Auxiliary Bishop of Newark Joseph Francis Dies A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated by Archbishop Theodore E. McCarrick on Thursday, September 4, 1997 at 10:30 a.m. in the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart for the Most Rev. Joseph A. Francis, retired Auxiliary Bishop of Newark. Bishop Francis, 73, died Monday, September 1, 1997 in his Verona residence.
"....To our African-American Catholics, for whom he was so great a voice and so outstanding a leader, his death is a loss indeed. But for all of us who were challenged by his eloquence and courage and guided by his wisdom the passing of this special champion of human dignity and of the rights of all God's children, brings sorrow and emptiness," the Archbishop said. Bishop Francis had called his appointment as an Auxiliary Bishop in Newark "the second great challenge in his life." The first was his founding and directing of Verbum Dei High School in the Watts section of Los Angeles. The school was held in such high regard by the community that it escaped the devastation of the civil disturbances in Watts in 1965. That school continues to flourish, he would often note. Bishop Francis was born in Lafayette, La., on September 30, 1923 and entered the Divine Word Fathers' St. Augustine Seminary in Bay St. Louis, Miss. He continued his studies at St. Mary's Seminary in Techny, Ill. and was ordained to the priesthood October 7, 1950. He earned a Master's Degree in Education Administration at Catholic University. After working in parishes and serving at the high school, Bishop Francis became Provincial Superior of the Divine Word Father Western Province from 1967 until 1973. In 1973, he became Superior of the Congregation's Southern Province. He was the first black priest in his community to hold these offices. He also served as President of the Conference of Major Superiors of Men Religious and President of the Black Clergy Caucus. He was named Auxiliary bishop to Archbishop Peter L. Gerety by Pope Paul VI on May 4, 1976 and found himself "smack in the middle of a huge archdiocese," he said. He was able to work with numerous and diverse ethnic groups in his new position and was soon exercising his talents on a national and international level. He was the principal author of "Brothers and Sisters to Us," the U.S. Bishops' 1979 pastoral on the sin of racism, and he lectured nationally and internationally on justice and peace. In 1977, Bishop Francis became episcopal advisor to the newly-formed coalition of the International Liaison for the Lay Apostolate, and in 1979 he joined the board of directors of the Catholic Relief Services. In 1985 he became chairperson for the National Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee for Liaison with the Conference of Major Superiors of Men. He has received numerous honors and awards, including 10 honorary degrees. Bishop Francis retired from active episcopal ministry in 1995, after a series of heart bypass operations. Visitation for Bishop Francis will be in the Cathedral Basilica on Tuesday, from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. A Vigil Mass will be celebrated in the Cathedral Basilica on Wednesday, September 3, by Archbishop Emeritus Peter L. Gerety at 7:30 p.m. The body of the Bishop will be returned to his native Louisiana and will lie in state at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist in Lafayette, on Friday, September 5, from 6 to 10 p.m. A Mass of Christian Burial will be in the Cemetery of St. John the Evangelist.
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