Thomas Joseph Murphy (October 3, 1932 – June 26, 1997) was an American prelate of the
Diocese of Great Falls-Billings in Montana from 1978 to 1987, as coadjutor archbishop of the Archdiocese of Seattle in Washington State from 1987 to 1991, and as archbishop of Seattle from 1991 until 1997.[1]
Biography
Early life
Born in
priesthood for the Archdiocese of Chicago at the Chapel of the Immaculate Conception at Saint Mary by Cardinal Samuel Stritch in 1958. On September 15, 1973, Cardinal John Cody appointed Murphy as rector of Saint Mary, a post he would hold until 1978.[2][3]
Bishop of Great Falls-Billings
On July 5, 1978, Murphy was appointed bishop of the Diocese of Great Falls-Billings by Pope Paul VI; he was consecrated by Archbishop Cornelius Power on August 21, 1978.[4][5] In 1979, Murphy addressed the National Catholic Education Association on vocations to the priesthood and their on the importance for the local church.[2]
Coadjutor Archbishop of Seattle
On May 26, 1987, Pope John Paul II appointed Murphy as
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Ratzinger was concerned about Hunthausen violating church doctrine. On December 3, 1985, the pope appointed Reverend Donald Wuerl as auxiliary bishop of Seattle, with authority to overrule Hunthausen in several important areas.[6] After protests from Hunthausen and other American prelates, Pope John Paul II removed Wuerl and appointed Murphy as a coadjutor archbishop with less immediate authority.[6]
Archbishop of Seattle
Murphy automatically became archbishop of the Archdiocese of Seattle upon Hunthausen's retirement on August 21, 1991. As archbishop, Murphy traveled extensively to
St. James Cathedral, which was completed in 1994. Under Murphy's administration the archdiocese saw an increase in registered Catholics, and an increase in outreach and ministries for women, various ethnic groups, and LGBT individuals.[7]
In 1992, Murphy opened Elizabeth House in Seattle, which provided medical and job training for pregnant teens.
timber industry, Murphy provided $500,000 to assisting starting small businesses. To help offset the declining numbers of priests, he provided financial support to a Seattle University
program to train lay people in assist in some parish duties.
beneath the main altar of St. James Cathedral in Seattle.
In 1999, Holy Cross High School, a Catholic school in Everett, Washington, was renamed Archbishop Thomas J. Murphy High School in his honor.[2] In 2000, a new organ built in the apse of St. James Cathedral was named the Archbishop Thomas J. Murphy Millennium Organ. The "Archbishop Thomas J. Murphy Memorial Parish Stewardship Award" is named in his honor.[11]
In 2006, the archdiocese dedicated the Archbishop Murphy Courtyard on the south side of the cathedral. It contains a fountain and pool, a marker stone and a statue of Mary, mother of Jesus.[12]
