Arthur Leo Kennedy (born January 9, 1942) is an American prelate of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

who served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Boston in Massachusetts from 2010 to 2017.After retirement, Kennedy took up residence at St. Mary's Parish in Dedham, Massachusetts.

Biography

Early life and education

Arthur Leo Kennedy was born on January 9, 1942, in Boston to Arthur and Helen (O’Rourke) Kennedy. He has four brothers (Kevin, Terrence, Christopher, and Brian) and one sister (Maurabeth). Kennedy has four nieces and four nephews. Kennedy attended Longfellow Elementary School in the

Roslindale Roslindale is a primarily residential neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, bordered by Jamaica Plain, Hyde Park, West Roxbury and Mattapan. It is served by an MBTA Commuter Rail line, several MBTA bus lines and the MBTA Orange Line in nearby J ...

section of Boston and St. Aidan Grammar School in Brookline, Massachusetts. He then entered Boston Latin School for his secondary education, graduating in 1959. Kennedy received his

Bachelor of Philosophy Bachelor of Philosophy (BPhil, BPh, or PhB; la, Baccalaureus Philosophiae or ) is the title of an academic degree that usually involves considerable research, either through a thesis or supervised research projects. Unlike many other bachelor's d ...

degree from Saint John's Seminary College in Boston in 1963.

Ordination, education and ministry

On December 17, 1966, Kennedy was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of Boston in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome by Bishop Francis Reh. After his ordination, Kennedy was assigned to St. Monica Parish in

Methuen, Massachusetts Methuen () is a 23 square mile (60 km2) city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 53,059 at the 2020 census. Methuen lies along the northwestern edge of Essex County, just east of Middlesex County and just south of ...

. He obtained a Licentiate of Sacred Theology from the

Pontifical Gregorian University The Pontifical Gregorian University ( it, Pontificia Università Gregoriana; also known as the Gregorian or Gregoriana,) is a higher education ecclesiastical school ( pontifical university) located in Rome, Italy. The Gregorian originated as ...

in 1967. In 1969, Kennedy was posted to St. Joseph Parish in

East Boston East Boston, nicknamed Eastie, is a neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts annexed by the city of Boston in 1637. Neighboring communities include Winthrop, Revere, and Chelsea. It is separated from the Boston neighborhood of Charlestown and d ...

, serving there until 1974. In 1974, Kennedy joined the faculty of the

Theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

and Catholic Studies departments at the

University of St. Thomas St. Thomas University or University of St. Thomas may refer to: *Saint Thomas Aquinas University, Colombia *Saint Thomas Aquinas University of the North, Tucumán province, Argentina *St. Thomas University (Canada), Fredericton, New Brunswick *St. ...

(UST) in St. Paul, Minnesota. He earned his doctorate in

systematic theology Systematic theology, or systematics, is a discipline of Christian theology that formulates an orderly, rational, and coherent account of the doctrines of the Christian faith. It addresses issues such as what the Bible teaches about certain topic ...

/philosophy of religion in 1978 from Boston College. In 1983, Kennedy was named as associate professor at UST and in 2001 a full professor. While at UST, Kennedy performed pastoral duties at Holy Trinity Parish in

South Saint Paul, Minnesota South St. Paul is a city in Dakota County, Minnesota, United States, located immediately south and southeast of St. Paul. It is also east of West St. Paul. The population was 20,759 at the 2020 census. Historically, the town was notable as a ...

, from 1974 to 1982 and at the Church of the Assumption in St. Paul from 1982 to 2000. In addition to teaching at UST and his pastoral duties, Kennedy also served on the faculty of the

Saint Paul Seminary School of Divinity The Saint Paul Seminary (SPS) is a Roman Catholic major seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota. A part of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, SPS prepares men to enter the priesthood and permanent diaconate, and educates lay men and women on ...

in St. Paul (1990, 1995–2000, 2006) and was director of the masters in theology program. In 2002, Kennedy was appointed as executive director of the Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs for 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 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Conference (US ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

In 2007, Kennedy was named as rector of Saint John's Seminary, holding that position until July 2012.

Auxiliary Bishop of Boston

On June 30, 2010,

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the soverei ...

appointed Kennedy as auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Boston and titular bishop of Timidana. He was consecrated by Cardinal Seán O'Malley on September 14, 2010, at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Boston. Kennedy's episcopal

motto A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. Mot ...

was: '' Ut cognoscant te'', meaning, "so that they may know you" from Saint John's Gospel (

John 17 John 17 is the seventeenth chapter of the Gospel of John in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It portrays a prayer of Jesus Christ addressed to his Father, placed in context immediately before his betrayal and crucifixion, the events whic ...

:3). On Jan. 18, 2012, Cardinal O'Malley named Kennedy as

episcopal vicar Episcopal may refer to: *Of or relating to a bishop, an overseer in the Christian church *Episcopate, the see of a bishop – a diocese *Episcopal Church (disambiguation), any church with "Episcopal" in its name ** Episcopal Church (United State ...

for the New Evangelization of the archdiocese.

Retirement

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

accepted Kennedy's letter of resignation as auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Boston on June 30, 2017.

References

External links

Biography from The Pilot

Curriculum Vitae

Remarks for News ConferenceRoman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kennedy, Arthur Living people 21st-century American Roman Catholic titular bishops American Roman Catholic clergy of Irish descent 1942 births Boston University School of Theology alumni University of St. Thomas (Minnesota) alumni Pontifical Gregorian University alumni Pontifical North American College alumni Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston Religious leaders from Massachusetts