Most Rev. Denis J. Madden – Biography

Urban Vicar

Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus

Titular Bishop of Baia—Archdiocese of Baltimore
Episcopal Motto: In All Things May God Be Glorified

Bishop Denis J. Madden was ordained an Auxiliary Bishop for the Archdiocese of Baltimore at the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen on August 24, 2005.

Bishop Madden was born in Carbondale, Pennsylvania on March 8, 1940. He received his undergraduate degree from St. Benedict’s College in Atchison, Kansas, before his ordination to the priesthood on April 1, 1967. He received a master’s degree in psychology from Columbia University in New York and a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Notre Dame. He is a licensed clinical psychologist in the State of Maryland and the District of Columbia. In 1973, Bishop Madden moved to Baltimore and took a position in the psychology program at the University of Maryland, while also working part-time as a marriage and family counselor for Associated Catholic Charities. In spite of his busy schedule, Father Madden frequently made time to celebrate Mass at St. Martin’s in West Baltimore and to provide long and short term counseling to many of the priests and religious sisters in the Archdiocese.

From 1996-2005, the future bishop served as Associate Secretary General of the Catholic Near East Welfare Association, established by Pope Pius XI in 1926 to work on behalf of the Holy See in those lands in which from ancient times the majority of Christians belonged to various Eastern churches. The main activities of the CNEWA include assisting the Holy See, building religious institutions, facilitating priestly ministries, preparing church leadership, responding to urgent human needs, caring for needy children, building social service institutions, promoting social development and foster interfaith communication. From 1994-1996 Bishop Madden also served as the Director of the Pontifical Mission for Palestine office in Jerusalem.

Among his duties while with the CNEWA, Bishop Madden served as the chief negotiator among the three ecclesiastical authorities responsible for repairing the dome of the Church of the Resurrection in Jerusalem.

Bishop Madden has edited a book and written numerous journal articles and chapters in books in the field of psychology. Prior to assuming responsibilities at the offices of the Pontifical Mission for Palestine, Msgr. Madden was one of the co-founders of the Accord Foundation, a humanitarian organization that has worked since 1988 in the West Bank and Gaza.