John J. Myers

infobox bishopstyles
name=John Myers
dipstyle=The Most Reverend
offstyle=Your Excellency
relstyle=Archbishop
deathstyle=none |Archbishop John Joseph Myers (b. July 26, 1941 in Earlville, Illinois, near Ottawa) is the Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark in Newark, New Jersey, United States and the Superior of Turks and Caicos.

Family and Personal Background

The eldest of seven children, the Archbishop’s family traces its roots to Ireland, England and France. Ancestors settled in northern Illinois in the late 1800s. The Myers family farmed land near Earlville, IL. Prayer was said to be an important part of their family routine and John Myers became an altar server in his parish, St. Theresa, from an early age. He attended the Earlville schools and graduated from Loras College in Dubuque, IA in 1963. While he was a student at Loras, Bishop John B. Franz offered him the opportunity to prepare for the priesthood in Rome.

Priesthood

He was ordained to the priesthood (by Bishop Francis Reh at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome) for the Diocese of Peoria (Illinois). His education for the priesthood and as a priest included study in theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University while attending seminary at the North American College, where he received the S.T.L., or licentiate (post-master's certification) in sacred theology, and a doctorate in church (canon law), the J.C.D.

Episcopacy

John Myers became the youngest bishop in the United States when, at 46, he was consecrated in 1987 by Joseph Cardinal Bernardin of Chicago and Peoria's Bishop Edward W. O'Rourke.He served as Coadjutor Bishop of Peoria – and became bishop upon O'Rourke's resignation and retirement. On July 24, 2001 he was appointed as the ninth Archbishop of Newark and third Superior of the Mission "Sui Iuris" of Turks and Caicos. He was installed October 9, 2001 and his Pallium was conferred on June 29, 2002.

Memberships and Activities

Myers is active in the Canon Law Society of America, having worked with committees dealing with the Revised Code of Canon Law, diocesan fiscal officers, lay ministry, and diocesan governance, and served as a member of the CLSA Board of Governors. He helped present workshops on the revised Code of Canon Law for members of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops. Bishop Myers also served as a Consultor to the Pontifical Council for the Interpretation of Legal Texts at the Holy See. He is also a member of the Board of Trustees at The Catholic University of America; and serves on the board of the North American College and Mount Saint Mary's Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland.

His hobby is writing and is the co-author with Gary Wolf of "Space Vulture", a 1950s pulp sci-fi pastiche novel published by Tor Books in 2008.

Church Sex Scandal

The Dallas Morning Post reported Archbishop Myers was one of 187 Catholic bishops it found had reassigned at least one priest after being accused of sexual abuse. [http://www.bishop-accountability.org/resources/resource-files/databases/DallasMorningNewsBishops.htm#myers] "A Peoria diocesan spokeswoman said the Rev. John Anderson was first accused of abuse in 1993 and removed from a parish. The archbishop, who was recently appointed to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops abuse committee, said he had no knowledge of the matter. Father Anderson, who served until recently as director of the diocesan office for Propagation of the Faith, has not commented publicly."