Retired Los Angeles Auxiliary Bishop Joseph Sartoris died on Friday, June 27, the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. He was 97 years old.
St. Pope John Paul II named Sartoris an auxiliary bishop for the archdiocese in 1994. He oversaw the archdiocese’s San Pedro Pastoral Region until 2002, when John Paul accepted his resignation at the standard retirement age of 75.
“We mourn the loss of Bishop Joseph Sartoris,” Archbishop Jose H. Gomez said. “He lived a long and faithful life of service to Jesus and the family of God here in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. He was a good priest and a good bishop, and he helped many souls. We entrust him now to the tender care of Our Blessed Mother Mary, and we ask that she lead him to paradise and the love that never ends.”
Sartoris' funeral Mass was scheduled for 10 a.m. on July 18 at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels. A private entombment will immediately follow the Mass in the cathedral mausoleum.
Sartoris was a local through and through, born in Los Angeles and raised in Glendale, attending Holy Family School. After attending St. John’s Seminary, he was ordained by Cardinal James McIntyre in 1953.
After first being assigned to parishes, Sartoris later became a teacher and assistant principal at Bishop Conaty High School in Los Angeles. He became a pastor for the first time at St. Madeleine Church in Pomona before becoming the pastor at St. Margaret Mary Church in Lomita, where he served for 16 years.
While at St. Margaret Mary, Sartoris helped expand the parish’s volunteer Christian Service program, long known for helping needy families in the Lomita area.
“Bishop Sartoris is truly a people’s priest and bishop, and a priest’s bishop,” Cardinal Roger Mahony wrote upon Sartoris’ retirement. “He has long been admired for his deep spiritual life, his even and kind temperament, his generous service of people, and his untiring efforts to bring about healing and reconciliation among all peoples.”
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Priest’s Retirement Fund, 3424 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles 90010, or Presentation Learning Center, 10843 Gorman Ave., Los Angeles 94244.
Condolences may be sent to the nearest kin, Steve Moloney, PO Box 668, Sierra Madre, CA. 91025.
