Michael Joseph Dudick (February 24, 1916 – May 30, 2007) was an American

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

and

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of the Byzantine Catholic Metropolitan Church of Pittsburgh, the U.S. branch of the Ruthenian Catholic Church.

Biography

He was born to Rusyn immigrant parents in St. Clair, Pennsylvania and was educated in the public schools there. He attended Illinois Benedictine College and St. Procopius Seminary, both in

Lisle, Illinois Lisle ( ) is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, DuPage County, Illinois, United States. The population was 22,390 at the 2010 census, and in 2019 the population was recorded to be 23,270. It is a south-western suburb of Chicago in the Illinois ...

, then was ordained to the priesthood on November 13, 1945 by Bishop Basil Takach at St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Cathedral in Munhall, Pennsylvania. His many parish appointments include churches in

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

, and throughout

Western Pennsylvania Western Pennsylvania is a region in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the Unite ...

. When the Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Passaic was established in 1963, Dudick was appointed its first chancellor.

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI (born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding John XXII ...

conferred upon him the rank of Right Reverend

Monsignor Monsignor (; ) is a form of address or title for certain members of the clergy in the Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" can be abbreviated as Mons.... or Msgr. In some ...

on October 25, 1963. He was ordained a bishop and enthroned on October 24, 1968 as the second bishop of Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Passaic in St. Michael Cathedral there. Thirty-two new parishes and missions were created during his tenure and two monasteries were established: the Basilian Fathers of Mariapoch in

Matawan, New Jersey Matawan () is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. A historic community located near the Raritan Bay in the much larger Raritan River, Raritan Valley region, Raritan ...

and the Byzantine Discalced Carmelites in Sugarloaf, Pennsylvania. He also constructed a new Eparchial Center in Woodland Park, New Jersey and a spiritual and recreational Center, Carpathian Village, in

northeastern Pennsylvania Northeastern Pennsylvania (NEPA or Nepa) is a region of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania that includes the Pocono Mountains, the Endless Mountains, and the industrial cities of Scranton (the area's largest city), Wilkes-Barre, Pittston, Ha ...

. He established the Heritage Institute Museum and Library in 1972, which houses a collection of religious and secular paintings, ecclesiastical art, vestments, national dress, embroideries, folk art and other memorabilia. The Institute's library features a collection of rare Slavonic books and manuscripts.. Dudick also served as a member of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches and as a member of the Committee for the Revision of Eastern Canon Law. He chaired the Eastern Catholic Bishops Association as well as a member on the Inter-Rite Committee and the Ecumenical Committee, both of the

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 2001 after the merger of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic C ...

. He also served on the Board of Overseers for

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

and on the Board of Regents of

Seton Hall University Seton Hall University (SHU) is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizab ...

. Dudick retired as bishop in 1995. He died at age 91 in 2007. He is buried in the cemetery of Mount Saint Macrina Monastery in

Uniontown, Pennsylvania Uniontown is the largest city in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. The population was 9,984 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area, southeast of Pittsburgh. History southeast of ...

References

External links

His Grace Michael J. Dudick - The Carpathian Connection

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dudick, Michael 1916 births 2007 deaths People from St. Clair, Pennsylvania Bishops of the Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church American people of Rusyn descent Benedictine University alumni American Eastern Catholic bishops Seton Hall University people Members of the Harvard Board of Overseers 20th-century American clergy 20th-century American academics

Biography

See also

References

External links