV , parent = Diocese of Rome , religious_affiliation = Catholic Church , rector = Gabriele Fara ...

in Rome. Following his return to Pennsylvania, he served as a curate a
St. Luke the Evangelist Church
in Glenside from 1939 to 1940. He then taught at

Roman Catholic High School for Boys , motto_translation = Faith and Knowledge , accreditation = MSA , nickname = The Cahillites , conference = Philadelphia Catholic League , colors = Purple & Gold , yearbook ...

in Philadelphia for five years before serving as a curate a
St. George Church
in

Glenolden Glenolden is a borough in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 7,153 at the 2010 census, down from 7,476 at the 2000 census. Geography Glenolden is located in eastern Delaware County at (39.898812, −75.292456). I ...

(1945–46). From 1946 to 1959, Graham was assistant

superintendent Superintendent may refer to: *Superintendent (police), Superintendent of Police (SP), or Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), a police rank *Prison warden or Superintendent, a prison administrator *Superintendent (ecclesiastical), a church exec ...

of schools in the

. He served as superintendent of

special education Special education (known as special-needs education, aided education, exceptional education, alternative provision, exceptional student education, special ed., SDC, or SPED) is the practice of educating students in a way that accommodates th ...

in the archdiocese from 1959 to 1967. During his eight-year tenure, he developed many educational facilities to care for children with

special needs In clinical diagnostic and functional development, special needs (or additional needs) refers to individuals who require assistance for disabilities that may be medical, mental, or psychological. Guidelines for clinical diagnosis are given in b ...

. He was named a domestic prelate by

Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII ( la, Ioannes XXIII; it, Giovanni XXIII; born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, ; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death in June 19 ...

in September 1959. In addition to his role as superintendent, he served as administrator, and later

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 ...

, o
Holy Angels Church
in Philadelphia from 1960 to 1964.

Episcopacy

On November 25, 1963, Graham was appointed auxiliary bishop of Philadelphia 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 ...

of ''Sabrata'' by

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 State from 21 June 1963 to his death in Augus ...

. He received his episcopal consecration on January 7, 1964 from Archbishop

John Krol John Joseph Krol (October 26, 1910 – March 3, 1996) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He was Archbishop of Philadelphia from 1961 to 1988, having previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Cleveland (195 ...

, with Bishops

George L. Leech George Leo Leech (May 21, 1890 – March 12, 1985) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, from 1935 to 1971. Biography Early life George Leech was born on May 21, 1890, in ...

and Gerald Vincent McDevitt serving as co-consecrators, at the Cathedral Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul. As an auxiliary bishop, he served as pastor o
St. Helena's Church
in the Olney section of Philadelphia from 1964 to 1990. Graham attended the last two sessions of the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions), each lasting between 8 and ...

between 1964 and 1965. He also served as archdiocesan director of the

Catholic Charities The Catholic Church operates numerous charitable organizations. Catholic spiritual teaching includes spreading the Gospel, while Catholic social teaching emphasises support for the sick, the poor and the afflicted through the corporal and spi ...

Appeal (1964–76), chairman of the Cardinal's Commission on Human Relations (1964–82), a member of the Archdiocesan College of

Consultor A consultor is one who gives counsel, i.e., a counselor. In the Catholic Church, it is a specific title for various advisory positions: *in the Roman Curia, a consultor is a specially appointed expert who may be called upon for advice desired by ...

s (1964–99), and a member of the Archdiocesan Council of Priests (1984–99). He was an active supporter of ecumenism and

interfaith Interfaith dialogue refers to cooperative, constructive, and positive interaction between people of different religious traditions (i.e. "faiths") and/or spiritual or humanistic beliefs, at both the individual and institutional levels. It is ...

dialogue.

Later life and death

After reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75, Graham resigned as auxiliary bishop on November 8, 1988. He died at Mercy Catholic Medical Center in Darby on August 4, 2000 at age 86.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Graham, John Joseph 1913 births 2000 deaths Clergy from Philadelphia Participants in the Second Vatican Council St. Charles Borromeo Seminary alumni 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States