James Douglas Conley
JAMES DOUGLAS CONLEY
Born: March 19, 1955
Deceased:
Auxiliary Bishop of Denver, 2008-2012
Bishop of Lincoln, 2012-present
 Auxiliary Bishop of Denver |
 Bishop of Lincoln |
| English | blazon wanted |
Origin/meaning
As common in US episcopal heraldry, the arms show the arms of the diocese impaled with the personal arms of the bishop.
The Conley Cross is unique to the bishop. It is rendered in gold as is proper The interior of the four segments of the Cross will be etched (in the same way sacred vessels are etched with symbolism) with ears of wheat, symbolic of both the State of Kansas (for the crop most famous of that region) and for the Church there (for the Sacred Hosts made of the wheat from the fields from places like the farmlands of Kansas. The central stone on the Cross is a deep green emerald, incorporated here to represent Bishop Conley 's Irish heritage the best element to represent one's Irish roots.
The bishop has selected the motto used by Cardinal John Henry Newman, one of his spiritual mentors, and whose anniversary was the day James D. Conley was consecrated a bishop of the Church. To further honer Cardinal Newman, the actual shape and form of the banderole, or motto ribbon, used by him in his own cardinalatial coat of arms has been incorporated into the Conley design, a very vivid tribute to the late Cardinal Newman.
The blue chief is a symbol for the Blessed Virgin Mary. Blue is also the hue of philosophic truth, the color symbolic of the teaching role of each bishop of the Church. The Sacred Heart of Jesus which appeared in the ancient arms of Cardinal Newman and so this symbolic reference was important to Bishop Conley, but moreover, the importance of the Bishop's personal devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is the reason for this special emblem's inclusion in the design.
The division line showing some fleur-de-lys create an image of a diadem; this diadem represents the tiara worn in the image of the Blessed Virgin Mary, in her title MATER ECCLESIAE which appears in mosaic form upon the façade of the Apostolic Palace. As such this diadem not only is symbolic of Mary but also the bishop's tenure for a time in the Roman Curia and moreover his loyalty to the Petrine Office and the Holy See.
The two arrows represent Saint Augustine, one for his wisdom the other for his teaching and his embrace of the faith after conversion. The arrows have been rendered in black, once more the color of priesthood. It is keen to note that the Wea people, a native American people indigenous to Indiana and a people sharing their heritage with Bishop Conley who descends also from the Wea nation, presented a black arrow at times of great ceremony and so its presence here in the Conley arms serves a dual symbolic purpose, one also intended as a mark of honor and respect for this native American heritage.
The key represents St. James the Less representing his writing, the key to salvation in the Christian faith coming forth from the written Word of God, being worked in red symbolic of his violent death and witness to Christ.
The achievement is completed with the heraldic insignia of a prelate of the rank of bishop by instruction of the Holy See, of March 1969, confirmed in March 2001.
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