Joseph Aloysius Durick (October 13, 1914 – June 26, 1994) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Nashville in Tennessee from 1969 to 1975. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Mobile-Birmingham in Alabama from 1954 to 1963 and as coadjutor bishop of Nashville from 1963 to 1969. Durick publicly opposed United States participation in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

and the

death penalty Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty and formerly called judicial homicide, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for actual or supposed misconduct. The sentence ordering that an offender be punished in s ...

, which led to criticism from conservative circles. Durick also directed efforts at ecumenical cooperation with

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

and

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

communities in Tennessee, as well as introducing Project Equality. He had the image of an amiable country vicar, so much so that the newspapers called him "the happy priest."

Biography

Early life

Joseph Durick was born on October 13, 1914, in

Dayton, Tennessee Dayton is a city in and the county seat of Rhea County, Tennessee, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city population was 7,065. The Dayton Urban Cluster includes developed areas adjacent to the city and extends ...

, the seventh of twelve children. He grew up in

Bessemer, Alabama Bessemer is a city in Jefferson County, Alabama, Jefferson County, Alabama, United States and a southwestern suburb of Birmingham, Alabama, Birmingham. The population was 26,019 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is within the Bi ...

, during the height of anti-Catholic violence in that state. After deciding not to pursue a

music Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all hum ...

career, Durick began studies for the priesthood. He entered St. Bernard College in

Cullman, Alabama Cullman is the largest city and county seat of Cullman County, Alabama, United States. It is located along Interstate 65, about north of Birmingham, Alabama, Birmingham and about south of Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville. As of the 2020 United ...

,graduating in 1933. In 1936, he completed coursework in

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

St. Mary's Seminary and University St. Mary's Seminary and University is a Catholic Church, Catholic seminary located within the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore, Archdiocese of Baltimore in Baltimore, Maryland; it was the first seminary founded in the United States after ...

in Baltimore, Maryland. He later received a degree in theology from the

Pontifical Urbaniana University The Pontifical Urban University, also called the ''Urbaniana'' after its names in both Latin and Italian, is a pontifical university that was under the authority of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples. The university's mission is to ...

in Rome. Durick was ordained in Rome by Cardinal

James Gibbons James Cardinal Gibbons (July 23, 1834 – March 24, 1921) was an American Catholic prelate who served as Apostolic Vicar of North Carolina from 1868 to 1872, Bishop of Richmond from 1872 to 1877, and as Archbishop of Baltimore from 1877 unti ...

for the Archdiocese of Mobile on March 23, 1940. Durick soon became the assistant director of

Catholic 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 ...

missions in North Alabama; by 1943 he was the director.

Auxiliary Bishop of Mobile-Birmingham

On December 30, 1954, Pope Pius XII appointed Durick 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 Mobile-Birmingham and

titular bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

of Cerbali. He was consecrated on March 24, 1955, by Archbishop

Thomas Joseph Toolen Thomas Joseph Toolen (February 28, 1886 – December 4, 1976) was an American clergyman of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Mobile from 1927 to 1969, and was given the personal title of Archbishop in 1954. Early life and educat ...

. Durick's episcopal motto was "''The love of Christ impels us"'' (Caritas Christi urget nos). At age 40, he was one of the youngest American bishops. April 12, 1963, Durick signed an open public letter urging African-Americans to withdraw their support of Dr.

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister, civil and political rights, civil rights activist and political philosopher who was a leader of the civil rights move ...

, to which Dr. King responded in his April 16 "

Letter from Birmingham Jail The "Letter from Birmingham Jail", also known as the "Letter from Birmingham City Jail" and "The Negro Is Your Brother", is an open letter written on April 16, 1963, by Martin Luther King Jr. It says that people have a moral responsibility to b ...

Coadjutor Bishop and Bishop of Nashville

On December 11, 1963, Paul VI appointed Durick as

coadjutor bishop A coadjutor bishop (or bishop coadjutor) ("co-assister" in Latin) is a bishop in the Latin Catholic, Anglican and (historically) Eastern Orthodox churches whose main role is to assist the diocesan bishop in administering the diocese. The coa ...

of the Diocese of Nashville with right of succession to Bishop William Adrian. Durick was installed on March 3, 1964. Durick was inspired to lead the Catholic Church in

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

into a new era by the reforms initiated by

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 ...

in the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the or , was the 21st and most recent ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. The council met each autumn from 1962 to 1965 in St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City for session ...

. To help present his reforms, Durick consulted with

laymen, as well as a number of journalists including John Popham,

John Seigenthaler John Lawrence Seigenthaler ( ; July 27, 1927July 11, 2014) was an American journalist, writer, and political figure. He was known as a prominent defender of First Amendment rights. Seigenthaler joined the Nashville newspaper ''The Tennessea ...

, Joe Sweat, and Father Owen Campion. Originally a conformist cleric, Durick and seven other colleagues wrote the letter " A Call For Unity", calling on King and "outsiders" during the Birmingham protests of 1963 to stop and let the courts work toward integration. King responded with his "Letter from Birmingham Jail", voicing disappointment in the white clergy, who should be "among our strongest allies". This, and the message he got from

Vatican II The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the or , was the 21st and most recent Catholic ecumenical councils, ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. The council met each autumn from 1962 to 1965 in St. Peter's Basilic ...

, led Durick to become a strong voice for civil rights in the segregated South, for which he was called a heretic and a communist by his tradition-bound congregation. In 1968–1969 especially, he faced serious opposition in the form of boycotts of his public appearances. On September 10, 1969, Durick succeeded Adrian as bishop of Nashville.

Resignation and legacy

On April 2, 1975, Paul VI accepted Durick's resignation as bishop of the Diocese of Nashville. He spent the next six years working in

prison ministry Prison religion includes the religion, religious beliefs and practices of prison Wikt:Inmate, inmates, usually stemming from or including concepts surrounding their imprisonment and accompanying lifestyle. "Prison Ministry" is a larger concept, inc ...

. He was then forced to semi-retire due to a severe heart problem and underwent cardiac surgery. Joseph Durick died of cancer on July 26, 1994, at age 79 at his home in Bessemer.

References

Sources

External links

Joseph Aloysius Durick
Findagrave.com
Joseph Aloysius Durick:
Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture

Diocese of Nashville Profile

*

Episcopal succession

{{DEFAULTSORT:Durick, Joseph Aloysius 1914 births 1994 deaths 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Participants in the Second Vatican Council People from Bessemer, Alabama People from Dayton, Tennessee Roman Catholic bishops of Nashville St. Mary's Seminary and University alumni Catholics from Alabama