Sunday Mass to Spirit on Christmas Weekend

Archbishop Edwin F. O'Brien, the 15th archbishop of Baltimore, boasts a religious career that spans four decades on several continents, including work as a combat chaplain in the U.S. military. On October 1, 2007, O'Brien was installed as leader of the Baltimore region's half-million Catholics. He succeeded Cardinal William H. Keeler, who held the post for 18 years. O'Brien was born April 8, 1939, in the Bronx, N.Y. After receiving a bachelor's degree and two master's degrees from St. Joseph's Seminary, O'Brien was ordained as a priest on May 29, 1965. The church assigned him as a civilian chaplain at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. Five years later, at the height of the Vietnam War in 1970, h... Show more »
Edwin F. O'Brien, the 15th archbishop of Baltimore, boasts a religious career that spans four decades on several continents, including work as a combat chaplain in the U.S. military. On October 1, 2007, O'Brien was installed as leader of the Baltimore region's half-million Catholics. He succeeded Cardinal William H. Keeler, who held the post for 18 years. O'Brien was born April 8, 1939, in the Bronx, N.Y. After receiving a bachelor's degree and two master's degrees from St. Joseph's Seminary, O'Brien was ordained as a priest on May 29, 1965. The church assigned him as a civilian chaplain at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. Five years later, at the height of the Vietnam War in 1970, he joined the Army and attained the rank of captain, taking flight training that required him to parachute out of airplanes. From 1971 to 1972 he served a tour of duty in Vietnam with the 173rd Airborne Brigade and the 1st Calvary Brigade. He pursued a doctoral degree in Rome and returned to New York, where he would spend the bulk of his career from 1976 to 1997. During his time there he coordinated the New York visit of Pope John Paul II and, as secretary to Cardinal Terence Cooke, had to endure the painful job of attending to the ailing head of the New York archdiocese. « Show less