John O'Reily, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death
TweetJohn O'Reily
Archbishop of Adelaide
Date of Birth: 19-Nov-1846
Place of Birth: Kilkenny, Leinster, Ireland
Date of Death: 06-Jul-1915
Profession: Catholic priest
Zodiac Sign: Scorpio 
About John O'Reily
- John O'Reily (born John O'Reilly, 19 November 1846 – 6 July 1915) was an Australian Roman Catholic clergyman, the first Bishop of Port Augusta, and the second Archbishop of Adelaide.
- Born in Kilkenny, Ireland, O'Reily studied for the priesthood in Dublin.
- Upon his ordination in 1869, he migrated to Western Australia, serving as a parish priest in Fremantle, and founding a Catholic newspaper there.
- When the Diocese of Port Augusta was established in 1887, Pope Leo XIII named O'Reily as its first bishop.
- Concerned about the financial position of the diocese (which had inherited significant debt from the Diocese of Adelaide), he accepted the posting reluctantly.
- As bishop, he greatly improved the financial position of the new diocese, reducing its debt by half and earning a reputation as a competent administrator. In 1894, O'Reily was appointed to replace the deceased Christopher Reynolds as Archbishop of Adelaide.
- The archdiocese he inherited was burdened with substantial debt, again left over from the old Diocese of Adelaide.
- Through the sale of church assets and a fundraising campaign, O'Reily was able to eliminate most of the Archdiocese's liabilities while still investing in church infrastructure.
- He also actively participated in public discussions relating to education policy at a time when the role of the state in supporting religious education was topical.
- O'Reily publicly advocated government assistance for religious schools, stating that it was unfair Catholics paid taxes to support state schools, but received no funding for their own.
- In the later years of his life, poor health forced him to spend less time attending to his episcopal duties, and from 1905, he largely retreated from public life.
- At his request, Robert Spence was appointed as his coadjutor and successor in 1914, and on 6 July 1915, he died at his house in Adelaide.
- O'Reily was highly regarded by many in South Australian society, with Adelaide's daily newspapers praising his character, administrative ability and positive relations with non-Catholics.
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