Bishop Emeritus Daniel P. Reilly

MOST REVEREND DANIEL PATRICK REILLY, D.D.

FOURTH BISHOP OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS

Most Reverend Daniel Patrick Reilly, the Fourth Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Worcester, was born in Providence, Rhode Island on May 12, 1928, one of nine children. He was installed as Bishop of Worcester, December 8, 1994 in the Cathedral of Saint Paul.

He studied for the priesthood at Our Lady of Providence Minor Seminary, Warwick, RI from 1943 to 1948, and was ordained to the priesthood on May 30, 1953 after 5 years of philosophical and theological study at the Grand Seminaire in Saint Brieuc, France.

Following his ordination, Bishop Reilly served at SS. Peter & Paul Cathedral Parish, Providence, as an associate pastor. He also pursued graduate studies in Business Administration at Boston College and Harvard University in 1955 and 1956.

In the 22 years that he served as a priest in the Diocese of Providence, he held a number of assignments, including Assistant Chancellor (1954), Secretary to the Bishop (1956), Chancellor (1964) and Vicar General (1972). Father Reilly attended two sessions of the Second Vatican Council, 1962 and 1964. He was named a Domestic Prelate in 1965 and in June, 1975, Pope Paul VI named him Bishop of the Diocese of Norwich, CT, where he served until being named Bishop of Worcester in October, 1994 by Pope John Paul II.

Bishop Reilly has held many posts in the National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB), including Chairman of the International Policy Committee. In that capacity he traveled to Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland on a U.S. Peace Mission in 1995, as well as to South Africa, and Central and South America on Catholic Church missions. From 1978 to 1987 he served as Chairman of Catholic Relief Services, the overseas assistance and development agency of the United States Bishops. His duties brought him to Egypt, Ethiopia, the Near East and Eastern Europe. Bishop Reilly’s pastoral visits abroad have continued with recent trips to South Africa, Haiti, Poland and Cuba. Currently he sits on the NCCB’s Committee on Priestly Life and Ministry.

He was a member of the following Boards of Trustees: The Catholic Near East Welfare Association, Assumption College, Worcester, Saint Vincent Hospital, Worcester, Catholic Mutual Relief Society of Omaha, NE, and Saint Mary’s Seminary and University, Baltimore, MD.

Bishop Reilly holds honorary doctoral degrees from Anna Maria College, Assumption College, and College of the Holy Cross, Massachusetts; Our Lady of Providence College Seminary, Providence College and Salve Regina College, Rhode Island; Mitchell College, Sacred Heart University and Holy Apostles College and Seminary, Connecticut; and Saint Michael’s College, Vermont.

For the Holy See, Bishop Reilly served on the Pontifical Council, Cor Unum, from 1980 to 1988. He was named as a consultant to the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace in 1994.

Bishop Reilly’s retirement was accepted on March 9, 2004 by the Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, when he appointed Most Rev. Robert J. McManus, then auxiliary Bishop of Providence, as the Fifth Bishop of Worcester.

Link to story in The Catholic Free Press on the occasion of Bishop Reilly's 45th Anniversary as a bishop.
                        # # #