James Joseph Sweeney Explained

Type:Bishop
Honorific-Prefix:The Most Reverend
James Joseph Sweeney
Bishop of Honolulu
Religion:Christianity
Appointed:20 May 1941
Term:1941–1968
Term End:6 March 1968
Predecessor:Stephen Alencastre
Successor:John Joseph Scanlan
Other Post:Titular Bishop of Vicus Aterii
Ordination:24 June 1925
Consecration:25 July 1941
Consecrated By:John Joseph Mitty
Rank:Bishop
Birth Date:June 19, 1898
Birth Place:San Francisco, California, U.S.
Death Place:San Francisco, California, U.S.
Buried:Holy Cross Cemetery, Colma
Partner:-->
Coat Of Arms:Coat of arms of James Joseph Sweeney.svg
James Joseph Sweeney
Deathstyle:none

James Joseph Sweeney (June 19, 1898  - June 19, 1968) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He was the first Bishop of Honolulu, serving from 1941 until his death in 1968.

Biography

Sweeney was born in San Francisco, California, to John Joseph and Catherine (née McCarrick) Sweeney.[1] He received his early education at St. James Boys School from 1907 to 1913.[1] He later attended Saint Patrick Seminary in Menlo Park.

He was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of San Francisco on June 24, 1925, by Archbishop Edward Hanna at the Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption in San Francisco. He served as assistant pastor until 1931 when he was appointed the archdiocesan director of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith. On November 22, 1929, Pope Pius XI conferred the title of "Right Reverend Monsignor" on Father Sweeney.

On May 20, 1941, he was appointed the first bishop of the newly erected Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu. He was consecrated on July 25 of that year. Bishop Sweeney saw the Honolulu see through World War II, and statehood.

He died on his 70th birthday in 1968 in San Francisco. His funeral liturgy was held at his home parish of Saint Paul in San Francisco. At his request, he was buried with his parents in a family crypt in Holy Cross Cemetery in Colma, California.

Notes and References

  1. Book: Curtis, Georgina Pell. The American Catholic Who's Who. XIV. 1961. Walter Romig. Grosse Pointe, Michigan.