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Bishop Murry to Leave V.I. Diocese

Jan. 30, 2007 – Bishop George V. Murry, 58, is leaving his post as head of the U.S. Virgin Islands diocese to serve as bishop of the Youngstown, Ohio, diocese.
Murry said in a press release that he was honored to accept Pope Benedict XVI's appointment to the post.
"At the same time I am very grateful to the people of the Virgin Islands for their love and support, and I will hold them in my heart with affection," Murry said.
He will be installed in Youngstown on March 28.
Murry was not available for further comment.
Monsignor Michael Kosak of St. Anne's Catholic Church on St. Croix said that before Murry leaves, a group of six of the diocese priests, known as consultors, will elect one of them to serve as administrator until the Pope names a new bishop.
Kosak called Murry a hands-on person who was involved with all the parishes in the diocese.
"He's an educator who did a lot for Catholic Schools," Kosak said.
He said that Murry taught a class at Sts. Peter and Paul School.
Kosak said Murry increased Catholic School enrollment and appointed new principals at all five of the diocese's Catholic schools. He said Murry set up a board to run the schools and worked to improve Catholic Charities. He added that in 2004 Murry held a meeting on St. Croix with delegates from all the churches and schools to develop a five-year plan for the church.
St. Thomas resident Claire Foster, who attended the same high school as Murry in Camden, N.J., said that Murry was a tireless fund-raiser.
She said he's worked hard on restoration efforts at the cathedral.
"He inspired a lot of things and got them going," she said.
She called him an excellent preacher.
"He really made the gospel come alive," she said.
She said she would really miss Murry because he was a great friend.
Murry came to the Virgin Islands in May 1998 as coadjutor bishop of St. Thomas to assist Bishop Elliott Thomas. On June 30, 1999, he was named bishop.
Before the V.I. assignment, he served as auxiliary bishop in Chicago.
Born in Camden, Murry graduated from Catholic elementary and high schools before attending St. Joseph 's University in Philadelphia and St. Mary's Seminary and University in Baltimore .
In 1972, he entered the Society of Jesus and was ordained to the priesthood in 1979.
Murry holds a doctor of divinity degree from the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley, Calif., as well as a master's in philosophy and a doctorate in American cultural history from George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
He served as a professor of American Cultural History at Georgetown University in Washington, president of Archbishop Carroll High School in Washington and as associate vice president for academic affairs at the University of Detroit.
Murry is working on a book about the role of the American church in the reception and resettlement of refugees from 1939 to 1980.
Since November 2002, he has served on the board of directors of Catholic Relief Services, the overseas arm of the U.S. Bishops, which provides food, clothing, shelter, and medicine for those in need.
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