John Cardinal Heenan
Encyclopedia
John Carmel Heenan was an English
prelate
of the Roman Catholic Church
. He served as Archbishop of Westminster
from 1963 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate
in 1965.
, Redbridge
, as the youngest of the four children of the Irish
John and Anne (née Pilkington) Heenan. He auditioned for Westminster Cathedral
Choir School at age 9, but Sir Richard Terry
rejected him for his "metallic voice". Heenan studied at St. Ignatius College
in Stamford Hill
, Ushaw College
in Durham
, and the Venerable English College
in Rome
before being ordained
to the priesthood
on 6 July 1930. He then did pastoral
work in Brentwood
until 1947, at which time he became Superior
of the Catholic Missionary Society of England and Wales
. In this position, Heenan criticized the United States
for being too concerned about communism
, and not enough about spiritual matters. By this time he had published a biography (1943) of Arthur Cardinal Hinsley
, Archbishop of Westminster, who had recently died.
by Pope Pius XII
. Heenan received his episcopal consecration
on the following 12 March from Archbishop William Godfrey, with Bishops Joseph McCormack
and John Petit
serving as co-consecrators
. Named the sixth Archbishop of Liverpool
on 2 May 1957, Heenan was later appointed the eighth Archbishop of Westminster
on 2 September 1963. As Archbishop of Westminster, he served as the spiritual leader of the Catholic Church in England and Wales.
(1962–1965), Heenan showed himself to be of a conservative
mind. He opposed Gaudium et Spes
, the Council's constitution on the Church in the modern world, saying that it had been "written by clerics with no knowledge of the world." The English prelate also condemned the periti
, or theological experts, who sought to change the Church's doctrine on birth control
. Moreover, despite the risks to ecumenism
, Heenan later supported the canonization
of the forty martyrs
.
by Pope Paul VI
in the consistory
of 22 February 1965. In 1968, Heenan was named President of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales
.
He died from a heart attack
in London
at age 70, and is buried in Westminster Cathedral, under the twelfth Station of the Cross
("Jesus
dies on the
Cross
").
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
prelate
Prelate
A prelate is a high-ranking member of the clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin prælatus, the past participle of præferre, which means "carry before", "be set above or over" or "prefer"; hence, a prelate is one set over others.-Related...
of the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
. He served as Archbishop of Westminster
Archbishop of Westminster
The Archbishop of Westminster heads the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Westminster, in England. The incumbent is the Metropolitan of the Province of Westminster and, as a matter of custom, is elected President of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales, and therefore de facto spokesman...
from 1963 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
in 1965.
Early life and ordination
John Heenan was born in IlfordIlford
Ilford is a large cosmopolitan town in East London, England and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Redbridge. It is located northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. It forms a significant commercial and retail...
, Redbridge
London Borough of Redbridge
The London Borough of Redbridge is a London borough in outer north-east London. Its administrative headquarters is at Redbridge Town Hall in Ilford. The local authority is Redbridge London Borough Council.-Etymology:...
, as the youngest of the four children of the Irish
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
John and Anne (née Pilkington) Heenan. He auditioned for Westminster Cathedral
Westminster Cathedral
Westminster Cathedral in London is the mother church of the Catholic community in England and Wales and the Metropolitan Church and Cathedral of the Archbishop of Westminster...
Choir School at age 9, but Sir Richard Terry
Richard Runciman Terry
Sir Richard Runciman Terry was an English organist, choir director and musicologist. He is noted for his pioneering revival of Tudor liturgical music. He is often credited as R. R. Terry or simply R...
rejected him for his "metallic voice". Heenan studied at St. Ignatius College
St Ignatius' College
St Ignatius' College is a Catholic secondary school for boys, aged 11–18, located in Enfield, Middlesex. Formerly a grammar school, only accepting boys who had passed their Eleven plus exam, its educational philosophy was originally based upon the Jesuit precept of Ignatius of Loyola:Its current...
in Stamford Hill
Stamford Hill
Stamford Hill is a place in the north of the London Borough of Hackney, England, near the border with Haringey. It is home to Europe's largest Hasidic Jewish and Adeni Jewish community.Stamford Hill is NNE of Charing Cross.-History:...
, Ushaw College
Ushaw College
Ushaw College was a Roman Catholic seminary near Durham, England that closed in 2011. Ushaw was the principal seminary in the north of England for the training of Catholic priests.-History:...
in Durham
Durham
Durham is a city in north east England. It is within the County Durham local government district, and is the county town of the larger ceremonial county...
, and the Venerable English College
Venerable English College, Rome
The Venerable English College, commonly referred to as the English College, is a Roman Catholic seminary in Rome, Italy, for the training of priests for England and Wales...
in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
before being ordained
Holy Orders
The term Holy Orders is used by many Christian churches to refer to ordination or to those individuals ordained for a special role or ministry....
to the priesthood
Priesthood (Catholic Church)
The ministerial orders of the Catholic Church include the orders of bishops, deacons and presbyters, which in Latin is sacerdos. The ordained priesthood and common priesthood are different in function and essence....
on 6 July 1930. He then did pastoral
Parish (Catholic Church)
In the Roman Catholic Church, a parish is the lowest ecclesiastical geographical subdivision: from ecclesiastical province to diocese to deanery to parish.-Requirements:A parish needs two things under common law to become a parish...
work in Brentwood
Brentwood, Essex
Brentwood is a town and the principal settlement of the Borough of Brentwood, in the county of Essex in the east of England. It is located in the London commuter belt, 20 miles east north-east of Charing Cross in London, and near the M25 motorway....
until 1947, at which time he became Superior
Superior (hierarchy)
In a hierarchy or tree structure of any kind, a superior is an individual or position at a higher level in the hierarchy than another , and thus closer to the apex. It is often used in business terminology to refer to people who are supervisors and in the military to people who are higher in the...
of the Catholic Missionary Society of England and Wales
England and Wales
England and Wales is a jurisdiction within the United Kingdom. It consists of England and Wales, two of the four countries of the United Kingdom...
. In this position, Heenan criticized the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
for being too concerned about communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
, and not enough about spiritual matters. By this time he had published a biography (1943) of Arthur Cardinal Hinsley
Arthur Hinsley
Arthur Hinsley was an English prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Westminster from 1935 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1937.-Biography:...
, Archbishop of Westminster, who had recently died.
Bishop
On 27 January 1951, Heenan was appointed Bishop of LeedsBishop of Leeds
The Bishop of Leeds is the Ordinary of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Leeds in the Province of Liverpool, England.The Vicariate Apostolic of the Yorkshire District was elevated to diocese status as the Diocese of Beverley on 29 September 1850, which was suppressed on 20 December 1878 and its area...
by Pope Pius XII
Pope Pius XII
The Venerable Pope Pius XII , born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli , reigned as Pope, head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of Vatican City State, from 2 March 1939 until his death in 1958....
. Heenan received his episcopal consecration
Bishop (Catholic Church)
In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders and is responsible for teaching the Catholic faith and ruling the Church....
on the following 12 March from Archbishop William Godfrey, with Bishops Joseph McCormack
Bishop of Hexham and Newcastle
The Bishop of Hexham and Newcastle is the Ordinary of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle in the Province of Liverpool, known also on occasion as the Northern Province.-History:...
and John Petit
Bishop of Menevia
The Bishop of Menevia is the Ordinary of the Latin Rite Roman Catholic Diocese of Menevia in the Province of Cardiff.The Diocese of Menevia covers an area of roughly consisting of Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion, Neath Port Talbot, Pembrokeshire, the City and County of Swansea and the ancient counties...
serving as co-consecrators
Consecrator
Consecrator is a term used in the Roman Catholic Church to designate a bishop who ordains a priest to the episcopal state. The term is often used in Eastern Rite Churches and in Anglican communities. The term "Principal Consecrator" is used to designate the primary bishop who ordains a new bishop...
. Named the sixth Archbishop of Liverpool
Archbishop of Liverpool
The Archbishop of Liverpool heads the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Liverpool in England. As such he is the Metropolitan Archbishop of the Province of Liverpool, known also on occasion as the Northern Province.-History:...
on 2 May 1957, Heenan was later appointed the eighth Archbishop of Westminster
Archbishop of Westminster
The Archbishop of Westminster heads the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Westminster, in England. The incumbent is the Metropolitan of the Province of Westminster and, as a matter of custom, is elected President of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales, and therefore de facto spokesman...
on 2 September 1963. As Archbishop of Westminster, he served as the spiritual leader of the Catholic Church in England and Wales.
Positions during the Second Vatican Council
A participant of the Second Vatican CouncilSecond Vatican Council
The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...
(1962–1965), Heenan showed himself to be of a conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
mind. He opposed Gaudium et Spes
Gaudium et Spes
Gaudium et Spes , the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, was one of the four Apostolic Constitutions resulting from the Second Vatican Council...
, the Council's constitution on the Church in the modern world, saying that it had been "written by clerics with no knowledge of the world." The English prelate also condemned the periti
Peritus
Peritus is the title given to Roman Catholic theologians who are present to give advice at an ecumenical council. At the most recent council, the Second Vatican Council, some periti accompanied individual bishops or groups of bishops from various countries...
, or theological experts, who sought to change the Church's doctrine on birth control
Birth control
Birth control is an umbrella term for several techniques and methods used to prevent fertilization or to interrupt pregnancy at various stages. Birth control techniques and methods include contraception , contragestion and abortion...
. Moreover, despite the risks to ecumenism
Catholic Church and ecumenism
The Catholic Church has been heavily involved in the ecumenical movement since the Second Vatican Council .- Before the Second Vatican Council :...
, Heenan later supported the canonization
Canonization
Canonization is the act by which a Christian church declares a deceased person to be a saint, upon which declaration the person is included in the canon, or list, of recognized saints. Originally, individuals were recognized as saints without any formal process...
of the forty martyrs
Forty Martyrs of England and Wales
The Forty Martyrs of England and Wales are a group of men and women who were executed for treason and related offences in the Kingdom of England between 1535 and 1679...
.
Cardinal
He was created Cardinal-Priest of S. Silvestro in CapiteSan Silvestro in Capite
The Church of Saint Sylvester in Capite is a Roman Catholic minor basilica and titular church in Rome dedicated to Pope Saint Sylvester I. Built in the 8th century as a shrine for the relics of the saints and martyrs from the Catacombs, the church is the National church of Great Britain.The Latin...
by Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI
Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
in the consistory
Consistory
-Antiquity:Originally, the Latin word consistorium meant simply 'sitting together', just as the Greek synedrion ....
of 22 February 1965. In 1968, Heenan was named President of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales
Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales
The Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales is the episcopal conference of the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales.-About:...
.
He died from a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
at age 70, and is buried in Westminster Cathedral, under the twelfth Station of the Cross
Stations of the Cross
Stations of the Cross refers to the depiction of the final hours of Jesus, and the devotion commemorating the Passion. The tradition as chapel devotion began with St...
("Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
dies on the
Death and Resurrection of Jesus
The Christian belief in the resurrection of Jesus states that Jesus returned to bodily life on the third day following his death by crucifixion. It is a key element of Christian faith and theology and part of the Nicene Creed: "On the third day he rose again in fulfillment of the Scriptures"...
Cross
Christian cross
The Christian cross, seen as a representation of the instrument of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, is the best-known religious symbol of Christianity...
").
Quotes
- "A church that is half empty is half full."
- "At home it is not only women and children but also fathers of families and young men who come regularly to mass. If we were to offer them the kind of ceremony we saw yesterday in the Sistine Chapel we would soon be left with a congregation mostly of women and children."