Joseph Cassidy (Anglican priest)

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The Reverend Canon Dr Joseph Cassidy (b. 1954) is Principal of St Chad's College at Durham University, England. He is a member of the University's Theology Department, and a non-residentiary Canon of Durham Cathedral. Dr Cassidy was born in Westmount, Quebec, Canada, and was educated at St. Thomas High School (Pointe-Claire). He won the 'Match of the Minds' competition to gain a full scholarship at Loyola College (Montreal) (later to become Concordia University), from which he graduated with a first class honours degree in Theological Studies in 1975. After postgraduate studies at University of St. Michael's College, University of Toronto, he entered the Jesuits in Guelph, Ontario. He subsequently studied philosophy at the University of Detroit, where he was awarded an MA in Philosophy, with a perfect 4.0 GPA (1980).

After his philosophy studies, Cassidy spent a brief time in Kingston, Jamaica, which he regarded as one of his most formative experiences. He was later assigned to teach at Gonzaga Regional High School in St. John's, Newfoundland, where he taught Physics and English for two years. He returned to Toronto for theology studies, this time to Regis College, U of T, (University of Toronto) where he was awarded a Bachelor of Sacred Theology (summa cum laude) and a Master of Divinity (first class honours) from the Toronto School of Theology. During his theological studies, he spent the better part of a year in Nicaragua working as a researcher at the Instituto Nicaraguense de investigaciones economicas y sociales (INIES) at the Universidad Centroamericana. Throughout his time at Regis College he was an Associate of the Jesuit Centre for Social Faith and Justice in Toronto.

After ordination to the priesthood, he became a member of the retreat team at Loyola House, Guelph, Canada, where, among other things, he directed thirty-day retreats. He transferred to Montreal to care for an ailing parent, becoming Co-Director of the Ignatian Centre, Montreal, and Visiting Professor at Concordia University. At Concordia, he taught courses in the history of spirituality and social ethics. During these years, he began a doctorate in Ottawa and directed dozens of workshops and retreats across Canada and the U.S.

After leaving the Jesuits in 1991, Cassidy earned a Licentiate of Sacred Theology (STL) from Saint Paul University and taught ethics part-time for the University. He moved to Toronto to became Director of Publications at a small NGO -- the Latin American Working Group (LAWG) -- where he edited Central America Update, a monthly journal/newsletter providing news and analysis on Central America. Cassidy finished a PhD in Social Ethics from the University of Ottawa, where his thesis on the Ethics of Bernard Lonergan was awarded the Graduate School’s Gold Medal (Prix de l’École). He was also awarded a conjoint Doctor of Sacred Theology (DTh) by St Paul University.

Dr Cassidy has held academic positions in Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Southampton, and Durham. He became an Anglican in 1993, was licensed as an Anglican priest in 1996, and has been a member of the Theology Department and Principal of St Chad’s College since 1997, where he worked to turn the College around financially. The author of dozens of scholarly articles, he was a university proctor at the Church of England’s General Synod from 1999-2005,^[1] and has been a non-residentiary Canon of Durham Cathedral since 2001. He sits on a number of panels and committees of the Church of England's Ministry Division.