John J. Keane (bishop) - Bishop of Richmond

Bishop of Richmond

On March 28, 1878 Pope Leo XIII appointed Keane as the fifth Bishop of Richmond when he was 38 years old. He was consecrated bishop on August 25, 1878 by Archbishop James Gibbons of Baltimore, who was his predecessor in Richmond. Bishops John Joseph Kain of Wheeling and Thomas Patrick Roger Foley of Chicago, were the principal co-consecrators. He established the Confraternity of the Holy Ghost in the diocese, and published A Sodality Manual for the Use of the Servants of the Holy Ghost in 1880. Despite opposition, he founded schools and churches for African-Americans. He lectured before Protestant groups throughout the diocese to lessen prejudice against the church. In 1884 he attended the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore. The following May he was appointed by the Council to the committee to establish a Catholic university in the United States.