John Ricard

John Huston Ricard, S.S.J. (born February 29, 1940) is a prelate of the Catholic Church and the fourteenth and present Superior General of the Josephite Fathers. He was elected to the post in August 2019.

His Excellency, The Most Reverend

John Huston Ricard

SSJ
Bishop Emeritus of Pensacola–Tallahassee
ArchdioceseMiami
DiocesePensacola–Tallahassee
AppointedJanuary 20, 1997
InstalledMarch 13, 1997
Term endedMarch 11, 2011
PredecessorJohn Mortimer Smith
SuccessorGregory Parkes
Orders
OrdinationMay 25, 1968
ConsecrationJuly 2, 1984
by William Donald Borders, Thomas Austin Murphy, and Eugene Antonio Marino
Personal details
Born (1940-02-29) February 29, 1940
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Previous postAuxiliary Bishop of Baltimore (1984–1997)
MottoGod is gracious
Styles of
John Huston Ricard
Reference style
Spoken styleYour Excellency
Religious styleBishop

He is also the Bishop Emeritus of the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee.[1]

Early life and education

John Ricard was born in Baton Rouge; he is Creole. After graduating from St. Francis Xavier High School in 1958, he joined the Josephite Fathers at Mary Immaculate Novitiate in Walden, New York, and entered Epiphany Apostolic College in Newburgh, NY. He completed his theological studies at St. Joseph Seminary in Washington, D.C., and was ordained to the priesthood on May 25, 1968. He earned an M.A. from Tulane University in 1970 and a Ph.D. from The Catholic University of America in 1983.

Priestly ministry

He served as associate pastor at St. Peter Claver Church in New Orleans until 1972. He was then assigned as pastor of Holy Redeemer Church (1972–75) and of Holy Comforter-St. Cyprian Church (1975–79), both in Washington, D.C., where he also served as an instructor at the National Catholic School of Social Service at the Catholic University of America from 1976 to 1978. From 1979 until his appointment to the episcopacy, he was pastor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help.

Episcopacy

In 1984, he was appointed an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Baltimore. In 1997, Ricard was made Bishop of the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee.

Later life

On Tuesday, December 22, 2009, John Ricard suffered a stroke and was treated at Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola.[2] He tendered his resignation to Pope Benedict XVI in February 2011 due to poor health.[3] Pope Benedict accepted Bishop Ricard's request for retirement on March 11, 2011.

In June 2011, Bishop Ricard was appointed rector of St. Joseph Seminary in Washington, DC. He commenced service as rector on August 1, 2011.

In June 2019, Bishop Ricard was elected as Superior General of his religious community, the Society of Saint Joseph of the Sacred Heart (Josephites).[4] He began serving as Superior General in August of the same year.

See also

References
  1. Catholic Hierarchy: Bishop John Huston Ricard
  2. Pensacola News Journal: Ricard has a stroke
  3. Pensacola News Journal: Bishop Ricard asks pope if he can retire

Episcopal succession
Catholic Church titles
Preceded by
John Mortimer Smith		 Bishop of Pensacola-Tallahassee
1997 – 2011		 Succeeded by
Gregory Lawrence Parkes
Preceded by
-		 Auxiliary Bishop of Baltimore
1984-1997		 Succeeded by
-
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