Bishop Emeritus Edward J. Slattery

OBITUARY
Bishop Emeritus Edward J. Slattery
Aug. 11, 1940 - Sept. 13, 2024 

BROKEN ARROW – Bishop Edward J. Slattery, Bishop Emeritus of the Diocese of Tulsa and Eastern Oklahoma, has died. He passed at home late on the night of Sept. 13, after having recently suffered a series of debilitating strokes. He was 84.

“Bishop Slattery was a man of deep faith who knew that death would bring him to his Lord,” said Most Rev. David A. Konderla, Bishop of the Diocese of Tulsa and Eastern Oklahoma. “I was blessed to follow in his footsteps in the diocese and will remember him with fondness and prayer.”

Other Catholic leaders also offered condolences and honored Bishop Slattery’s lifelong commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ and his Church.

“For many years I have appreciated Bishop Slattery as a friend and brother bishop,” said Most Reverend Paul S. Coakley, archbishop of Oklahoma City. “He welcomed me warmly when I arrived in Oklahoma in 2011 and always encouraged my ministry here. I have appreciated the pastoral leadership he provided in the Diocese of Tulsa and nationally through the work of Catholic Extension which he guided before coming to Oklahoma.”

The papal representative of the Holy See in the United States commended Bishop Slattery’s years of work in the diocese and his heart for the poor.

Edward James Slattery was born in Chicago, Illinois on Aug. 11, 1940, to William Edward Slattery and Winifred Margaret (Brennan) Slattery. Of their seven children, he was the second child and first boy. Both his paternal and maternal grandparents emigrated to the United States from Ireland. 

In a story about Bishop Slattery’s pending retirement in its Aug. 15, 2015, issue, the Tulsa World reported, “His family of nine shared a five-room, third-floor apartment with one bathroom and no air conditioning. He was 17 when his father, who was a firefighter and janitor, got the first family car.”

He was attracted to the priesthood at a young age, having been influenced by his family, parish priests, and the sacramental life of the Church. Again, as reported by the Tulsa World, “One night, about 2 in the morning, I woke up … and I was aware of God’s presence as I had never been before. The house was absolutely silent. And I’m lying there wide awake in the dark, and I’m beginning to cry a little bit because I’m so happy that God is so good to me. It was a religious experience. I just knew God was present, and he knew me and loved me, and I was safe. And I was feeling overwhelmed with gratitude. No words, just a sense, or a feeling.”

He attended college at Saint Mary of the Lake Seminary in Mundelein, Illinois, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree and a Master of Divinity degree. 

He was ordained a priest on April 26, 1966, for the Archdiocese of Chicago by the late Cardinal John Patrick Cody. Father Slattery was assigned as associate pastor of Saint Jude the Apostle Parish in South Holland, Illinois, where he served from 1966 to 1971. During this time, he also obtained a master’s degree from Loyola University Chicago. 

In 1979, Father Slattery had the joy of personally meeting Blessed Pope John Paul II when the pontiff visited Chicago as part of an American tour. A recounting of that experience was published in the April 2014 issue of Eastern Oklahoma Catholic. It would not be their only meeting.

Late in 1993, Father Slattery was notified via a phone call from the papal nuncio – the Vatican’s representative to the United States – that Pope John Paul II had chosen to name him a bishop. He accepted and his father learned the news but died before witnessing his son become a bishop. In Rome, on Jan. 6, 1994, the Holy Father ordained 13 men as bishops, one of which was Edward J. Slattery. Among those present for his ordination was his mother, Winifred.

Bishop Slattery was installed as the third bishop of the Diocese of Tulsa at Holy Family Cathedral on Jan. 12, 1994.

On Ash Wednesday, 1995, Bishop Slattery published his first Pastoral Letter to the Catholics of the Diocese of Tulsa: “To Listen with a Loving Heart.” Other major initiatives and milestones that came about during his episcopate included relocating the Chancery offices in 1998 from downtown Tulsa to new offices in Broken Arrow, thanks to the generosity of the Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother, who donated the spacious property and office complex. That same year the Diocese of Tulsa undertook its first large-scale fundraising effort, “The Fund for the Future,” which raised $17.6 million as the diocese celebrated its 25th anniversary.

Bishop Slattery wrote in his final column for the June 2016 issue of Eastern Oklahoma Catholic magazine, “How often I have written about the Eucharist in these pages! How many times have I preached on this very mystery! Now I am saying goodbye to you and, with a lump in my throat, I beg you to face the bleakness of the world with your hearts alive with a hope founded in the Eucharist.” 

He continued, “… And know that through the months and years of my retirement, you will be in all my prayers, in my every Mass, even in the chain that connects the beads of my rosary. I will never cease praying for you and ask that you do the same – in charity – for me.”

Bishop Edward J. Slattery was preceded in death by his parents William E. Slattery and Winifred M. (Brennan) Slattery; and a sister, Mary E. Mathewson-Michael. He is survived by his siblings, Winnie C. Dollear, Anne T. Stevenson, Catherine J. Freihage, Margaret I. Sheehan and James E. Slattery.

Funeral Schedule:

Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024            
2 p.m. - Reception of the Body at Holy Family Cathedral
2-6 p.m. - Lie in State for Public Visitation
6 p.m. - Prayers and Songs by St. Catherine Burmese Community
7 p.m. - Evening Prayer for the Dead in English
8-10 p.m. – Lie in State for Public Prayer

Friday, Sept. 27, 2024                  
9 a.m. Reception of the Body at Our Lady of Clear Creek Monastery, Hulbert, Okla.
10 a.m. - Requiem Mass at Our Lady of Clear Creek Monastery
2 p.m. – Bishop Emeritus Slattery’s Body Returned to Holy Family Cathedral
2-6 p.m. - Lie in State for Public Visitation at Holy Family Cathedral
6 p.m. – Prayers and Songs by St. Joseph Vietnamese Community
7 p.m. - Evening Prayer for the dead in Spanish
8-10 p.m. – Lie in State for Public Prayer

Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024             
9 a.m. - Rite of Christian Burial at Holy Family Cathedral
Burial at Calvary Cemetery to follow


Memorial contributions in Bishop Emeritus Edward J. Slattery’s name may be made to:

Saint Francis of Assisi Tuition Assistance Trust, PO Box 690240, Tulsa, OK 74169
Or online at https://www.dioceseoftulsa.org/donate-sfoa

Catholic Charities of Eastern Oklahoma, Development Office, P.O. Box 580460, Tulsa, OK 74158-0460
Or online at https://cceok.org/make-an-honor-or-memorial-gift/

Our Lady of Clear Creek Abbey, 5804 W Monastery Road, Hulbert, OK 74441-5698
Or online at https://clearcreekmonks.org/donate/