The Official Newspaper of the Diocese of Little Rock
Oct. 24, 1923: Born in Savannah, Andrew Joseph McDonald was the 11th of 12 children.
1937: Entered St. Charles College in Cantonsville, Md., for high school and two years of college
June 11, 1943: His father, James McDonald, dies
1945: Entered St. Mary Seminary in Baltimore
May 8, 1948: Ordained a priest by Bishop Emmet Michael Walsh at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Savannah
May 9, 1948: Celebrated his first Mass at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist
September 1948: Entered Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., to study canon law
June 1951: Received his canon law degree
January 1952: Named judicial vicar of diocesan tribunal and assistant pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Port Wentworth until 1957
1956: Named a papal chamberlain, with the title of monsignor. Three years later he was named a domestic prelate with the title right reverend.
1959: Appointed spiritual director of St. John Vianney Minor Seminary until 1967
1963: Appointed pastor of Blessed Sacrament Church in Savannah. While there the parish became debt free for the first time in 50 years.
1967: Appointed vicar general of the diocese and diocesan comptroller
June 11, 1972: Got a call from Bishop Gerard L. Frey announcing his episcopal appointment by Pope Paul VI.
Sept. 5, 1972: Ordained a bishop in the same cathedral in Savannah where he was ordained a priest.
Sept. 7, 1972: Installed fifth bishop of Little Rock at the Cathedral of St. Andrew
February 1973: Signed a statement blasting the Roe vs. Wade Supreme Court decision with other members of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops Committee for Pro-life Affairs
April 1973: Celebrated 25 years as a priest
July 15, 1973: Celebrated Mass on the Mississippi River to mark the 300th anniversary of Marquette and Joliet’s expedition bringing the first Catholic Mass to what would become Arkansas
Aug. 26, 1973: Presided at a Mass in Spanish
Oct. 3, 1973: Met with Pope Paul VI for the first time in Rome
Sept. 1-Oct. 1, 1974: Attended a monthlong Bishop’s Theological Consultation in Rome and makes first ad limina visit with Pope Paul VI.
April 1975: Made a holy year pilgrimage to Rome and meets pope again
May 1975: Announced renovation of the cathedral to accommodate liturgical changes occasioned by the results of Vatican II
Sept. 14, 1975: Attended canonization of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, the first-native born saint for the United States
Nov. 7, 1981: Ordained 21 men to the permanent diaconate. He started the first diaconate training program in August 1978.
May 1982: Joined other religious leaders to ask Gov. Frank White and his opponent Bill Clinton to stop using capital punishment as an issue in their campaigns
June 2-3, 1982: Welcomed Mother Teresa to Little Rock. She provided Missionaries of Charity sisters to run Abba House for unwed mothers.
August 1985: Inaugurated Renew, an evangelization program in diocese, with a Mass at the Old Statehouse Convention Center in Little Rock for 4,100 people
Oct. 5, 1991: Celebrated Mass for the first Encuentro for Hispanics to celebrate their faith
October 1991: Received Mary Rose Doe Award from Arkansas Right to Life
Jan. 12, 1993: Prayed during ecumenical service for President-elect Bill Clinton
Aug. 11-15, 1993: Attended World Youth Day in Denver with 380 teens from state
Nov. 26, 1993: Led a ceremony at Arkansas Post and St. Mary Church in Plum Bayou to kick off the sesquicentennial of the diocese
Nov. 6, 1994: Concelebrated the closing Mass for the 150th anniversary.
January and February 1995: Toured diocese to herald the publication of the Catechism of the Catholic Church
May 16, 1995: Addressed priest shortage with the establishment of the pastoral administrators program
January 1996: Declared year a Eucharistic Year and asked that adoration be observed at least once a week in all parishes.
Issued a pastoral letter on Hispanics called “Immigrants in our Midst”
Sept. 5 and 7, 1997: Marked his 25th anniversary as a bishop with two Masses
May 8 and June 13, 1998: Observed his 50th anniversary as a priest with Masses in Little Rock and Savannah
Oct. 24, 1998: Turned 75 years old and submitted his resignation to Pope John Paul II. Celebrated Mass at the Statehouse Convention Center
January 1999: Missed Mass for Life and pilgrimage to St. Louis to see Pope John Paul II because of emergency open heart surgery
Jan. 4, 2000: Ceased being bishop of Little Rock with the announcement of Father J. Peter Sartain as the sixth bishop
April 2002: Said farewell to diocese to become the chaplain at St. Joseph Home for the Elderly in Palatine, Ill
September 2008: Celebrated his 60th anniversary as a priest with Mass in Little Rock
June 2010: Participated in dedication of The McDonald Center at St. John Center in Little Rock
October 2011: Celebrated 88th birthday with a cake during Arkansas Catholic's centennial reception
Sept. 7, 2012: Observed his 40th anniversary as a bishop with a Mass at the Cathedral of St. Andrew
April 1, 2014: Died at St. Joseph Home for the Elderly in Palatine, Ill.
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