HONG KONG (SE): The Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers announced the that Father John J. Casey, former editor of the Sunday Examiner until early from 1993 to 2003 and assistant parish priest of Rosary Church, Tsimshatsui, died on 6 December 2019 at the Maryknoll Society Centre in Maryknoll, New York, the United States of America (US). He was 90-years-old and had been a Maryknoll priest for 63 years.
Father Casey was born in San Francisco, California, on 28 July 1929. He graduated from St. Joseph’s High School (Minor Seminary) in 1947 and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from the University of San Francisco before entering the Maryknoll novitiate in September 1951. He received a Bachelor’s Degree in Theology and a Master’s Degree in Religious Education before being ordained on 9 June 1956.
He first assignment was to Maryknoll’s Education Department where he spent the next 15 years. During that time, he earned a Masters Degree in Classical Studies from the University of Michigan and a Ph.D. in Higher Education from the University of Chicago. He taught Greek and Latin first at the Venard, Maryknoll’s oldest minor seminary, from 1956 to 1961 then at Chesterfield where he was vice-rector from 1961 to 1964 before returning to the Venard as rector from 1964 to 1967.
When the Venard was closed, Father Casey moved to the Maryknoll College in Glen Ellyn seminary, Illinois, where he was Academic Dean and Registrar and taught education courses from 1967 to 1971.
When Glen Ellyn was closed in 1971, Father Casey was assigned to the Hong Kong Region.
After two years studying the Chinese language, he joined the faculty of Hong Kong’s Holy Spirit Seminary, Aberdeen, where for the next 11 years he was dean of the Philosophy Faculty and professor of Philosophy and Fundamental Theology. During that time he was instrumental in obtaining affiliation for the seminary with the Pontifical Urbanian University in Rome and was appointed the university examiner for granting a degree in Philosophy.
He was also rector of Our Lady Queen of Angels’ parish, Shun Lee, then became assistant parish priest of St. Margaret’s Church in Happy Valley.
In 1981 he became the Asia Pacific Area member of the reorganised Maryknoll Education Department and was responsible for the yearly continuing education programme for Maryknollers in Asia. In 1982, he was elected assistant regional superior of the Hong Kong Region.
In early 1984, Father Casey returned to the United States to become academic dean and later president of the Maryknoll School of Theology. During that time because of the dwindling number of Maryknoll seminarians, the decision was made to move the seminarians to the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. This left him free to follow a new line of mission work in interreligious dialogue.
While working as mission controller in the Controller’s Office at the Maryknoll Centre, he was invited to be a member of the Catholic-Muslim Interreligious Dialogue Commission of the Archdiocese of New York from 1991 until he returned to Hong Kong.
Returning to Hong Kong in 1993, Father Casey was invited to become the editor the Sunday Examiner, a position he held for the next 10 years. During that time he was also assistant pastor in Rosary Church, Kowloon.
Father Casey was also involved full time as Coordinator of Interreligious Dialogue activities in the Asia Region, as a member of the Diocesan Ecumenical Commission and as a member of the Catholic team involved in religious radio broadcasting in conjunction with the Christian Council of Hong Kong. On weekends he was involved in parish work.
In November 2007, Father Casey was assigned to the US Region to be the coordinator of the Society History Programme, which ended after the Mayknoll’s centennial in 2011 when all the information had been transferred to discs and placed in the Society Archives for future use.
He also served on the Board of Trustees of the Maryknoll Missionary Education Trust from 2008 through 2016 when he resigned. He was also director of the Society Library which included Maryknoll’s’ in-house television station, Channel 15 and he participated in intercultural dialogue projects. In 2018, he was assigned to the Senior Missioner Community.
A funeral Mass was celebrated for Father Casey at the Lady Chapel at the Maryknoll Society Centre, on 11 December 2019, followed by burial at the Maryknoll Society Cemetery.
May he rest in peace.
