43 Facts About Edward Egan

Edward Michael Egan was an American cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church.

Edward Egan served as bishop of the Diocese of Bridgeport in Connecticut from 1988 to 2000 and as archbishop of the Archdiocese of New York in New York City from 2000 to 2009.

The third of four children, Edward Egan was born in Oak Park, Illinois, the son of Thomas J and Genevieve Egan.

Edward Egan attended Archbishop Quigley Preparatory Seminary in Chicago, where he was student body president and editor of the student newspaper and yearbook.

Edward Egan was then sent to the Pontifical North American College in Rome, taking his academic courses in theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University.

Edward Egan was ordained to the priesthood by Archbishop Martin O'Connor on December 15,1957, for the Archdiocese of Chicago.

Edward Egan was awarded a Licentiate of Sacred Theology from the Gregorian University in 1958.

In 1960, Edward Egan returned to the Gregorian University in Rome to pursue his doctorate.

Back in Chicago, Edward Egan was appointed priest-secretary to Cardinal John Cody.

Edward Egan was later appointed secretary of the Archdiocesan Commissions on Ecumenism and Human Relations, sitting on several interfaith organizations and establishing dialogue with Jews and Protestants.

Edward Egan returned to Rome in 1971 when Pope Paul VI named him an auditor of the Sacred Roman Rota.

Edward Egan served as a commissioner of the Congregation for the Sacraments and Divine Worship and a consultor of the Congregation for the Clergy as well.

In 1982, Edward Egan was chosen to be one of the six canonists who reviewed the new Code of Canon Law with Pope John Paul II before its promulgation in 1983.

Edward Egan received his episcopal consecration at the Basilica of Saints John and Paul in Rome on May 22,1985, by Cardinal Bernardin Gantin, with Archbishop John O'Connor and Bishop John Keating serving as co-consecrators.

Edward Egan selected as his episcopal motto: "In the Holiness of the Truth" Ephesians 4:24.

Edward Egan established a home for retired priests and a school for children with special needs.

Edward Egan was a member of the Committee on Canonical Affairs, the Committee on Education, the Committee on National Collections, and the Committee on Nominations, and served two terms on the USCCB administrative board.

Edward Egan was installed on June 19,2000, with soprano Renee Fleming performing at the ceremony.

On becoming archbishop, Edward Egan prioritized the encouragement of vocations to the priesthood.

Edward Egan appointed two priests as vocation directors to aid him in promoting the priesthood, although they were unable to reverse the declining trend.

Edward Egan was elevated to the cardinalate by John Paul II at the consistory of February 21,2001, becoming the cardinal-priest of Ss.

Edward Egan added Avery Dulles, Sara Butler, and John DiNoia to the faculty.

Edward Egan was a prominent influence in New York City after the September 11,2001 attacks at the World Trade Center.

Edward Egan planned a center for victims' families at the New School and an interfaith service at Yankee Stadium.

Edward Egan offered masses at St Patrick's Cathedral in the immediate aftermath of the attacks and funerals there and around the archdiocese for months.

For retired priests, Edward Egan established the John Cardinal O'Connor residence in 2003 at the previous site of the minor seminary in Riverdale.

In June 2003, Edward Egan was accused of concealing the names of priests who had been accused of child molestation, but found not guilty by the church.

Edward Egan's spokesman argued that the innocent should be protected, while groups such as Voice of the Faithful criticized the process as being out of the public view.

Edward Egan participated in the 2005 papal conclave that selected Pope Benedict XVI.

In December 2006, Edward Egan began hosting a weekly program on The Catholic Channel of Sirius Satellite Radio in which he discussed a variety of topics, including events in the archdiocese and issues in the church.

On January 19,2007, Edward Egan announced that ten under-utilized parishes in the archdiocese would be canonically suppressed and eleven merged with other parishes, "based on the migration of Catholics in the inner-city to the outer boroughs".

Edward Egan announced the establishment of five new parishes; three in Orange County, and one each in Staten Island and Dutchess County.

On December 15,2007, Edward Egan celebrated his 50th anniversary as a priest.

Edward Egan then hosted the papal visit to New York during April 2008, marking the 200th anniversary of the diocese.

In January 2009, Edward Egan publicly condemned controversial statements made by Richard Williamson, an excommunicated Catholic bishop, about the reality of the Holocaust.

Cardinal Edward Egan was the first archbishop of New York to retire; all previous archbishops had died in office.

Edward Egan's resignation became official on February 23,2009, when Benedict XVI appointed Archbishop Timothy Dolan as his successor.

Edward Egan served as a member of the board of trustees at the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, and a founding member of the board of governors at Ave Maria School of Law in Naples, Florida.

Edward Egan reached age 80 on April 2,2012, and from then on ceased to be cardinal-elector.

Edward Egan was admitted to St Vincent's Hospital in Manhattan on April 4,2009, experiencing stomach pains.

Edward Egan died on March 5,2015, at NYU Langone Medical Center in Manhattan of cardiac arrest.

Edward Egan believed that Catholic politicians who support abortion rights for women should be forbidden communion on grounds of public scandal.

Holzberg found that Edward Egan took a "dismissive, uncaring, and at times threatening attitude toward survivors"; he characterized Edward Egan's behavior as "profoundly unsympathetic, inadequate, and inflammatory".