James T. McHugh
Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum) | |
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Motto | Quid retribuam Domino (What shall I return to the Lord) |
James Thomas McHugh (January 3, 1932 – December 10, 2000) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church who served as bishop of Diocese of Rockville Centre in New York during the year 2000.
McHugh previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Newark in New Jersey from 1987 to 1989, as bishop of the Diocese of Camden in New Jersey from 1989 to 1998 and as coadjutor bishop of Rockville Centre from 1998 to early 2000.
Biography
Early life
McHugh was born in
Priesthood
On May 25, 1957, McHugh was
In addition to his pastoral duties, McHugh did graduate work in sociology at
McHugh was a visiting lecturer in
Auxiliary Bishop of Newark
On November 20, 1987, McHugh was appointed as an
Bishop of Camden
Following the retirement of Bishop George Guilfoyle, McHugh was named the fifth Bishop of Camden on May 13, 1989, by John Paul II.[3] His installation took place at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception on June 20, 1989.[3] During his nine-year tenure, he undertook a major reorganization of the diocese's administrative structure and authorized the relocation of the diocesan headquarters to downtown Camden.[7] He presided over a diocesan synod in September 1992.[7] Highly dedicated to the cause of Catholic education, he created a $63 million Catholic Education Endowment Fund for schools and religious education programs, a five-point plan to reinvigorate Catholic high schools, and led a grassroots effort to support school choice legislation in the state legislature.[2]
A strong opponent of abortion rights for women, McHugh was a leading member of the National Conference of Bishops' Pro-Life Committee, and was known as the "father of the
Bishop of Rockville Centre
McHugh was appointed coadjutor bishop of the Diocese of Rockville Centre on December 7, 1998, effective February 22, 1999. He succeeded to the office of diocesan bishop by right of succession on January 4, 2000.
Death and legacy
McHugh died on December 10, 2000, in Rockville Centre, New York, at age 68.
In November 2020, a Vatican investigation into the case of defrocked former cardinal Theodore McCarrick identified McHugh as one of three bishops who "provided inaccurate and incomplete information to the Holy See regarding McCarrick’s sexual conduct with young adults" when McCarrick was a candidate for archbishop of the Archdiocese of Washington in 2000.[8][9]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Bishop McHugh's Biography". Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre. Archived from the original on 2009-02-17.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Previous Bishops". Blessed Pope John XXIII Parish. Archived from the original on 2011-10-08.
- ^ a b c d e "Bishop James Thomas McHugh". Catholic-Hierarchy.org. David M. Cheney. Retrieved 21 January 2015.[self-published source]
- S2CID 9890064.
- ^ The Editor (September 1969). Leap into What?. Triumph.
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has generic name (help) - ^ "Bishop McHugh's Coat of Arms Explained". Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre.
- ^ a b c "Bishop James T. McHugh". Roman Catholic Diocese of Camden.
- ^ Brockhaus, Hannah (November 10, 2020). "McCarrick Report: Vatican details McCarrick's career and decades of sexual misconduct". Catholic News Agency. Retrieved November 10, 2020.
- ^ Fraze, Barb (November 13, 2020). "N.J. bishops' letters helped pave way for McCarrick, led to lack of trust". Crux. Catholic News Service. Retrieved November 15, 2020.