Gerard S. Sloyan
Dec. 9, 1919 – Feb. 23 2020
Father Gerard Sloyan, who celebrated dual milestones in 2019 — his 75th anniversary of priestly ordination on June 3 and his 100th birthday on Dec. 9 — died in the early morning hours of Feb. 23, 2020.
Upon announcing Father Sloyan’s death, Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., said, “Please join me in prayer that he will rest in the Lord’s peace.”
Born in 1919 in Bronx, N.Y., and raised in Red Bank, Father Sloyan spent the majority of his 75-year priestly ministry serving in academia.
He prepared for the priesthood in Seton Hall University, South Orange; Immaculate Conception Seminary, Darlington, and Theological College of The Catholic University of America, Washington. He was ordained a priest by Bishop William A. Griffin June 3, 1944, in St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral, Trenton, and his first assignment was to St. Anthony Parish, Hamilton (now part of Our Lady of Sorrows-St. Anthony Parish). After a summer in Hamilton, he began full-time work in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at The Catholic University of America.
Among the parishes in the Trenton Diocese where Father Sloyan assisted during the summers included Sacred Heart, Bay Head; Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Maple Shade, and St. Francis of Assisium, Trenton. Father Sloyan also spent a very brief time as novitiate of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart, Metuchen, in 1947.
In 1955, Father Sloyan served briefly as assistant dean of the College of Arts and Science at The Catholic University of America, and in 1957 as head of the graduate department of religious education, a position he held for a decade before he resigned and joined the Department of Religion at Temple University, Philadelphia, where he remained until his retirement. Once he retired, he returned to Washington as an adjunct professor of theology in CUA and in Georgetown University, also in Washington.
Throughout his years in academics, Father Sloyan published numerous books on the Catholic faith, focusing primarily on the life of Jesus and the Gospels. Among his popular works are “What Are They Saying About John?”, 1991; “Jesus on Trial: A Study of the Gospels,” 2006; and “Jesus: Word Made Flesh,” 2008.
Father Sloyan also served on the continuing education committee of the diocesan Council of Priests.
Father Sloyan had an opportunity to reflect on his special milestones when he was interviewed by The Monitor for a story on his 75th anniversary of his priestly ordination. He recalled knowing from the time he was six years old and serving as an altar boy in his parish that he would one day want to become a priest. He credited his parents, Marie Virginia Kelley and Jerome James Sloyan, for raising him and his three sisters in a strong Catholic household and instilling them the belief in God.
“To me, faith is all important,” Father Sloyan said in the interview.
“Faith is at the roots of my human being from infancy up,” he said, and noted that his Catholic upbringing was influential in his wanting to become a priest and that two of his sisters also entered religious life.
When Father Sloyan turned 100, a gathering, complete with a birthday cake, was held at CUA with friends and faculty members in attendance. At that time, it was learned that the CUA faculty had planned to commemorate Father Sloyan’s two milestones with a one-day symposium in the spring. The panel discussions would have focused on major issues Father Sloyan worked on throughout his life, with speakers addressing both his contribution to them and the current state of the disciplines. Proposed topics include homiletics, liturgical catechesis, the Gospel of John and Jewish-Christian dialogue.
Tribute prepared by the Diocese of Trenton.