Bishop

The only man to serve as private secretary to three popes in Vatican history.

John Magee SPS (born 24 September 1936) is a Roman Catholic bishop emeritus in Ireland. He was Bishop of Cloyne from 1987 to 2010; following scandal he resigned from that position on 24 March 2010, becoming a bishop emeritus. Magee is the only person to have been private secretary to three popes.

Lore & Background

Magee was born in Newry, Northern Ireland, on 24 September 1936, the son of a dairy farmer. He was educated at St Colman's College in Newry and entered the St Patrick's Missionary Society at Kiltegan, County Wicklow, in 1954. He also attended University College Cork where he obtained a degree in philosophy before going to study theology in Rome, where he was ordained priest on 17 March 1962. He served as a missionary priest in Nigeria for almost six years before being appointed Procurator General of St Patrick's Society in Rome.

In 1969 he was an official of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples in Rome, when he was chosen by Pope Paul VI to be one of his private secretaries. On Pope Paul's death he remained in service as a private secretary to his successor, Pope John Paul I and Pope John Paul II. Magee is the only man to hold the position of private secretary to three Popes in Vatican history. He also acted as chaplain to the Vatican's Swiss Guard.

Reader's Guide

Real Name: John Magee. Born: 24 September 1936 in Newry, Northern Ireland. Role: Roman Catholic bishop emeritus; former Bishop of Cloyne (1987–2010). Magee is the only person to have been private secretary to three popes: Paul VI, John Paul I, and John Paul II.

He was appointed papal Master of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations in 1982, and was appointed Bishop of the Diocese of Cloyne, Ireland on 17 February 1987. He was consecrated bishop on 17 March 1987, St. Patrick's Day, by Pope John Paul II at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. Key events include his 1981 meeting with IRA hunger striker Bobby Sands at Long Kesh Prison, and his involvement in a dispute with the Friends of St Colman's Cathedral over plans to re-order the interior of Cobh Cathedral.

An Bord Pleanála directed Cobh Town Council to refuse the Bishop's application on 2 June 2006. Magee spent over €200,000 in his bid to re-order Cobh Cathedral. The Cloyne Report found that nine allegations out of 15 were not passed on to the Garda. Magee resigned as Bishop of Cloyne on 24 March 2010.