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Father George N. Anderson, S.J., who served as an editor and writer for America magazine in Manhattan, died Aug. 4 in Merion Station, Pa. He was 86.
Beginning in 1994, Father Anderson served at America for 17 years, including as assistant editor, a writer and as a member of the editorial board of the Jesuit publication.
After his ordination, he was a prison chaplain at Rikers Island. Also in the 1970s, he taught English at the Nativity Mission Center in Manhattan.
Father Anderson was later assigned to a parish in Washington, D.C., where he served for 14 years as pastor and parochial vicar.
After leaving America magazine, he continued writing while serving in pastoral ministries at the Jesuit Community of the Immaculate Conception in Manhattan.
Born in Rockville, Md., he entered the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) in 1968 and was ordained in 1973 after studying for the priesthood at Woodstock College in Maryland. He held a bachelor’s degree in English from Haverford College in Pennsylvania and a master’s in seminars from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.
Burial was at the Jesuit Cemetery in Wernersville, Pa. A Memorial Mass is being planned.
