Joseph A. Burke
Joseph Aloysius Burke was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as bishop of the Diocese of Buffalo, New York from 1952 until his death in 1962.Biography
Joseph Burke was born in Buffalo, New York, to Joseph S. and Amelia Burke. The son of a boilermaker, he wanted to enter the priesthood since the age of six. He attended Canisius High School and Canisius College, both in his native city. He made his theological studies at the University of Innsbruck in Austria.
Returning to Buffalo, he was ordained a priest by Bishop Charles H. Colton on August 3, 1912. During World War I, he served as an Army chaplain with the 91st Division on the Belgian front. He served as a curate and pastor in the Diocese of Buffalo, and as a teacher at Mount Carmel Guild and at D'Youville College.
On April 20, 1943, Burke was appointed titular bishop of Vita and the first auxiliary bishop of Buffalo by Pope Pius XII. He received his episcopal consecration on the following June 29 from Archbishop Amleto Giovanni Cicognani, with Archbishop Thomas Walsh and Bishop Edmund Gibbons serving as co-consecrators. He selected as his episcopal motto, "Let Your Will Be Done". Following the death of Bishop John A. Duffy in September 1944, he served as apostolic administrator of the diocese until the appointment of Bishop John Francis O'Hara in March 1945.
When O'Hara was later promoted to Archbishop of Philadelphia, Burke was named to succeed him as the ninth Bishop of Buffalo on February 9, 1952. He was the first native son of the diocese to become its bishop. His installation took place on the following April 30. During his 10-year-long administration, he gave his support to various groups, including the Holy Name Society, missions, the Pre-Cana program, Puerto Rican migrants, and displaced persons. He also continued the expansion and construction of educational institutions, including St. John Vianney Seminary in East Aurora. He was made an Assistant at the Pontifical Throne in 1956, and a Commander of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic in 1960.
At age 76, Burke died in Rome during the first week of the Second Vatican Council. His death was the first among the bishops attending the Council. He is buried in the chapel of Christ the King Seminary in East Aurora.
