George V. Murry

"George Murry" redirects here. For other people with a similar name, seeGeorge Murray (disambiguation).

His Excellency,The Most Reverend George Vance Murry S.J.
Bishop of Youngstown
Bishop Murry in September 2018
Church	Roman Catholic Church
See	Diocese of Youngstown
Appointed	January 30, 2007
Installed	March 28, 2007
Term ended	May 26, 2020
Predecessor	Thomas J. Tobin
Successor	David Bonnar
Orders
Ordination	June 9, 1979 byWilliam Donald Borders
Consecration	March 20, 1995 byJoseph Bernardin,Alfred Leo Abramowicz,andTimothy Joseph Lyne
Personal details
Born	(1948-12-28)December 28, 1948 Camden, New Jersey,USA
Died	June 5, 2020(2020-06-05)(aged 71) New York, New York,USA
Previous post(s)	Bishop of Saint Thomas (1999–2007) Coadjutor Bishop of Saint Thomas(1998–1999) Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago(1995–1998)
Education	Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University George Washington University
Motto	Christ my light

Styles of George Vance Murry
Reference style	His Excellency The Most Reverend
Spoken style	Your Excellency
Religious style	Bishop

George Vance Murry,S.J.(December 28, 1948 – June 5, 2020)was an American prelate of theCatholic Churchand member of theSociety of Jesus.He served as bishop of theDiocese of Youngstownfrom 2007 to 2020.

Murry previously served as anauxiliary bishopof theArchdiocese of Chicagofrom 1995 to 1998 and as bishop of theDiocese of Saint Thomasin theU.S. Virgin Islandsfrom 1998 to 2007 He submitted his resignation in May 2020 after suffering a relapse ofleukemia,but died before it was accepted.

Biography

Early life

Murry was born inCamden, New Jersey,on December 28, 1948, to Viola Murry and George Vance Murry II.He originally belonged to theAfrican Methodist Episcopal Churchbut converted to Catholicism when he was a child while attending a parochial school inBaltimore,Maryland.He later graduated fromCamden Catholic High Schoolin Camden, New Jersey.

Murry attendedSt. Joseph's Collegein Philadelphia, St. Thomas Seminary inBloomfield, Connecticut,andSt. Mary's Seminaryin Baltimore, obtaining aBachelor of Philosophydegree in 1972.In that same year, he was admitted as a member of the Society of Jesus.After completing his period ofnovitiatein 1974, Murry obtained aMaster of Divinitydegree from theJesuit School of Theology at Berkeleyin Berkeley, California, and a Masters and Doctorate in American Cultural History fromGeorge Washington Universityin Washington, D.C.

Priesthood

On June 9, 1979, Murry was ordained to the priesthood by ArchbishopWilliam Donald Bordersin theJesuit provinceof Maryland.

Murry became anassistant professorof American studies atGeorgetown Universityin 1986, and taught at that institution for four years.He also served as president ofArchbishop Carroll High Schoolin Washington, D.C. from 1989 until 1994, when he was appointed associate vice president for academic affairs at theUniversity of Detroit Mercy.

Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago

Pope John Paul IIappointed Murry as anauxiliary bishopof the Archdiocese ofChicagoandtitular bishopofFuerteventuraon January 24, 1995.He wasconsecratedon March 20, 1995.CardinalJoseph Bernardinserved as the principal consecrator, assisted by Auxiliary BishopsAlfred AbramowiczandTimothy Lyne.

Coadjutor Bishop and Bishop of Saint Thomas

Murry was appointed ascoadjutor bishopof the Diocese ofSaint Thomasby Pope John Paul II on May 5, 1998.As such, he had the right of succession when the current bishop resigned.Murry became bishop on June 30, 1999, after the resignation of BishopElliot Thomas.

Bishop of Youngstown

On January 30, 2007,Pope Benedict XVIappointed Murry as the fifth bishop of the Diocese of Youngstown.Later in 2007, he was elected secretary of theUnited States Conference of Catholic Bishops(USCCB).Murry was re-elected to a three-year term as secretary in 2008.Murry served as chair of the USCCB Committee on Domestic Policy.He was appointed chair of theNational Catholic Educational Associationin 2015, serving until the end of 2017.

In September 2015,Pope Francisappointed Murry to theSynod of Bishopsthat met in October 2015 to discuss family life.At that meeting, he said he supported the view that church could change its practice toward the divorced and remarried without altering doctrine. Murry said he supported greater participation fromtheologians,cultural historians, and other experts, and that the Synod needed to find a way to hear the voices of the people who were the subject of its discussions. He also supported the creation of commission to consider allowing women to serve asdeacons.He said: "It would be a wise idea to look into it, to learn more about it and then to present a proposal to the Pope to say there either are theological problems, or not. And if not, let’s move forward."

Murry served on several. boards of directors and trustees:

• University of Detroit
• St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia
• Mount St. Mary's College
• Loyola Academyin Detroit
• Catholic Relief Services
• Loyola University Chicago
• Fairfield Universityin Fairfield, Connecticut

In April 2018, Murry was diagnosed withacute myeloid leukemia.He receivedchemotherapytreatment at theCleveland Clinicin Cleveland, Ohio.On September 4, 2018, he returned to work part-time at the diocese.After being inremission,Murry suffered arelapsein April 2020.

Retirement and legacy

Murry submitted his resignation as bishop of the Diocese of Youngstown to Pope Francis on May 26, 2020, four years before the mandatory retirement age of 75.George Murry died on June 5, 2020, a few days after being admitted toMemorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centerin New York City for treatment.

See also

• Catholic Church hierarchy
• Catholic Church in the United States
• Historical list of the Catholic bishops of the United States
• List of Catholic bishops of the United States
• Lists of patriarchs, archbishops, and bishops

External links

• Roman Catholic Diocese of Youngstown Official Site
• National Black Catholic Congressbio of George Murry