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WASHINGTON (July 23, 2001) -- Pope John Paul II has named Bishop John J. Myers of Peoria to be Archbishop of Newark. He succeeds Cardinal Theodore E. McCarrick who was appointed Archbishop of Washington last November.
Archbishop Gabriel Montalvo, Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, announced the appointment.
John Joseph Myers was born July 26, 1941, in Ottawa, Illinois. He studied at Loras College, Dubuque, the North American College and the Gregorian University in Rome, where he earned the S.T.L, and at the Catholic University of America in Washington, where he obtained the J.C.D. He was ordained a priest of the Peoria Diocese in St. Peter's Basilica on December 17, 1966.
After a series of pastoral assignments and a year of service in the Department of International Affairs at the United States Catholic Conference in Washington, he was named Chancellor and Director of Vocations for the Peoria diocese, in 1978. He later served as Vicar General and on the Priests' Council and Board of Consultors.
Active in the Canon Law Society of America, Bishop Myers 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.
Bishop Myers was serving as Vicar General and Chancellor of Peoria when he was named Coadjutor Bishop, July 14, 1987. He became Bishop of Peoria upon the resignation of Bishop Edward W. O'Rourke on January 23, 1990.
The Archdiocese of Newark comprises four counties in the State of New Jersey: Bergen, Hudson, Essex and Union. It has a Catholic population of about 1.3 million in a total population of 2.6 million.