Archbishop, Archdiocese of Detroit
1991
Citation:
You have unselfishly committed yourself to a life of service to God and humankind as an ordained priest of the Catholic Church. In doing so, you dedicated yourself to the people of Pittsburgh as an associate pastor, vice chancellor and general counsel of the Diocese and found time to teach theology at La Roche College. For six year you served as the ninth Bishop of the Diocese of Green Bay, Wisconsin before being called by Pope John Paul II to be Archbishop of Detroit. Your interest in the law led you to a Licentiate in Canon Law (J.C.L.) from the Pontifical Lateran University in Rome and a doctorate in Civil Law (J.D.) from Duquesne University School of Law. These degrees enabled you to serve on various Papal Commissions concerning legal matters and to act as a consulter to the Vatican Commission for the Revision of the code of Canon Law and to the Sacred Congregation for Clergy. In addition, you have served your Church and community as Chairman of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops Canonical Affairs Committee, as President of the Canon Law Society of America, and as the Chairman of the Board of the Pope John XXIII Medical-Moral Research and Education Center in Braintree, Massachusetts. Through the years, you have dedicated yourself to the enhancement of the education system in America by serving as a consulter to the Congregation for Catholic Education, on the Board of Trustees of Catholic University of America, and on the Bishops' and President's Committee for Catholic Education. After only one year as Archbishop, you have shown your concern and proven yourself to be dedicated to improving the education of the children of Detroit. With admiration for your continued commitment to education and to the Diocese of Detroit, we confer upon you the Honorary Doctor of Laws Degree. Commencement, University of Detroit Mercy, School of Law, May 12, 1991.