Wright, John Joseph Patrick (1909-1979), was named a cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church in 1969 by Pope Paul VI. That same year, the pope named Wright prefect (head) of the Vatican Congregation of the Clergy, which is responsible for the spiritual welfare of Roman Catholic clergy.
Wright was born on July 18, 1909, in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston. He was ordained a priest in 1935. From 1950 to 1959, he served as the first bishop of Worcester, Massachusetts. He became bishop of Pittsburgh in 1959. Wright died on Aug. 10, 1979.
