Andrew James Louis Brennan

Andrew James Louis Brennan (December 14, 1877 – May 23, 1956) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of Richmond in Virginia from 1926 to 1945. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Scranton in Pennsylvania from 1923 to 1926.

Biography

Early life Andrew Brennan was born on December 14, 1877, in Towanda, Pennsylvania, to James and Ellen (née Flood) Brennan. He studied at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts, obtaining a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1900. He then attended St. Bernard's Seminary in Rochester, New York, before going to Rome to study at the Pontifical North American College.

Priesthood Brennan was ordained to the priesthood in Rome by Cardinal Pietro Respighi for the Diocese of Scranton on December 17, 1904. He earned a Doctor of Divinity degree in Rome in 1905. Following his return to Pennsylvania, he taught Greek and Latin at St. Thomas College in Scranton, Pennsylvania, from 1905 to 1908. Brennan served as rector of St. Peter's Cathedral in Scranton from 1914 to 1924. In addition to his episcopal duties, Brennan served as pastor of St. Mary of Mount Carmel Parish in Dunmore, Pennsylvania. Brennan suffered a paralytic stroke in 1934 and again in 1935.

Retirement Pope Pius XII accepted Brennan's resignation as bishop of Richmond for health reasons on April 14, 1945; he was appointed titular bishop of Telmissus on the same date. Andrew Brennan died on May 23, 1956, at St. Vincent de Paul Hospital in Norfolk, Virginia, at age 78.