Bishop Louis A. DeSimone, retired auxiliary bishop of Philadelphia and pastor emeritus of St. Monica Parish in South Philadelphia, died Friday morning, Oct. 5 at St. Thomas Monastery in Villanova following a brief illness. He was 96, and the third oldest Catholic bishop in the United States.

A funeral Mass will be celebrated Wednesday, Oct. 10 at 11 a.m., preceded by a viewing at 9 a.m., at the Cathedral Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul in Philadelphia. Archbishop Charles J. Chaput will be the principal celebrant. “I was saddened to learn of the death of Bishop DeSimone,” said the archbishop, who is attending the synod of bishops on youth in Rome and is returning to Philadelphia for the funeral.