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Edward James Slattery was born in Chicago, Illinois on August 11, 1940 to William Edward Slattery and Winifred Margaret Brennan. Of their seven children, he was the second child and first boy. After his schooling at Visitation of the BVM Grade School, Edward attended Quigley Preparatory Seminary in Chicago. He then attended St. Mary of the Lake Seminary in Mundelein, Illinois, where he took a Bachelor of Arts degree and later a Masters of Divinity degree. He was ordained a priest on April 26, 1966 for the Archdiocese of Chicago by the late John Cardinal Cody.
Father Slattery was assigned as Associate Pastor of St. Jude the Apostle Parish in South Holland, Illinois, where he served from 1966 to 1971. During this time, he obtained a Master's degree from Loyola University. In 1971, he began his service with the Catholic Church Extension Society, a funding agency for the American home missions, with headquarters in Chicago. He was Vice-President from 1971-76 and President from 1976 until 1994.
While working at Extension, Father Slattery was appointed Associate Pastor of St. Rose of Lima Parish in 1973. This was an inner-city Hispanic parish on the south side of Chicago. He was named pastor of St. Rose of Lima in 1976 and remained in that position until 1989.
Late in 1993, Father Slattery was notified that Pope John Paul II had chosen to name him a bishop. His father William learned this news about his son, but he died before Father Slattery became Bishop Slattery. In Rome, on January 6, 1994 the Holy Father ordained thirteen men as bishops; one of the thirteen was an American. It was Edward J. Slattery, third bishop of Tulsa. Among those present for his ordination as a bishop was his mother, Winifred.
Bishop Slattery was installed as third bishop of the Diocese of Tulsa at Holy Family Cathedral on January 12, 1994. He retired in 2016 and now serves the diocese as Bishop Emeritus. -
Coat of Arms
The coat of arms of Bishop Edward J. Slattery joins, as is customary, his personal crest with that of the diocese he serves. On the left side of the shield, as you view it, is the crest of the Diocese of Tulsa, and the right is Bishop Slattery's personal crest.
Bishop Slattery preferred to display emblems which are significant to him personally. The principal figure is the arms of the Catholic Extension Society - where Bishop Slattery was associated since 1971 and President from 1976 - to which are added a gold crescent. The Extension arms are a silver field bearing a red cross with blue sidebars. The red, white, and blue symbolize the long history of Extension's involvement with American home missions.
The Extension arms have particular significance for Oklahoma Catholics. Not only has the church benefited from Extension generosity, but three of Extension's former officers have become bishops in Oklahoma: Bishop Francis Kelley, Bishop Eugene McGuinness, and Bishop Slattery.
The gold crescent moon which personalizes the arms for Bishop Slattery represents Mary, the Mother of God, whom the Church traditionally refers to as "a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon at her feet." Mary also is significant of Bishop Slattery's home parish in Chicago, the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
The upper part of the shield bears a golden sun bearing the Monogram of Jesus (the IHS with a cross through it) in red. This is a Jesuit symbol, special to Bishop Slattery who was educated by the Jesuits at Mundelein. The sun appears against a field of green, a color associated with Ireland. By including green, Bishop Slattery pays tribute to his Irish heritage. Both sets of the bishop's grandparents emigrated to the U.S. from Ireland.
Above the shield are a gold processional cross and a green clerical hat with six tassels, arranged in three rows on each hat string. These are traditional heraldic symbols for the office of bishop. The hat is the clerical counterpart to the military helmet, which appear on a lay person's arms.
Bishop Slattery's motto, Tu Solus Sanctus, translates as "You alone are the Holy One" and refers to Jesus; it is a quote from the Gloria of the Mass.
The emblems of the left side of the crest, those of the Diocese of Tulsa, are derived from those originally created for the Diocese of Oklahoma as authorized by Bishop Kelley in 1924.
