Religion
Alexander Joseph Brunett
1934–2020 · Catholic Archbishop of Seattle (1997–2010)
Detroit-born priest who spent 35 years in Detroit-area ministry, led the archdiocese's ecumenical and interfaith work, then became Archbishop of Seattle.
- Born
Detroit, Michigan- Died
aged 86- Also known as
- Alex Brunett
- Detroit years
- 1934–1994
- Field
- Religion
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Alexander Joseph Brunett was born in Detroit in 1934, the second of ten surviving children of a father who was Michigan's first master plumber and a Detroit-born mother of Irish descent. As a boy he sold copies of The Detroit Times. He studied for the priesthood in Rome and was ordained there in 1958, then returned home to serve as an associate pastor at St. Rose of Lima in Detroit and St. Alphonsus in Dearborn, and at Archbishop John Dearden's direction he earned a master's degree in education at the University of Detroit. In 1973 he became director of the archdiocese's Division of Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs as well as a parish pastor, building relationships with Protestant, Orthodox, Jewish and Muslim communities in metro Detroit. Temple Beth El honored him in 1989 with its Leo Franklin Award in Human Relations for his work against antisemitism. After 35 years of Detroit-area ministry he was named Bishop of Helena, Montana, in 1994 and Archbishop of Seattle in 1997, serving until 2010. He died in 2020.
Highlights
- Ordained in Rome in 1958 for the Archdiocese of Detroit
- Directed Detroit's archdiocesan ecumenical and interfaith office from 1973
- Received Temple Beth El's Leo Franklin Award in 1989
- Archbishop of Seattle, 1997–2010