Christie Albert Macaluso (born June 12, 1945) is an American

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...

of the Catholic Church. He served as auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Hartford in Connecticut from 1997 to 2017. Since 2017 he serves as auxiliary bishop emeritus of Hartford.

Biography

Early life and education

Christie Macaluso was born on June 12, 1945, in Hartford, Connecticut, to Albert Carl and Helen (née Meaney) Macaluso; his father's family was from

Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The city is noted for it ...

, Sicily, and his mother was of Irish descent. Macaluso studied at St. Thomas Seminary in Bloomfield, Connecticut, and

St. Mary's Seminary St. Mary's Seminary and University is a Catholic seminary located within the Archdiocese of Baltimore in Baltimore, Maryland; it was the first seminary founded in the United States after the Revolution and has been run since its founding by the ...

in Baltimore, Maryland, obtaining a

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 ...

degree and a

Master of Sacred Theology The Master of Sacred Theology ( la, Sacrae Theologiae Magister; abbreviated STM) is a graduate-level, North American, academic degree in theology equivalent to ThM. The Roman Catholic equivalent is the Licentiate in Sacred Theology (STL). An h ...

degree. He also holds a

Master of Philosophy The Master of Philosophy (MPhil; Latin ' or ') is a postgraduate degree. In the United States, an MPhil typically includes a taught portion and a significant research portion, during which a thesis project is conducted under supervision. An MPhil m ...

degree from Trinity College, and a Master of Psychology degree from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, ...

Priesthood

Macaluso was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform var ...

to the priesthood for the Archdiocese of Hartford by Archbishop John Francis Whealon on May 22, 1971. After his ordination, Macaluso served as assistant pastor at St. Thomas the Apostle Parish in

West Hartford, Connecticut West Hartford is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States, west of downtown Hartford. The population was 64,083 at the 2020 census. The town's popular downtown area is colloquially known as "West Hartford Center," or simply "The ...

, and at St. Joseph Parish in New Britain, Connecticut. Macaluso later became a professor of philosophy at St. Thomas Seminary. In 1980, he was appointed dean of the seminary and rector in 1985. While serving as rector, Macaluso was also assigned as a weekend assistant pastor at St. Francis Parish in

Torrington, Connecticut Torrington is the most populated municipality and only city in Litchfield County, Connecticut and the Northwest Hills region. It is also the core city of Greater Torrington, one of the largest micropolitan areas in the United States. The city p ...

, and Sacred Heart Parish in

Bloomfield, Connecticut Bloomfield is a suburb of Hartford in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The town's population was 21,535 at the 2020 census. Bloomfield is best known as the headquarters of healthcare services company Cigna. History Originally l ...

. In 1991, Macaluso was named pastor of the Cathedral of St. Joseph Parish in Hartford. He was also appointed 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 Hartford

Vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pr ...

iate in 1995. Macaluso was also raised by the Vatican to the rank of honorary prelate of his holiness in 1995.

Auxiliary Bishop of Hartford

On March 18, 1997,

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

appointed Macaluso as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Hartford and titular bishop of

Grass Valley A grass valley (also vega and valle) is a meadow located within a forested and relatively small drainage basin such as a headwater. Grass valleys are common in North America, where they are created and maintained principally by the work of be ...

. He was consecrated on June 10, 1997, by Archbishop Daniel Cronin, with bishops Paul Loverde and

Peter A. Rosazza Peter Anthony Rosazza (born February 13, 1935) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Hartford from 1978 to 2010. Biography Early life The eldest child of Aldo and Agath ...

serving as

co-consecrators A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churches ...

. Macaluso selected as his episcopal motto: "", meaning "" ( John 8:32). As an auxiliary bishop, Macaluso served as

vicar general A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ...

of the archdiocese and

moderator of the curia Moderator of the curia is a top administrative position held by a Catholic priest in a diocese under the supervision of the bishop. The moderator coordinates the exercise of the administrative duties and oversees the office holders, or curia, i ...

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 Macaluso's letter of resignation as auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Hartford on December 15, 2017. In retirement, he serves as auxiliary bishop emeritus of Hartford.

References

External links

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Hartford

Episcopal succession

{{DEFAULTSORT:Macaluso, Christie Albert 1945 births Living people 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States St. Thomas Seminary alumni St. Mary's Seminary and University alumni Trinity College (Connecticut) alumni New York University alumni Roman Catholic auxiliary bishops of Hartford 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States