Joseph Anthony Ferrario

The Most Reverend

Joseph Anthony Ferrario
The Most Reverend; Joseph Anthony Ferrario
Roman Catholic
Diocese	Honolulu
In office	1982-1993
Predecessor	John Joseph Scanlan
Successor	Francis Xavier DiLorenzo
Orders
Ordination	19 May 1951
Consecration	13 January 1978; by John Joseph Scanlan
Personal details
Born	March 3, 1926; Scranton, Pennsylvania, United States
Died	December 12, 2003 (aged 77)
Nationality	American

Joseph Anthony Ferrario (March 3, 1926 – December 12, 2003) was the third bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu and served from 1982 to 1993.

Early life and priestly ministry

Born in

Sulpicians

, Ferrario taught at various schools and seminaries.

Auxiliary bishop

On staff at the Saint Stephen Diocesan Seminary, Honolulu on the island of O`ahu, Ferrario was appointed auxiliary bishop of Honolulu on November 8, 1977. On January 13, 1978, he was consecrated titular bishop of Cusae and auxiliary to the Bishop of Honolulu.

Msgr.

Diocese of Juneau in Alaska

when Ferrario was elevated to the episcopate.

Bishop of Honolulu

With his predecessor's retirement, Bishop Ferrario was appointed Bishop of Honolulu on May 13, 1982. One of his first actions as the ordinary of Honolulu was the removal of

Hawai‘i Catholic Herald

. Msgr. Marzen had served as editor of the newspaper for approximately twenty years under the two previous bishops and publicly complained of his dismissal in an acerbic parting editorial published in the Hawai‘i Catholic Herald.

Bishop Ferrario revamped major diocesan offices and appointed pastors to parishes that were supportive of his vision of implementing the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council. Ferrario's work in renewing the Honolulu diocese earned him the respect of many people in the Church in Hawai‘i.

Decree of excommunication

Bishop Ferrario's harshest critics were the conservative followers of the Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre's Priestly Society of Saint Pius X. Bishop Ferrario, through his judicial vicar, Father

Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith later reversed Bishop Ferrario's action.^[1]

Retirement

In 1993, Bishop Ferrario retired from active ministry. The Vatican appointed Bishop

Francis Xavier DiLorenzo

, S.T.D., Titular Bishop of Tigia and Auxiliary of Scranton, as Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Honolulu, after accepting Msgr. Ferrario's resignation from the See of Honolulu, for health reasons.

The simultaneous notice of the Vatican's acceptance of the retirement of Bishop Ferrario for health reasons and the appointment of Bishop DiLorenzo as Apostolic Administrator was read at solemn vespers at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace, on October 12, 1993. Bishop DiLorenzo would serve as Apostolic Administrator until his appointment as Bishop of Honolulu in 1994.

After retirement, Msgr. Ferrario resided near

Kailua

and continued his charitable work with the Augustine Educational Foundation. He kept a vigorous schedule to raise money for Catholic education in the Hawaiian Islands through the Augustine Educational Foundation.

Death

He died of cardiac arrest on December 12, 2003, aged 77, and was buried at Hawaiian Memorial Park in Kane‘ohe. He was remembered for his compassion for the poor children in the Diocese of Honolulu.

References

^ Honolulu Diocese & "The Hawaii Six" Archived 2004-05-02 at the Wayback Machine

Catholic Church titles
Preceded by John Joseph Scanlan	Bishop of Honolulu 1982 – 1993	Succeeded by Francis X. DiLorenzo

[1] Honolulu Diocese & "The Hawaii Six" Archived 2004-05-02 at the Wayback Machine

[1]