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Sixteen priests of the archdiocese have retired and four have received appointments as senior priest administrators, the Archbishop’s Office has announced.
The 16 priests who are retiring are Msgr. Joseph Ansaldi, a faculty member and former principal of St. Joseph by-the-Sea High School, Staten Island; Msgr. John Brinn, pastor of St. Mary’s parish, Poughkeepsie; Msgr. John Farley, chaplain at Vassar Brothers Hospital, Poughkeepsie; Msgr. John Meehan, pastor of St. Mary’s parish, Mount Vernon; Msgr. Joseph Reynolds, senior priest administrator, St. Anastasia’s, Harriman; Msgr. John F.X. Smith, pastor of Our Lady of Mount Carmel parish, Tuxedo; Msgr. Robert Trainor, senior priest at Sacred Heart, the Bronx; and Msgr. William Williams, senior priest administrator of St. John the Evangelist, Saugerties.
Also retiring are Father James Clark, senior priest at St. Frances of Rome, the Bronx; Father Richard Dillon, a professor emeritus of Fordham University who has taught in recent years at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome; Father Owen Lafferty, parochial vicar of Holy Innocents, Manhattan; Father Thomas McDonald, senior priest chaplain, Allen Pavilion of Columbia Presbyterian Hospital; Father Thomas Mullin, hospital chaplain with the Department of Veterans Affairs; Father John L. Quinn, who has done speaking and fund-raising work for the Christian Foundation for Children and the Aging; Father Philip Sandstrom, faculty of American College, University of Louvain, Belgium; and Father Andrew Walsh, parochial vicar of St. Margaret of Cortona, the Bronx.
Four pastors who have or will soon reach the normal retirement age of 75 have been appointed as senior priest administrators in their current parishes. They are Msgr. Philip Franceschini, Our Lady of Pity, Staten Island; Father Ivan Csete, St. Thomas Aquinas, Forestburgh; Father Elias Isla, St. Jude’s, Manhattan; and Father John Vondras, St. Francis of Assisi, Newburgh.
All the appointments except one took effect July 1. The retirement of Father Lafferty, who retired early for medical reasons, became effective May 1.
RETIRED PRIESTS
Msgr. Ansaldi had served as a faculty member of St. Joseph by-the-Sea High School on Staten Island for the past two years, after having served there as principal, 1982-2009. He first became a member of the faculty in 1978. Msgr. Ansaldi was regional vicar of Staten Island, 1991-1998. He was a teacher at Cardinal Hayes High School, the Bronx, 1963-1978. He earlier served as parochial vicar at St. Dominic’s, the Bronx, and as a staff member at the Mission of the Immaculate Virgin on Staten Island. He was ordained in 1962 and named a monsignor in 1990.
Msgr. Brinn had served as pastor of St. Mary’s parish, Poughkeepsie, since 1994. He served as pastor of St. Martin de Porres parish, Poughkeepsie, 1983-1994, where he previously served as parochial vicar for 18 years. He also was parochial vicar of St. Peter’s, Liberty, 1962-1965. He was ordained in 1962 and named a monsignor in 2006.
Msgr. Farley had served since 2009 as chaplain at Vassar Brothers Hospital, Poughkeepsie. Before that he was parochial vicar for three years at St. Columba’s, Hopewell Junction. He was pastor of St. Margaret of Cortona, the Bronx, 2000-2006, and St. Peter’s, Rosendale, 1987-1994. He was on the faculty of Pontifical College Josephinum in Columbus, Ohio, 1998-2000, and St. Joseph’s Seminary, Dunwoodie, 1994-1998. He was spiritual director of Cathedral College, Douglaston, 1983-1987, and associate director of Trinity Retreat, Larchmont, 1979-1983. He was a parochial vicar at St. Raymond’s, the Bronx, and St. Aloysius, Manhattan. He served in the archdiocesan Superintendent of Schools office, and was a faculty member at Cathedral Prep Seminary, Manhattan; Our Lady of Lourdes High School, Poughkeepsie; and Bishop DuBois High School, Manhattan. He was ordained in 1962 and named a monsignor in 1995.
Msgr. Meehan had served as pastor of St. Mary’s, Mount Vernon, since 1992. He was pastor of All Saints, Manhattan, 1985-1992. He also served in Manhattan at St. Charles Borromeo, Resurrection and Our Lady of Lourdes. He also was director of the Pierre Toussaint Residence and served at Catholic Charities, both Manhattan. He served on the faculty at Cardinal Hayes High School, the Bronx. He was ordained in 1964 and named a monsignor in 2006.
Msgr. Reynolds had served as senior priest administrator of St. Anastasia’s, Harriman, since 2009, after having served as pastor there since 1994. He was pastor of St. Joseph’s, Millbrook, 1982-1994. He served as parochial vicar of St. Joseph’s, Bronxville; St. Joseph’s, Croton Falls; and St. John’s, Clove. He also served on the faculty of Archbishop Stepinac High School, White Plains, 1961-1974. He was ordained in 1959 and named a monsignor in 2006.
Msgr. Smith had served as senior priest administrator of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Tuxedo, for the past year after having been pastor there since 1998. He previously was administrator at Our Lady of Mount Carmel, 1996-1998. He was pastor of St. Thomas of Canterbury, Cornwall-on-Hudson, 1994-1996. He was pastor of Holy Name of Jesus in Kingston while serving on the faculty of John A. Coleman Catholic High School in Hurley, 1982-1994. He was parochial vicar at St. Peter’s, Manhattan, 1961-1982, and at Sacred Heart, Suffern, for the summer following his ordination in 1961. He was named a monsignor in 2006.
Msgr. Trainor had served as senior priest at Sacred Heart, the Bronx, since 2006. He was pastor of St. Ann’s, 1992-2006, and Our Lady of the Angels, 1980-1992, both in the Bronx. At Our Lady of the Angels, he was administrator, 1973-1980. He was a parochial vicar at St. Rose of Lima, Manhattan; St. Columbanus, Cortlandt Manor; and St. Joseph’s, Millbrook. He was ordained in 1957 and named a monsignor in 1990.
Msgr. Williams had served as senior priest administrator of St. John the Evangelist parish, Saugerties, since 2009. He was pastor of St. John the Evangelist from 1994 to 2009. He also served as regional vicar of Ulster County from 1989 to 2010. He was pastor of St. Joseph’s, Kingston, 1982-1994, after having served there as administrator for a year and earlier as a parochial vicar. He also served as parochial vicar of St. Gregory the Great, Harrison. He was ordained in 1959 and named a monsignor in 1995.
Father Clark had served most recently as a senior priest at St. Frances of Rome, the Bronx. He served as parochial vicar of St. Francis of Assisi, the Bronx, 1973-2001. He also served at St. John the Baptist, Yonkers, 1964-1973; in Manhattan at St. Andrew’s, 1973, St. Brigid’s, 1964, All Saints, 1963-1964, and St. Charles Borromeo, 1961-1963; and on Staten Island at Our Lady Queen of Peace, 1954-1961, and St. Mary’s, 1952-1954. He was ordained in 1952.
Father Dillon taught in recent years at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome, where he earned his doctorate. He taught for 30 years at Fordham University, where he was a professor of theology and former chairman of the theology department. He also taught Scripture at St. Joseph’s Seminary, Dunwoodie, 1967-1984. In 2000 he was named editor in chief of the Catholic Biblical Quarterly. He served as parochial vicar at Immaculate Conception and Our Lady of Peace, both Manhattan, and assisted at a number of other parishes. He was ordained in 1962.
Father Lafferty had served since 2004 as parochial vicar at Holy Innocents, Manhattan. Before that, he was parochial vicar of St. Joseph’s, Greenwich Village, 1998-2004, and chaplain at Mount Sinai Medical Center, Manhattan, 1996-1998. He was pastor of Sacred Heart, Mount Vernon, 1984-1996, having previously served there for six months as administrator. He was parochial vicar at Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Elmsford, 1972-1983, and St. Anthony of Padua, the Bronx, 1966-1967. He also served on the faculty of John F. Kennedy Catholic High School, Somers, and Cardinal Spellman High School, the Bronx. He was ordained in 1966.
Father McDonald had served as senior priest chaplain at Allen Pavilion of Columbia Presbyterian, where he had been assigned since 2002. Before then, he was parochial vicar at St. Anthony’s, Nanuet, 2000-2002, and Holy Spirit, Cortlandt Manor, 2000. He was chaplain and director of pastoral care at St. Francis Hospital, Poughkeepsie, 1991-2000, and chaplain at Shawangunk Correctional Facility, Wallkill, 1986-1991. He was pastor of St. Peter’s parish, Haverstraw, 1980-1986, where he previously served briefly as administrator. He was chaplain at St. Agatha’s Home, Nanuet, 1971-1980. He earlier served as parochial vicar at Sacred Heart, Hartsdale; Our Lady of the Rosary, Yonkers; and St. Charles Borromeo, Dover Plains. He was ordained in 1952.
Father Mullin had served most recently as a chaplain at the Veterans Affairs Hospital in Brooklyn. He also was chaplain at St. Elizabeth Ann’s Health Care and Rehabilitation Center on Staten Island. He was pastor of St. Peter’s, Poughkeepsie, 1994-1995, and Immaculate Conception and St. John Baptist de La Salle, Staten Island, 1987-1994. He was a chaplain in the U.S. Army, 1979-1986, and later served in the Persian Gulf War as a chaplain with the Army Reserves. He served as parochial vicar at Sacred Heart, the Bronx; St. Joseph’s, Kingston; Holy Child, Staten Island; St. Margaret Mary, Staten Island; and St. Peter’s, Liberty. He also served briefly on the staff of Catholic Charities. He was ordained in 1965.
Father Quinn had served outside the archdiocese since 1997 as a speaker and fund-raiser for the Christian Foundation for Children and Aging and for Cross International Catholic Outreach. He also served as a hospital chaplain in Fort Lauderdale. He served as pastor of St. Charles Borromeo parish in Gardiner, 1996-1997. He was a chaplain in the U.S. Air Force for 20 years beginning in 1976, retiring with the rank of major. He served as parochial vicar of St. Thomas of Canterbury parish, Cornwall-on-Hudson; Holy Family, New Rochelle; Sacred Heart, Hartsdale; and Good Shepherd, Rhinebeck. He was chaplain at Elizabeth Seton College, Yonkers, and was a faculty member at Archbishop Stepinac High School, White Plains. He was ordained in 1962.
Father Sandstrom had served on the faculty and as director of liturgy at American College, Catholic University of Louvain, since 1988. He was administrator of St. Michael’s parish, Manhattan, in 1988. He was on the faculty at Cardinal Spellman High School, the Bronx, 1974-1985. He served as parochial vicar of St. Mary and St. Andrew, Ellenville; Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Pelham Manor; St. Francis of Assisi, Mount Kisco; and Sacred Heart, Barrytown. He was ordained in 1962.
Father Walsh had served since 2006 as parochial vicar at St. Margaret of Cortona, the Bronx. Before that, he was parochial vicar at St. Columba’s, Hopewell Junction, 2000-2006, and St. James the Apostle, Carmel, 1994-1997. He was administrator of St. Joachim, Beacon, 1997-2000. He served for 20 years as a chaplain in the U.S. Air Force before retiring in 1994 with the rank of major. He was on the faculty of Cardinal Spellman High School, the Bronx, 1968-1974. He earlier served at Our Lady of Loreto, Manhattan, and St. Charles Borromeo, Dover Plains. He was ordained in 1996.
SENIOR PRIEST ADMINISTRATORS
Msgr. Franceschini has served as pastor of Our Lady of Pity since 1990. He also served as parochial vicar of Our Lady Star of the Sea, Staten Island, 1987-1990; Our Lady of Mount Carmel-St. Benedicta, Staten Island, 1966-1969; and Sacred Heart, Dobbs Ferry, 1966. He was on the faculty of Msgr. Farrell High School, Staten Island, 1983-1987, and Archbishop Stepinac High School, White Plains, 1969-1983. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1966 and named a monsignor in 1995.
Father Csete has served as pastor of St. Thomas Aquinas since 1999, having served there previously as administrator for a year. He also served as parochial vicar at Our Lady of Victory, Manhattan, 1997-1998; St. Christopher’s, Staten Island, 1990-1993; and Immaculate Conception, Amenia, 1981-1985. He was a Navy chaplain, 1993-1997, and a chaplain at Mary Manning Walsh Home, Manhattan, 1989-1990. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1981.
Father Isla has served since 1989 as pastor of St. Jude’s, where he previously was administrator for four years. He also served as parochial vicar of St. Francis de Sales, Manhattan, 1982-1985; Annunciation, Manhattan, 1977-1982; and SS. Peter and Paul, the Bronx, 1967-1977. A native of Spain, Father Isla was ordained in Madrid in 1959 as a Piarist Father and was incardinated into the archdiocese in 1988.
Father Vondras has served since 1997 as pastor of St. Francis of Assisi, where he previously was administrator for a year. He was associate director for pro-life programs in the Family Life/Respect Life Office, 1992-1996. He also served as parochial vicar of St. Joseph’s, Bronxville, 1994-1996; St. Aedan’s, Pearl River, 1990-1992; and St. Ann’s, Nyack, 1985-1990. He was ordained in 1985.
