Cletus Francis O'Donnell (August 22, 1917 – August 31, 1992) was an American

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Minister (Christianity), Christian clergy who is an Ordinary (church officer), ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which me ...

of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

who served as the second bishop of the

Diocese of Madison The Diocese of Madison () is a Latin Church diocese in the southwestern part of Wisconsin in the United States. The diocese has approximately 167,000 Catholics in 102 parishes with 98 priests in active ministry. As of 2025, the bishop of Madison ...

in Wisconsin from 1967 to 1992. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the

Archdiocese of Chicago The Archdiocese of Chicago () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction, an archdiocese of the Roman Catholic Church located in Northeastern Illinois, in the United States. The Vatican erected it as a diocese in 1843 and elevated it to an ar ...

in Illinois from 1960 to 1967.

Biography

Early life

Cletus O'Donnell was born on August 22, 1917, in

Waukon, Iowa Waukon is a city in Makee Township, Allamakee County, Iowa, Makee Township, Allamakee County, Iowa, Allamakee County, Iowa, United States, and the county seat of Allamakee County. The population was 3,827 at the time of the United States Census ...

, to Patrick and Isabel (Duffy) O’Donnell. His father was a banker and his mother was a teacher. The family moved to Chicago in 1927. In 1935, O’Donnell graduated from

Archbishop Quigley Preparatory Seminary Archbishop Quigley Preparatory Seminary was an American seminary preparatory school administered by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago for Single-sex education, young men considering the Priesthood (Catholic Church), priesthood. It closed ...

in Chicago in 1935. A retreat at

St. Mary of the Lake Seminary The University of Saint Mary of the Lake (USML) is a Private university, private Roman Catholic seminary in Mundelein, Illinois. It is the principal seminary and theology, school of theology for the formation of priests in the Roman Catholic A ...

in Mundelein, Illinois, was a motivator for O'Donnell to join the priesthood. In 1941, he received a master's degree from St. Mary.

Priesthood

O'Donnell was ordained to the priesthood by Cardinal

Samuel Stritch Samuel Alphonsius Stritch (August 17, 1887 – May 27, 1958) was an American Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Chicago from 1940 to 1958 and as pro-prefect of the Congregation for Propagation of the Faith from March 1958 until hi ...

on May 3, 1941, for the

. After his ordination, he was appointed as assistant pastor at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Chicago, serving there for a year. In 1942, O'Donnell entered the

Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily a ...

in Washington, D.C., earning a Doctor of Canon Law degree in 1945. Back in Chicago, O'Donnell was appointed as vice chancellor for the archdiocese. He also became

promoter of justice The law of Vatican City State consists of many forms, the most important of which is the canon law of the Catholic Church. The organs of state are governed by the Fundamental Law of Vatican City State. The Code of Penal Procedure governs tribunal ...

and

defender of the bond A defender of the bond ( or ''defensor matrimonii'') is a Catholic Church official whose duty is to defend the marriage bond in the procedure prescribed for the hearing of matrimonial causes which involve the validity or nullity of a marriage a ...

Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago

On October 26, 1960,

Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII (born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death on 3 June 1963. He is the most recent pope to take ...

appointed O'Donnell as an

auxiliary bishop An auxiliary bishop is a bishop assigned to assist the diocesan bishop in meeting the pastoral and administrative needs of the diocese. Auxiliary bishops can also be titular bishops of sees that no longer exist as territorial jurisdictions. ...

of the Archdiocese of Chicago. He was consecrated by Cardinal Albert Meyer on December 21, 1960. O'Donnell was also appointed as

vicar general A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop or archbishop of a diocese or an archdiocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vica ...

and

consultor A consultor is one who gives counsel, i.e., a counselor. In the Catholic Church, it is a specific title for various advisory positions: *in the Roman Curia, a consultor is a specially appointed expert who may be called upon for advice desired by ...

at that time. After Meyer's death on April 9, 1965, O'Donnell served as archdiocesan administrator until the installation of Archbishop John P. Cody on August 24, 1965. O’Donnell was named pastor of Holy Name Cathedral Parish in February 1966. In November 1966, he named to the administrative board of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB). He also served as assistant treasurer and chair of the American Board of Catholic Missions for the NCCB.

Bishop of Madison

On February 18, 1967,

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 ...

appointed O'Donnell as bishop of the Diocese of Madison. As bishop, he founded the diocesan Apostolate to the Handicapped on October 31, 1967. O'Donnell also established ministries for the

deaf Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that precludes a person from understanding spoken language, an audiological condition. In this context it is written ...

and the

developmentally disabled Developmental disability is a diverse group of chronic conditions, comprising mental or physical impairments that arise before adulthood. Developmental disabilities cause individuals living with them many difficulties in certain areas of life, espe ...

. He also encouraged adult education and created a religious education consultants program to help individual parishes. O’Donnell suffered a

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

on September 13, 1990, and then a second one in the spring of 1992 which led him to resign.

Retirement

On April 28, 1992,

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

accepted O'Donnell resignation. Cletus O'Donnell died of a heart attack on August 31, 1992, in Madison.

Sexual abuse allegations

In February 1995, several men sued the Diocese of Madison for failing to protect them as minors from acts of

sexual abuse Sexual abuse or sex abuse is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using physical force, or by taking advantage of another. It often consists of a persistent pattern of sexual assaults. The offender is re ...

by Michael Trainor, a priest in the diocese, during the 1970s and 1980s. The plaintiffs claimed that O'Donnell was aware of Trainor's abuse of children and transferred him from one parish to another without reporting him to the police or to the parishioners.

References

External links

Roman Catholic Diocese of Madison
{{DEFAULTSORT:Odonnell, Cletus F. 1917 births 1992 deaths People from Waukon, Iowa Clergy from Chicago Roman Catholic bishops of Madison 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Participants in the Second Vatican Council Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago Religious leaders from Iowa Religious leaders from Illinois Catholics from Illinois Catholics from Iowa