Joseph Aloysius Durick
Encyclopedia
Joseph Aloysius Durick (October 13, 1914 – June 26, 1994) was a U.S. Roman Catholic bishop
and civil rights advocate. He publicly opposed the Vietnam War
and the death penalty, which led to criticism from conservative circles. Durick also directed efforts at ecumenical cooperation with Tennessee
state's Protestant and Jewish communities, as well as introducing Project Equality.
, he and was the seventh of twelve children. He grew up in Bessemer, Alabama
during the height of anti-Catholic violence in that state.
career, Durick decided to enter priesthood. He studied at St. Bernard College in Cullman, Alabama
, as a seminarian for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mobile
and graduated in 1933. Three years later he completed course work in Philosophy
at St. Mary's Seminary and University
in Baltimore, Maryland and later received Theological at the Seminary for Missionary Priests in Rome
where he was later ordained.
missions in North Alabama
; by 1943 he was the director. On December 30, 1954, he was appointed auxiliary bishop
of Mobile-Birmingham
, Alabama, and titular bishop
of Cerbali. At age 40 he was one of the youngest bishops in the U.S. On December 11, 1963, he was promoted to coadjutor bishop
of Nashville, Tennessee
by Pope Paul VI
with right of succession to Bishop William Adrian.
Durick was inspired to lead the Catholic Church in Tennessee
into a new era by the reforms initiated by Pope John XXIII
in the Second Vatican Council
. To help present his reforms, Durick consulted with Catholic
laymen, as well as a number of journalists uncluding John Popham, John Seigenthaler
, Joe Sweat, and Father Owen Champion.
In 1968, originally a conformist cleric, Durick and seven other colleagues wrote the letter "A Call For Unity
", calling on Martin Luther 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, 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 1968-69 especially, he faced serious opposition in the form of boycotts of his public appearances.
He succeeded as bishop on September 10, 1969, and resigned April 2, 1975, devoting himself fully to prison ministry.
After six years of ministering to prisoners in various locations he was forced to semi-retire due to a severe heart problem and had to go through surgery.
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
and civil rights advocate. He publicly opposed the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
and the death penalty, which led to criticism from conservative circles. Durick also directed efforts at ecumenical cooperation with Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
state's Protestant and Jewish communities, as well as introducing Project Equality.
Early Life
Born in Dayton, TennesseeDayton, Tennessee
Dayton is a city in Rhea County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 6,180 at the 2000 census. The Dayton, TN, Urban Cluster, which includes developed areas adjacent to the city and extends south to Graysville, Tennessee, had 9,050 people in 2000...
, he and was the seventh of twelve children. He grew up in Bessemer, Alabama
Bessemer, Alabama
Bessemer is a city outside of Birmingham in Jefferson County, Alabama, United States eight miles west of Hoover. The population was 29,672 at the 2000 Census, but by the 2009 U.S...
during the height of anti-Catholic violence in that state.
Education
After deciding not to pursue a musicMusic
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
career, Durick decided to enter priesthood. He studied at St. Bernard College in Cullman, Alabama
Cullman, Alabama
Cullman is a city in Cullman County, State of Alabama. Cullman is located along Interstate 65, about north of Birmingham, and about south of Huntsville. According to the U.S...
, as a seminarian for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mobile
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mobile
The Archdiocese of Mobile is a Roman Catholic archdiocese comprising the lower 28 counties of Alabama. It is the metropolitan seat of the Province of Mobile, which includes the suffragan bishopric sees of the Diocese of Biloxi, the Diocese of Jackson, and the Diocese of Birmingham in Alabama...
and graduated in 1933. Three years later he completed course work in Philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
at St. Mary's Seminary and University
St. Mary's Seminary and University
St. Mary's Seminary and University is a Roman Catholic seminary in Baltimore, Maryland; it was the first seminary founded in the United States of America.-History:...
in Baltimore, Maryland and later received Theological at the Seminary for Missionary Priests in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
where he was later ordained.
Priesthood
Ordained on March 23, 1940, Durick became the assistant director of CatholicCatholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
missions in North Alabama
North Alabama
North Alabama is a region of the U.S. state of Alabama, generally considered to include 12 counties: Cherokee, Colbert, DeKalb, Franklin, Jackson, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone, Madison, Marshall, Morgan, and Winston, with a combined population of 958,247, or 20.84% of the state's population as...
; by 1943 he was the director. On December 30, 1954, he was appointed auxiliary bishop
Auxiliary bishop
An auxiliary bishop, in the Roman Catholic Church, is an additional bishop assigned to a diocese because the diocesan bishop is unable to perform his functions, the diocese is so extensive that it requires more than one bishop to administer, or the diocese is attached to a royal or imperial office...
of Mobile-Birmingham
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mobile
The Archdiocese of Mobile is a Roman Catholic archdiocese comprising the lower 28 counties of Alabama. It is the metropolitan seat of the Province of Mobile, which includes the suffragan bishopric sees of the Diocese of Biloxi, the Diocese of Jackson, and the Diocese of Birmingham in Alabama...
, Alabama, and titular bishop
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 Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches is that he be ordained for a specific place...
of Cerbali. At age 40 he was one of the youngest bishops in the U.S. On December 11, 1963, he was promoted to coadjutor bishop
Coadjutor bishop
A coadjutor bishop is a bishop in the Roman Catholic or Anglican churches who is designated to assist the diocesan bishop in the administration of the diocese, almost as co-bishop of the diocese...
of Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
by Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI
Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
with right of succession to Bishop William Adrian.
Durick was inspired to lead the Catholic Church in Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
into a new era by the reforms initiated by Pope John XXIII
Pope John XXIII
-Papal election:Following the death of Pope Pius XII in 1958, Roncalli was elected Pope, to his great surprise. He had even arrived in the Vatican with a return train ticket to Venice. Many had considered Giovanni Battista Montini, Archbishop of Milan, a possible candidate, but, although archbishop...
in the Second Vatican Council
Second Vatican Council
The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...
. To help present his reforms, Durick consulted with Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
laymen, as well as a number of journalists uncluding John Popham, John Seigenthaler
John Seigenthaler
John Lawrence Seigenthaler is an American journalist, writer, and political figure. He is known as a prominent defender of First Amendment rights....
, Joe Sweat, and Father Owen Champion.
In 1968, originally a conformist cleric, Durick and seven other colleagues wrote the letter "A Call For Unity
A Call For Unity
"A Call for Unity" was a letter written on April 12, 1963 by eight white clergymen local to Birmingham, Alabama and published in a local newspaper...
", calling on Martin Luther 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
Letter from Birmingham Jail
The Letter from Birmingham Jail or Letter from Birmingham City Jail, also known as The Negro Is Your Brother, is an open letter written on April 16, 1963, by Martin Luther King, Jr., an American civil rights leader...
, voicing disappointment in the white clergy, who should be "among our strongest allies". This, and the message he got from Vatican II, 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 1968-69 especially, he faced serious opposition in the form of boycotts of his public appearances.
He succeeded as bishop on September 10, 1969, and resigned April 2, 1975, devoting himself fully to prison ministry.
After six years of ministering to prisoners in various locations he was forced to semi-retire due to a severe heart problem and had to go through surgery.
Death
Joseph Durick died at the age of 79 at his home in Bessemer, Alabama on a Sunday. According to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Nashville, Durick, died of cancer. At the time of his death Durick was survived by 3 sisters (Mary, Frances and Patty) and 1 brother (William).External links
- Tennessee Encyclopedia on Bishop Durick
- http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_product=NewsBank&p_theme=aggregated5&p_action=doc&p_docid=0EAF94ACDD832EC2&p_docnum=6&p_queryname=1
- http://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/entry.php?rec=412
- "Catholic Hierarchy".http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/bdurick.html
- "Diocese of Nathville".http://www.dioceseofnashville.com/bishop2-former.htm#8
- "St. Mary's Seminary and University".http://www.stmarys.edu/sot/sot_first_seminary.htm