Most Rev. Dominic Carmon, S. V. D.

Most Reverend Dominic Carmon, S.V.D., Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus of New Orleans, was born on December 13, 1930, in Opelousas, Louisiana, the eldest of seven children of Edna and Aristile Carmon. His father was a farmer-carpenter in nearby Frilot, Louisiana. When young Dominic entered St. Augustine Seminary in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, in 1946, he said he had no idea of the global reach of the ministry of the Society of the Divine Word. “I just knew it was the place where black men who wanted to be priests went,” he said. He attended Gradney Island public schools near Opelousas and completed theological studies at St. Augustine Seminary in Bay St. Louis, MS, and St. Mary’s Seminary in Techny, IL. He studied education at DePaul University in Chicago, and Liturgy and Theology at the Divine Word Tertiate in Nemi, Italy. Bishop Carmon was ordained to the priesthood for the Society of the Divine Word on February 2, 1960. The newly ordained priest spent seven years as a missionary in Wewak, Papua, New Guinea, which he always said were “the happiest of my life.” “The work in New Guinea was very rewarding, very simplistic,” Bishop Carmon told the Clarion Herald in 1993. “Actually, it reminded me of my childhood on the farm. Living in the country, we had no electricity and no running water, just as in New Guinea. Life was good out there, with no material things to worry about, no gimmicks. We helped people improve their own lot in life. We had six churches in 21 villages.” After his missionary service in New Guinea, Bishop Carmon came home for vacation and was asked to assume a pastorate in Chicago even though he had a written commitment from his provincial that he would return to New Guinea. He wound up staying from 1969 to 1988 as pastor of St. Elizabeth Parish and, later, Our Lady of the Gardens Parish in Chicago. “In Chicago, I had a lot of parishioners who had a car and a bed, but they didn’t have much more,” he said. “They were struggling for survival probably more than the New Guinea people.” Bishop Carmon always thought of returning to the New Guinea missions, but in 1988, his provincial assigned him to Holy Ghost Church in his hometown of Opelousas. Bishop Carmon said he was looking forward to spending the rest of his priestly ministry in the country until he got the call in late 1992 that Pope John Paul II was appointing him as auxiliary bishop of New Orleans. He did not think that was possible, in part because in 1990, he had a serious brush with cancer. Doctors told him in February of that year that he might not live to Easter. Bishop Carmon was given a medal of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, and parishioners began a novena to her asking for him to be cured. After about three weeks of treatment, changes began occurring in his body that doctors could not understand. “If I didn’t believe in miracles before, I do now,” he said. “And I have a doctor who also believes in miracles.” Bishop Carmon was ordained auxiliary bishop of New Orleans on February 11, 1993, at St. Louis Cathedral, succeeding the late Bishop Harold Perry, S.V.D. “I’m honored to be following in his footsteps,” Bishop Carmon said. He served as pastor of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Parish in New Orleans from 1993 to 1997 and at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Kenner from 1997 until he retired in 2006, upon reaching his 75th birthday. Bishop Carmon is survived by a sister, Vercie Carmon Johnson (Amos) of San Diego; two brothers Clifton Carmon (Ann) of Opelousas and Aubrey Carmon of Denver, Colorado.  He is also survived by a host of nieces, nephews, relatives and friends. He is predeceased by his parents, Aristile and Edna Carmon; a brother Clifford and two sisters, Theresa Davis and Virginia Fontenot.
Relatives and friends are invited to attend the Funeral Mass at the St. Louis Cathedral, 615 Pere Antoine Alley on Saturday, November 17, 2018 at 10:00 A.M. Interment will follow in St. Louis Cathedral. Visitation will be at Notre Dame Seminary, 2901 S. Carrollton Avenue on Friday, November 16, 2018 from 12:00 Noon until 7:00 P.M. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Bishop Dominic Carmon Seminarian Education Fund and mailed in care of The Catholic Foundation, 1000 Howard Avenue, Suite 800, New Orleans, Louisiana 70113. A

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