Church Roman Catholic Name Joseph Adamec Term ended January 14, 2011 Coat of arms Appointed March 12, 1987 | Nationality American and Slovak Consecration May 20, 1987 Installed May 20, 1987 Ordination June 3, 1960 | |
Born August 13, 1935 (age 88)
Bannister, Michigan, U.S. ( 1935-08-13 ) Diocese Roman Catholic Diocese of Altoona–Johnstown | ||
Joseph Victor Adamec (born August 13, 1935) is a retired American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as bishop of the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown, Pennsylvania from 1987 to 2011.
Biography
Adamec was born in Bannister, Michigan the sone of Michal August Adamec and Alzbeta Eva Ochran Adamec. He attended Michigan State University from 1953 to 1955, and studied for the priesthood at the Pontifical Nepomucene College in Rome and earned a Licentiate in Sacred Theology at the Pontifical Lateran University in 1961. He was ordained by Luigi Cardinal Traglia in the Church of St. Anselm in Rome on July 3, 1960, for the Diocese of Nitra in Slovakia (the former diocese of his parents).
Adamec returned to serve the Diocese of Saginaw, Michigan where he served in numerous capacities including Secretary of the Bishop and Master of Ceremonies, ecclesiastical notary, and Chancellor of the Diocese. In 1980 he received the "Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice" medal which recognized service to the Church and Pope. In 1985, he was named a Prelate of Honor. Adamec also served as the National President of the Slovak Catholic Federation, a position he was elected to in 1971 and held for seventeen years.
On March 12, 1987, Adamec was named the Bishop of the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese. He was consecrated on May 20, 1987 in the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament by Jozef Cardinal Tomko.
His retirement and the appointment of his successor were announced on January 14, 2011. Mark Leonard Bartchak, of the Diocese of Erie, Pennsylvania, was named his successor.
On March 1, 2016, Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane announced that as Bishop, Adamec was at the forefront of a major cover-up scandal involving the sexual assault of hundreds of children by Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown priests.