Retired bishop of Tulsa, Okla., dies; he's remembered for his deep faith, heart for the poor

TULSA, Okla. (OSV News) -- Retired Bishop Edward J. Slattery of Tulsa and Eastern Oklahoma, who died late Sept. 13 at age 84, is being remembered for his deep faith, his heart for the poor, and his faithful service as a priest and bishop.

Bishop Slattery, a Chicago native, was named Tulsa's shepherd in November 1993 by St. John Paul II and retired in 2016. He died at his home in the Tulsa area following "a series of debilitating strokes," Father Gary Kastl, vicar general, said in a statement from the diocese.

His funeral Mass will be celebrated the morning of Sept. 28 at Holy Family Cathedral in Tulsa, followed by burial at Calvary Cemetery. His body will be received at the cathedral Sept. 26 and will lie in repose for public visitation, with time reserved for prayer and song. The morning of Sept. 27, his body will be received at the Benedictines' Clear Creek Monastery for public visitation, then be received at the cathedral again for more hours of public visitation and public prayer.

"Bishop Slattery was a man of deep faith who knew that death would bring him to his Lord," said Bishop David A. Konderla, who succeeded Bishop Slattery as head of the diocese in 2016. "I was blessed to follow in his footsteps in the Diocese and will remember him with fondness and prayer."

Archbishop Paul S. Coakley of Oklahoma City said in a statement, "For many years I have appreciated Bishop Slattery as a friend and brother bishop."

"He welcomed me warmly when I arrived in Oklahoma in 2011 and always encouraged my ministry here," he said. "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."

Edward James Slattery was born in Chicago 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 Aug. 15, 2015, story about Bishop Slattery's pending retirement, the news website 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.

"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 bishop told Tulsa World. "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."

After earning a bachelor of arts degree and a master of divinity degree at St. Mary of the Lake Seminary in Mundelein, Illinois, he was ordained a priest on April 26, 1966, for the Archdiocese of Chicago by the late Cardinal John Patrick Cody. While serving as an associate pastor from 1966-1971, he also obtained a master's degree from Loyola University Chicago.

In 1971, he began a lengthy service with the Chicago-based Catholic Church Extension Society, a funding agency for the American home missions. He was vice president from 1971-1976 and president from 1976-1994.

While working at the Extension Society, Father Slattery in 1973 was appointed associate pastor of St. Rose of Lima Parish, an inner-city Hispanic parish on Chicago's South Side. He was pastor there from 1976-1989.

In 1979, Father Slattery first met St. John Paul when the pontiff visited Chicago as part of an U.S. pastoral visit. Late in 1993, the pope appointed him to the Tulsa Diocese. His father learned the news but died before witnessing his son become a bishop in Rome, on Jan. 6, 1994. He was one of 13 men the pope ordained as bishops. Among those present for his ordination was his mother.

Bishop Slattery was installed as the third bishop of the Diocese of Tulsa at Holy Family Cathedral Jan. 12, 1994, But on the flight back to the U.S. from Rome, he had come down with a case of influenza had to be hospitalized, but was released in time for his installation.

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. 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's episcopacy also witnessed the dramatic expansion of Catholic Charities of Eastern Oklahoma. In his second pastoral letter, "The Suffering Faces of the Poor are the Suffering Face of Christ," published Nov. 25, 2007, the feast of Christ the King, Bishop Slattery passionately encouraged the faithful to heed Jesus's call to serve the poor and advocate for those who suffered injustice.

Bishop Slattery wrote in his final column for the June 2016 issue of the Eastern Oklahoma Catholic, Tulsa's diocesan 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."

Bishop Slattery is survived by four sisters and one brother. He was preceded in death by his parents and his sister Mary E. Mathewson-Michael.