Thomas Cajetan Kelly (July 14, 1931 – December 14, 2011) was an American prelate 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 ...

. A member of the Dominican Order, Kelley served as archbishop of the

Archdiocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associated ...

Louisville Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...

in Kentucky from 1982 until his retirement in 2007. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the

Archdiocese of Washington In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associated ...

from 1977 to 1981.

Biography

Early life

Thomas Kelly was born on July 14, 1931, in

Rochester, New York Rochester is a city in and the county seat, seat of government of Monroe County, New York, United States. It is the List of municipalities in New York, fourth-most populous city and 10th most-populated municipality in New York, with a populati ...

, the son of Thomas E. Kelly and Katherine Fisher. When Kelly was a child, the family moved to New York City. He attended Joan of Arc School in

Jackson Heights Jackson Heights is a neighborhood in the northwestern part of the borough of Queens in New York City. Jackson Heights is neighbored by North Corona to the east, Elmhurst to the south, Woodside to the west, and today northern Astoria ( Ditm ...

and then Regis High School in Manhattan. Kelly studied for two years at

Providence College Providence College is a Private university, private Roman Catholic university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1917 by the Dominican Order and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, it offers 47 undergraduate Academic ...

in Providence, Rhode Island. He then attended St. Rose Priory in Springfield, Kentucky, and St. Joseph Priory in

Somerset, Ohio Somerset is a village in Perry County, Ohio, United States. The population as of the 2020 census was 1,481. It is located 9.5 miles north of the county seat New Lexington and has a dedicated historical district. Saint Joseph Church, the oldes ...

. Kelly then entered the

Dominican House of Studies The Dominican House of Studies is a Catholic institution in Washington, DC, housing both the Priory of the Immaculate Conception, a community of the Province of St. Joseph of the Order of Preachers (Dominicans), and the Pontifical Faculty of the I ...

in Washington, D.C. He was admitted to the Dominican Order on August 25, 1951.

Priesthood

Kelly was ordained to the priesthood at St. Dominic Church in Washington, D.C., on June 5, 1958. He earned a

Licentiate of Sacred Theology Licentiate in Sacred Theology (; abbreviated LTh or STL) is the second of three ecclesiastical degrees in theology (the first being the Baccalaureate in Sacred Theology and the third being the Doctorate in Sacred Theology) which are conferred ...

from the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, D.C., in 1959 and a

Doctor of Canon Law Doctor of Canon Law (, JCD) is the doctoral-level terminal degree in the studies of canon law of the Roman Catholic Church. It can also be an honorary degree awarded by Anglican colleges. It may also be abbreviated ICD or dr.iur.can. (''Iuris Can ...

degree from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome in 1962. He would later study at the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...

in Austria and at

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

in the United Kingdom. In 1962, Kelly was appointed as secretary of the Dominican Province of St. Joseph, headquartered in New York City. During his time in New York, he also worked for the tribunal of the

Archdiocese of New York The Archdiocese of New York () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church located in the New York (state), State of New York. It encompasses the boroughs of Manhattan, the Bronx and Staten Island in New York ...

and the

Legion of Decency The National Legion of Decency, also known as the Catholic Legion of Decency, was an American Catholic group founded in 1934 by the Archbishop of Cincinnati, John T. McNicholas, as an organization dedicated to identifying objectionable content i ...

. In 1965, Kelly was appointed the secretary and archivist for the

Apostolic Nunciature to the United States The Apostolic Nunciature to the United States, sometimes referred to as the Vatican Embassy, is the diplomatic mission of the Holy See to the United States. It is located at 3339 Massachusetts Avenue, Northwest, Washington, D.C., in the Embassy ...

in Washington, D.C. After serving at the nunciature for seven years, he was appointed associate general secretary of the

U.S. 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 Co ...

(USCCB) in 1972. He was elected to a five-year term as general secretary of the USCCB in March 1977.

Auxiliary Bishop of Washington

In July 1977, Pope Paul VI named Kelly an auxiliary bishop of the

and titular bishop of Tusuro. He was consecrated on August 15, 1977, by then-Archbishop

Joseph Bernardin Joseph Louis Bernardin (April 2, 1928 – November 14, 1996) was an American Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Cincinnati from 1972 until 1982, and as Archbishop of Chicago from 1982 until his death from pancreatic cancer. B ...

at the

Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception is a Catholic minor basilica and national shrine in Washington D.C. It is the largest Catholic church building in North America and is also the tallest habitable building in Wa ...

in Washington.

Archbishop of Louisville

On December 21, 1981,

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 ...

appointed Kelly as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Louisville. He was installed on February 18, 1982. Kelly led the restoration of the Cathedral of the Assumption in Louisville, pushed for interfaith dialogue, and worked for increased lay person leadership in the archdiocese. He started a Campaign for Excellence program that reversed the enrollment decline at Catholic schools in the archdiocese. Kelly admitted to developing an

opioid addiction Opioids are a class of drugs that derive from, or mimic, natural substances found in the opium poppy plant. Opioids work on opioid receptors in the brain and other organs to produce a variety of morphine-like effects, including pain relief. Th ...

while recovering from surgery for

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...

, only recognizing the problem after being confronted by his doctors. In the wake of the uncovering of widespread sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Louisville in 2002, it was revealed that Kelly played a part in reassigning priests he knew or suspected had abused children and reaching confidential settlements with victims. Kelly resisted calls for him to resign.

Honors

Kelly was a recipient of the following honorary doctoral degrees: * Sacred Theology, Providence College * Laws, Assumption College, Worcester, Massachusetts * Human Sciences, Caldwell College, Caldwell, New Jersey * Human Letters,

Spalding University Spalding University is a private Catholic university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is affiliated with the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth. History Spalding University traces its origins to "Nazareth Academy", one of the oldest educational institu ...

, Louisville * Humane Letters,

Albertus Magnus College Albertus Magnus College is a private Catholic university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1925 by the Dominican Sisters of St. Mary of the Springs (now Dominican Sisters of Peace). Its campus is in the Prospect Hill ...

, New Haven, Connecticut * Sacred Theology,

Dominican School of Philosophy and Theology The Dominican School of Philosophy and Theology (DSPT) is a Catholic graduate school in Berkeley, California. It is a member of the interfaith Graduate Theological Union (GTU) and an affiliate of the University of California Berkeley. DSPT ...

, Berkeley, California * Theology,

Aquinas Institute of Theology Aquinas Institute of Theology is a Catholic graduate school and seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. It was founded by the Dominican Order and is sponsored by the Province of St. Albert the Great. Academics The institute offers a number of graduate ...

, St. Louis, Missouri

Retirement and death

Pope Benedict XVI Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...

accepted Kelly's resignation as archbishop of Louisville on June 7, 2007. Kelly died at the age of 80 on December 14, 2011, at Holy Trinity Parish, his home since retirement, in Louisville, Kentucky.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kelly, Thomas C. 1931 births 2011 deaths Religious leaders from Rochester, New York Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas alumni Religious leaders from Louisville, Kentucky 20th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in the United States Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Louisville Dominican bishops Regis High School (New York City) alumni Providence College alumni Catholics from Kentucky 21st-century Roman Catholic archbishops in the United States