Russell McVinney

Russell Joseph McVinney (November 25, 1898—August 10, 1971) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Providence in Rhode Island from 1948 until his death in 1971.

Biography

Early life Russell McVinney was born on November 25, 1898 in Warren, Rhode Island, to Thomas and Catherine (née Blessington) McVinney. He was baptized at St. Mary's of the Bay Church in Warren the following month. Shortly after his birth, McVinney and his family moved to the Mount Pleasant neighborhood of Providence. Following his return to Rhode Island, he briefly served on a temporary assignment at the Cathedral of SS. Peter and Paul in Providence before becoming a curate at St. Patrick's Parish in Harrisville, Rhode Island. In 1935, McVinney studied journalism for a year at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana. When the bishops voted in 1951 to reestablish the college, they named McVinney as chair of its new board of bishops. He then appointed Reverend Thomas Maloney, a priest from Providence, to serve as its new rector.

McVinney convoked the fourth diocesan synod in 1952.

Views Communion by hand McVinney opposed the priest giving the communion to a recipient by hand instead of mouth. He believed the practice violated the dignity of both the communicant and the consecrated host. When the proposal arose before the National Conference of Catholic Bishops in 1970, he termed it a "dangerous procedure leading to a precipitous decline" and an invitation to "weirdos."

Film In 1957, McVinney exhorted Catholics to follow the Legion of Decency's condemnation of the 1956 film Baby Doll due to its sexual themes, even in its censored version.

Morality In 1952, at the Manhattan College commencement ceremony in New York City, McVinney condemned so-called contemporary morality. He claimed that it attempted to "ride on the coattails of democracy," and was encouraging obedience to an "objective" ethical standard.

Politics During the 1970 U.S. Senate election, McVinney chastised Reverend John McLaughlin, a Jesuit priest, for not getting his permission to run for the United States Senate in Rhode Island. McVinney claimed that McLaughlin's candidacy "has caused a great deal of confusion and misunderstanding in this state." McLaughlin responded that he did not need McVinney's permission, and that the bishop was influenced by his lifelong friendship with McLaughlin's opponent, Senator John O. Pastore."