Retired Bishop of Camden Joseph A. Galante dies

The Most Reverend Joseph A. Galante, bishop emeritus of the Diocese of Camden, has died. He was 80.

“On behalf of the clergy, religious and faithful of the Diocese of Trenton, I extend to Bishop Dennis Sullivan and to all the Catholics of the Diocese of Camden, our prayerful sympathies,” said Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M. “In all his assignments, Bishop Emeritus Galante served the Church with dignity and grace. Our prayers go out for him and his loved ones.”

On Bishop Galante’s May 25 passing, Camden’s Bishop Sullivan said, “I ask that you pray for his eternal rest in peace.”

The Rite of Reception of Bishop Galante’s body will begin at 3 p.m. May 31 in St. Agnes Church, Our Lady of Hope Parish, 701 Little Gloucester Road, Blackwood.

The viewing will take place immediately following the reception of the body, to be held during three time periods in St. Agnes Church:

• May 31, 3:30-4:30 p.m.
• May 31, 7-9 p.m.
• June 1, 9-10:30 a.m.

The celebration of the Mass of Christian Burial will begin at 11 a.m. June 1 in St. Agnes Church. Following the Mass, Bishop Galante will be buried in St. Dominic Church Cemetery, 8504 Frankford Ave., Torresdale, Philadelphia, Pa. The burial is open to family and invited guests only.

Bishop Galante was born in Philadelphia, graduated from St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood, Pa., in 1960, and was ordained a priest May 16, 1964. He attended Lateran University in Rome, where he received his doctorate in canon law in 1968, and the University of St. Thomas (Angelicum) in Rome, where he received his master’s degree in spiritual theology in 1991.

He served in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia until he was named by Pope John Paul II in December 1986 to be Undersecretary of the Congregation for Religious in Rome. He was a member of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications and chair of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Communications.

In October 1992, he was named auxiliary bishop of San Antonio, Texas. Eighteen months later, he was installed as Bishop of Beaumont, Texas. He became coadjutor bishop of Dallas in January 2000.

On April 30, 2004, Bishop Galante was installed as seventh bishop of the Diocese of Camden. For health reasons, he retired Jan. 8, 2013, as bishop emeritus of the diocese.