Robert Casey was born on September 23, 1967, in Evergreen Park, Illinois. He is the fourth of five children of Michael Casey, a butcher, and Margaret Casey, a nurse. When he was a child, his family moved to Alsip, Illinois. He attended Stony Creek Elementary School and Prairie Junior High School in that town. Casey then entered Marist High School in Chicago, where he started considering the priesthood.[1][2]
After his ordination in 1994, the archdiocese assigned Casey as associate pastor of St. Ita Parish in Chicago. In 1998, he was also appointed associate director of Casa Jesus, a priesthood recruiting program aimed at Hispanic men. By 1999, Casey was working full time as its director. In 2003, he undertook a 40-day pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in Spain.[3]
After returning from Spain later in 2003, the archdiocese named Casey as pastor of Our Lady of Tepeyac Parish in Chicago.[2] Casey was suspended in 2008 for four weeks while the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services investigated a sexual abuse allegation against him at that parish. The archdiocese returned him to ministry after the investigation determined the complaint was unfounded.[5]
The archdiocese transferred Casey in 2009 to serve as pastor of St. Barbara Parish in Brookfield, Illinois. Casey left St. Barbara in 2016 to become pastor of St. Bede the Venerable Parish in Chicago.[2]
Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago
Pope Francis appointed Casey as an auxiliary bishop of Chicago on July 3, 2018.[3][6] On September 17, 2018, Casey was consecrated at Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago by Cardinal Blase Cupich. His co-consecrators were Auxiliary Bishops Francis J. Kane and George J. Rassas.[4]
After his installation, Cupich assigned Casey as vicar for Vicariate III. In 2020, Cupich appointed him as vicar general for the archdiocese.[2]