Sylvester Malone

Background

Sylvester Malone was the son of Laurence and Marcella (Martin) Malone, and was born on May 8, 1821, in Trim, County Meath, Ireland, where his father was a surveyor.

Education

Trained in a mixed school kept by two graduates of Trinity College, the boy imbibed a spirit of tactful toleration as well as classical lore. Experiencing a priestly call, in 1839, he accepted the invitation of Father Andrew Byrne to come to New York, where he entered St. Joseph's Seminary, Fordham.

Career

Ordained August 15, 1844, Malone was assigned to Williamsburg (Brooklyn), then a town of about 5, 000 people. Within three years, he paid off the debt of St. Mary's Church, gathered scattered Catholics into the fold, won the good will of even prejudiced citizens, and commenced the construction of the Church of Saints Peter and Paul, the first Gothic structure in the diocese. Caring for hordes of immigrants, he contracted both the smallpox and the ship's cholera (1848 - 49).

On the eve of his journey to Rome in 1854, however, he could point to a congregation of 5, 000, and a well-organized parish. Regarded as a mild abolitionist, Father Malone suffered some inconveniences on this account; yet even his espousal of Republican principles did not lessen his popularity among Irish Democrats.

When Fort Sumter was fired upon, he unfurled a flag from his church, which was soon carried to the front by members of the congregation. Public subscription provided a substitute flag, which waved from the steeple until the war ended.

In 1866, as Bishop Loughlin's theologian, he attended the Second Plenary Council of Baltimore, where he was so impressed with reports of Catholic reconstruction in the South that in 1868, he toured that part of the country, contributing to the press descriptive letters of the conditions he found.

On his return he urged Catholic activity among the negroes of the South. At Memorial-Day celebrations of the Grand Army of the Republic, he joined in the exercises with Protestant divines; and in 1870, at a Jewish reception, he aroused comment by demanding equal rights for black and white and for Jew and Gentile. Returning from a tour through Europe and the Holy Land an ardent Irish Land Leaguer, he later became a liberal with strong labor views.

Greatly disturbed by the break between Archbishop Corrigan and Edward McGlynn, he courageously wrote to Pope Leo, in December 1886, that a censure of Dr. McGlynn, "the friend of the poor, the eloquent defender of the doctrines of the Church, the advocate of temperance and of every good cause that works for the public good, " unless for a grave irregularity, would set the Church back half a century and raise the question of the rights of a citizen.

In 1894, urged by Hamilton Fish, Malone stood as a candidate for a regency of the University of New York, and, supported by Archbishop Ireland, Bishop Ryan of Buffalo, and the Republican press, he was elected by a Republican legislature over Bishop McQuaid. Even Democratic papers were not personally hostile, though in some quarters his election was described as an affront to the Catholic Church, since Archbishop Corrigan and most of his suffragan bishops favored McQuaid.

This year saw the celebration of Father Malone's golden jubilee as a priest. Congratulations came from Leo XIII, Cardinal Gibbons, the apostolic delegate, and many notable citizens as well as members of the hierarchy and priesthood.

The event was considered a vindication of the liberal element in the metropolitan diocese of New York. The Outlook pertinently asked: "Why should such a man be allowed to remain in one pastorate? Naturally one would suppose that he would have risen to be a bishop or archbishop"; while the Independent believed that his Republican politics prevented promotion. He continued as pastor of the parish which he had created until his death six years later.

Achievements

• The Reverend Sylvester Malone is one of the great figures in the history of Williamsburg. He arrived in Williamsburg in 1844 when anti-Catholic feeling was running so high that six hundred protesters came to denounce his building of a local Catholic Church, yet fifty- five years later when he died, Malone was a revered figure, not only in the Catholic community, but also amongst Protestants and Jews. Malone was ordained by Bishop McCloskey on August 15, 1844.

Works

More photos

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  • Church History of Ireland, from the Anglo-Norman Iinvasion to the Reformation

    (This is a pre-1923 historical reproduction that was curat...)

  • The Indivuduality and Work of our National Apostle. A rare original article from the Irish Ecclesiastical Record, 1903.
  • Nomina Patriciana. Part I and Part II. A rare original article from the Irish Ecclesiastical Record, 1887.
  • The Sibyl in The Dies Irae. A rare original article from the Irish Ecclesiastical Record, 1896.
  • The Irish Privilege of Anticipation of Matins and Lauds. A rare original article from the Irish Ecclesiastical Record, 1902.
  • St. Patrick's Burial-Place. A rare original article from the Irish Ecclesiastical Record, 1894.
  • The Privilege of Adrian IV. To Henry II. A rare original article from the Irish Ecclesiastical Record, 1891.
  • Sen (Old) Patrick, Who Was He? A rare original article from the Irish Ecclesiastical Record, 1891.
  • A Sketch of Palladius. A rare original article from the Irish Ecclesiastical Record, 1889.

Politics

Politically, Malone was a Republican Abolitionist, and supported Lincoln. He was also a supporter of the Land League in Ireland, and for Home Rule for Ireland.

Personality

An active war-man, Malone aided sanitary fairs, quieted turbulent draft-rioters, encouraged enlistments, and donated a fourth of his salary to the fund for soldiers' wives.

He was deeply interested in civic affairs, clean government, temperance, the improvement of public schools, and the Anti-Poverty Society.

Connections

Mother:

Marcella (Martin) Malone

niece:

Maud Malone

1873-1951 Was an American librarian and "militant suffragette" based in New York. She was also spokesperson for the Library Employees' Union, the first labor union for public library workers in the United States.

father:

Laurence Malone

niece:

Marcella Malone

nephew:

Sylvester Malone

nephew:

Lawrence Malone

References

• The Life And Letters Of Bishop McQuaid V2: Prefaced With The History Of Catholic Rochester Before His Episcopate