21 Facts About Matthew Beovich

Matthew Beovich was an Australian Roman Catholic bishop who was the fifth Archbishop of Adelaide.

Matthew Beovich was born on 1 April 1896 in Carlton, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria.

Matthew Beovich was the second of the four children of Mate Beovich, a fruiterer born in Croatia, and Elizabeth, who was born in Bendigo, Victoria.

Matthew Beovich began his schooling at St George's School, Carlton before moving on to St Joseph's Christian Brothers' College, North Melbourne as a full-time student between 1909 and 1912 when he passed the Senior Public Service examination.

From 1912 until 1917, Beovich worked as a clerk in the General Post Office, Melbourne, studying part-time and matriculating in 1913.

Matthew Beovich was to return to his old school on many occasions whenever his business brought him to Melbourne.

Matthew Beovich's thesis for his Doctorate of Divinity was a defence of the Catholic sacrament of confession.

On 6 August 1922, Matthew Beovich was ordained as a deacon and on 22 December that same year he was ordained a priest at the Basilica of St John Lateran.

At some point in the next four years, Matthew Beovich was elevated to director, a reflection of Mannix's limited direct involvement in the organisation.

Until his installation as Archbishop of Adelaide in 1940, Matthew Beovich played an important role in Victorian Catholic education, sitting on the Council of Public Education from 1932, and authoring a new catechism for school children.

In 1940, Mannix told the Adelaide clergy that Matthew Beovich had "brought about a revolution in the Catholic schools of Melbourne".

Matthew Beovich resigned this position in 1933, with Mannix citing the reason as the increased workload from his work in Catholic education and duties as the presenter of The Catholic Hour, a weekly radio program on Melbourne station 3AW.

On 13 December 1939, Matthew Beovich received a phone-call from the Australian apostolic delegate informing him that he had been appointed by Pope Pius XII to be installed as the new archbishop of Adelaide, replacing Andrew Killian who had died in June that year.

Matthew Beovich had been contacted by the editor of the Advocate to comment on his appointment the night before, the confusion arising from the fact that the plane carrying the papal bull of appointment had crashed into the sea near Java.

The mailbag was eventually recovered and Matthew Beovich received the barely readable document in March 1940.

Matthew Beovich was consecrated and installed as Archbishop of Adelaide at St Francis Xavier's Cathedral, Adelaide, on 7 April 1940, becoming the archdiocese's first Australian-born bishop.

The first months of Matthew Beovich's episcopacy were characterised by a cautious approach.

Matthew Beovich kept numerous engagements, including the opening of a maternity wing at Calvary Hospital with premier Thomas Playford, a meeting of the Holy Name Society that drew two thousand members, and an Anzac Day Requiem Mass for soldiers who had returned from the Second World War.

In July 1940, Matthew Beovich arranged for a Catholic lawyer to draft a bill entitling religious ministers to give 30 minutes of religious instruction per week to students in government schools belonging to their denomination.

On 1 May 1971, Matthew Beovich sent his resignation to Pope Paul VI.

Matthew Beovich died on 24 October 1981 in North Adelaide and was buried at West Terrace cemetery.