First Bishop



† Jean Louis Anne Madelain Lefebvre de Cheverus (1768-1836) was born at Mayenne (Le Mans, France) on Jan. 28, 1768, and ordained a priest on Dec. 18, 1790. He was named the First Bishop of Boston on April 8, 1808, and ordained a bishop on Nov. 1, 1810, at St. Peter Pro-Cathedral, Baltimore, Maryland, by John Carroll, Archbishop of Baltimore, assisted by Leonard Neale, Titular Bishop of Gortyna and Auxiliary of Baltimore, and Michael Francis Egan, OFM, Bishop of Philadelphia. He was the Apostolic Administrator of New York from 1810 to 1815; named the Bishop of Montauban (France) on May 3, 1824, and the Archbishop of Bordeaux (France) on Oct. 2, 1826. He was named a Cardinal Priest on Feb. 1, 1836. He died at Bordeaux on July 19, 1836, without receiving a presbyteral title and is entombed in the Metropolitan Cathedral of St. Andrew, Bordeaux, France.

Diligamus nos invicem



Second Bishop

† Benedict Joseph Fenwick, SJ (1782-1846) was born at Leonard Town, Maryland (London District, England) on Sept. 3, 1782; professed as a Jesuit at Baltimore on Oct. 18, 1806. He was ordained a priest on June 11, 1808. He was named Second Bishop of Boston on May 10, 1825, and ordained a bishop on Nov. 1, 1825, at the Cathedral of the Assumption, Baltimore, by Ambrose Marechal, SS, Archbishop of Baltimore, assisted by John England, Bishop of Charleston, and Henry Conwell, Bishop of Philadelphia. He died in Boston on Aug. 11, 1846, and is buried in the Jesuit Cemetery at the College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, Massachusetts.

Perit ut vivat



Third Bishop of Boston



† John Bernard Fitzpatrick (1812-1866) was born at Boston, Massachusetts (Boston), on Nov. 15, 1812. He was ordained a priest on June 13, 1840. He was named Titular Bishop of Callipolis and the Coadjutor of Boston on Nov. 21, 1843. He was ordained a bishop on March 24, 1844, at the Chapel of the Visitation Nuns, Georgetown University at Georgetown, District of Columbia, by Benedict Joseph Fenwick, Bishop of Boston, assisted by Richard Vincent Whelan, Bishop of Richmond, and by William Barber Tyler, Bishop of Hartford. He succeeded to Boston on Aug. 11, 1846, and died at Boston on Feb. 13, 1866. He is entombed in the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Holy Cross, Boston, Massachusetts.

Fortis sub forte fatiscet



Fourth Bishop of Boston



First Archbishop of Boston

† John Joseph Williams (1822-1907) was born at Boston, Massachusetts (Boston), on April 27, 1822, and ordained a priest on May 17, 1845. He was named Titular Bishop of Tripolis and Coadjutor of Boston on Jan. 8, 1866. He succeeded to Boston on Feb. 13, 1866, and was ordained a bishop at St. James Church, Boston, on March 11, 1866, by John McCloskey, Archbishop of New York, assisted by John Joseph Conroy, Bishop of Albany, and by John Loughlin, Bishop of Brooklyn. He was named the First Metropolitan Archbishop of Boston on Feb. 12, 1875. He died at Boston on Aug. 30, 1907, and is entombed in the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Holy Cross, Boston, Massachusetts.

In hoc signo



Fifth Bishop of Boston



Second Archbishop of Boston

† William Henry O'Connell (1859-1944) was born at Lowell, Massachusetts (Boston), on Dec. 8, 1859, and ordained a priest on June 7, 1884. He was named the Third Bishop of Portland (Maine) on May 14, 1901, and ordained a bishop at Rome, Italy, in the Corsini Chapel of the Basilica of St. John Lateran, on May 19, 1901, by Francesco Cardinal Satolli, assisted by Edmond Stonor, Titular Archbishop of Trapezus, and by Raffaele Merry del Val, Titular Archbishop of Nicaea. He was named Titular Archbishop of Constantia and the Coadjutor Archbishop of Boston on Feb. 21, 1906. He succeeded to Boston as the Second Metropolitan Archbishop on Aug. 30, 1907. He was named a Cardinal Priest with the Title of San Clemente on Nov. 27, 1911. He died at Boston on April 22, 1944, and is entombed on the grounds, Boston College, Boston, Massachusetts.

Vigor in arduis



Sixth Bishop of Boston



Third Archbishop of Boston

† Richard James Cushing (1895-1970) was born in South Boston, Massachusetts (Boston), on Aug. 24, 1895. Ordained a priest on May 26, 1921, he was named Titular Bishop of Mela and Auxiliary of Boston on June 10, 1939. He was ordained a bishop on June 29, 1939, at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross, Boston, by William Henry Cardinal O'Connell, Archbishop of Boston, assisted by John Bertram Peterson, Bishop of Manchester, and by Thomas Addis Emmet, SJ, Titular Bishop of Tuscamia, Vicar Apostolic of Jamaica (BWI). He was named the Third Metropolitan Archbishop of Boston on Sept. 25, 1944. Pope Pius XII named him an Assistant at the Pontifical Throne on June 11, 1954. He was named a Cardinal Priest with the Title of Santa Susanna on Dec. 15, 1958. He resigned Sept. 8, 1970, and died in Boston on Nov. 2, 1970. He is entombed in the Portiuncula Chapel, Cardinal Cushing School, Hanover, Massachusetts.

Ut cognascant Te



Seventh Bishop of Boston



Fourth Archbishop of Boston

† Humberto Sousa Medeiros (1915-1983) was born at Arrifes Sao Miguel (Angra), Azores, Portugal, Oct. 6, 1915. He was ordained a priest on June 15, 1946, and named Second Bishop of Brownsville, Texas, on April 14, 1966. He was ordained a bishop on June 9, 1966, at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption, Fall River, Massachusetts, by James Louis Connolly, Bishop of Fall River, assisted by James Joseph Gerrard, Titular Bishop of Forma and Auxiliary of Fall River, and by Gerald Vincent McDevitt, Titular Bishop of Tigias and Auxiliary of Philadelphia. He was named the Fourth Metropolitan Archbishop of Boston on Sept. 8, 1970, and a Cardinal Priest with the Title of Santa Susanna on March 5, 1973. He died in Boston on Sept. 17, 1983, and is buried in St. Patrick Cemetery, Fall River, Massachusetts.

Adveniat regnum Tuum



Eighth Bishop of Boston



Fifth Archbishop of Boston

Bernard Francis Law (1931-2017) was born at Torreon (Saltillo), Mexico, on Nov. 4, 1931, and ordained a priest on May 21, 1961. He was named the Fourth Bishop of Springfield-Cape Girardeau, Missouri, on Oct. 22, 1973, and ordained bishop on Dec. 5, 1973, at the Cathedral of St. Agnes, Springfield, by Joseph Bernard Brunini, Bishop of Natchez-Jackson, assisted by William Wakefield Baum, Archbishop of Washington, and by Joseph Louis Bernardin, Archbishop of Cincinnati. He was named the Fifth Metropolitan Archbishop of Boston on Jan. 11, 1984. He was named Cardinal Priest with the Title of Santa Susanna May 25, 1985. He resigned from the pastoral governance of the archdiocese on Dec. 13, 2002, and was named Archpriest of the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome, Italy, on May 27, 2004. He ceased to be the Archpriest on Nov. 4, 2011. He died in Rome, Italy, on Dec. 20, 2017, and is buried in the crypt of the Chapel of the Crucifixion of the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome, Italy

To live is Christ



Apostolic Administrator

Richard Gerard Lennon (1947-2019) was born in Arlington, Massachusetts (Boston), on March 26, 1947, and ordained a priest on May 19, 1973. He was named Titular Bishop of Sufes and Auxiliary of Boston on June 29, 2001. He was ordained a bishop on Sept. 14, 2001, at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross by Bernard Francis Cardinal Law, Archbishop of Boston, assisted by Lawrence Joseph Riley, Titular Bishop of Daimlaig, and by William Francis Murphy, Bishop of Rockville Centre. He was the Apostolic Administrator of Boston, sede vacante, from Dec. 13, 2002, to July 30, 2003. He was named 10th bishop of Cleveland on April 4, 2006. He resigned from the pastoral governance of the diocese on Dec. 28, 2016. He died at Cleveland on Oct. 29, 2019, and is entombed in the Crypt of the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, Cleveland.



Ninth Bishop of Boston



Sixth Archbishop of Boston

Sean Patrick O'Malley, OFM Cap. (1944) was born at Lakewood, Ohio (Cleveland), on June 29, 1944, and ordained a priest on Aug. 29, 1970. He was named coadjutor bishop of St. Thomas, United States Virgin Islands, on June 2, 1984, and ordained a bishop on Aug. 2, 1984, at the Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul, St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, by Edward John Harper, CSSR, Bishop of St. Thomas, assisted by James Aloysius Hickey, Archbishop of Washington, and by Eugene Antonio Marino, SSJ, Titular Bishop of Walla Walla and Auxiliary of Washington on Aug. 2, 1984. He succeeded to St. Thomas as the Second Bishop on Oct. 16, 1985. He was named the Sixth Bishop of Fall River June 16, 1992, and installed on Aug. 11, 1992; named the Fourth Bishop of Palm Beach, Florida, on Sept. 3, 2002, and installed on Oct. 19, 2002. On July 1, 2003, he was named the Sixth Metropolitan Archbishop of Boston and installed on July 30, 2003. Pope Benedict XVI named him a Cardinal Priest with the Title of Santa Maria della Vittora in the Consistory of March 24, 2006. He resigned the pastoral governance of the archdiocese on Oct. 31, 2024.

Facite quodcumque dixerit