Bernard Joseph McLaughlin
| Bernard Joseph McLaughlin | |
|---|---|
|
Titular Bishop of Motula  | |
| Church | Roman Catholic Church |
| See | Motula |
| In office | 1968 - present |
| Predecessor | None |
| Successor | incumbent |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | December 21, 1935 |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
November 19, 1912  Buffalo, New York |
| Previous post | Auxiliary Bishop of Buffalo Diocese |
Bernard Joseph McLaughlin (born November 19, 1912) is an American Bishop of the Roman Catholic Church. He is the second oldest American Bishop behind Peter Leo Gerety of Trenton, New Jersey.[1]
McLaughlin was born in North Tonawanda, New York on November 19, 1912. He was the son of Michael Henry McLaughlin and Mary Agnes Curran McLaughlin. He was baptized Ascension Church in North Tonawanda in 1912.
The McLaughlin family later moved to Visitation Parish in Buffalo, New York where he attended the parish school. In 1925, he entered the Preparatory Seminary in the Diocese of Buffalo and was a member of its first graduation class. Five years later he left Buffalo to attend the Urban College for the Propagation of the Faith in Rome, Italy. He was ordained Ordained a priest in St. John Lateran Basilica, Vatican City, on December 21, 1935. He continued further studies and remained in Rome for another six months before returning to Buffalo.
On August 14, 1936 he was named as assistant at St. Joseph New Cathedral. He remained there until June 1942 when he was appointed secretary of the diocesan Tribunal. In 1946 he was appointed assistant chancellor and soon after became vice chancellor of the diocese. He became chancellor of the diocese on December 16, 1953.
In November 1950 he was chosen to establish the new parish of Coronation of the Blessed Virgin Mary on Buffalo’s West Side. He continued his duties at the Chancery during his time as pastor and in June 1961 was transferred from Coronation to become pastor of Blessed Sacrament Parish, Kenmore, New York. He remained at Blessed Sacrament until 1972 when he was named pastor of St. John the Baptist Parish in Kenmore, New York.
McLaughlin was appointed to Auxiliary bishop Buffalo Diocese on December 28, 1968 and received his episcopal consecration on January 6, 1969 at the hands of Pope Paul VI. This was the first time a diocesan priest from Buffalo was ordained a bishop by a pope. He was given the title of Titular Bishop of Mottola.
McLaughlin received several honors from the Vatican. On April 6, 1950, Pope Pius XII made him a Private Chamberlain with the title of Very Reverend Monsignor. Three years later he was raised to the rank of Domestic Prelate with the title of Right Reverend Monsignor. On December 4, 1967, Pope Paul made him a Prothonotary Apostolic. In addition to his work as chancellor, Bishop McLaughlin was been a member of the board of diocesan Consultors and a vicar general.
He also served as an advocate of the diocesan Tribunal; professor of Labor Ethics at the Diocesan Labor Management College, and founder of several parish Labor schools. In addition, he served as chaplain of the Catholic Guild for the Blind, and was a secretary of the Diocesan Synod. On September 14, 1968, he was made a Knight of the Holy Sepulchre at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City by Archbishop Terence Cooke.
Pope John Paul II accepted McLaughlin’s letter of retirement on January 15, 1988 according to church law which requires bishops to submit their letters of retirement from administration on their 75th birthday. When his retirement was accepted, he became Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus of Buffalo.