Photo Courtesy of the Basilica of the Sacred Heart

ATLANTA—Father John T. Howren, pastor of the Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Atlanta, died Monday, Jan. 12, from complications of influenza. He was 61 years old.

Father John T. Howren was born to John B. and Annette M. Howren (Westerman) on Sept. 12, 1964, in Charlotte, North Carolina. There, he grew up with his sister Angela, his mother and father, and later his stepfather, Dave Dorries. The family moved to Jacksonville, Florida, for a short time, and then to Atlanta in 1980. Father John graduated from Redan High School in 1982.

In the mid-1980s, after studies at West Georgia College and Georgia State University and serving as an active member of the Cathedral of Christ the King, Father Howren applied to and was accepted as a seminarian for the Archdiocese of Atlanta, attending Saint Meinrad College Seminary and School of Theology in Indiana. He was ordained to the priesthood by Archbishop John F. Donoghue on June 1, 1996, at Holy Spirit Church.

Archbishop John F. Donoghue anoints Father John Howren, left, with oil during his 1996 ordination at Holy Spirit Church in Atlanta. Father Howren, who served many parishes in the Archdiocese of Atlanta, died Jan. 12. Georgia Bulletin Photo

Father Howren’s early assignments included St. James the Apostle in McDonough and its mission, Mary Mother of God Church in Jackson. He then served as pastor at St. Gerard Majella in Ft. Oglethorpe, St. Augustine of Hippo in Covington, St. Brendan the Navigator in Cumming and at St. John Neumann Church in Lilburn. After assisting at the Cathedral of Christ the King in Atlanta, he was named pastor of St. Lawrence Church in Lawrenceville in 2015, serving the parish community for five years.

In 2020, Father Howren was appointed rector and pastor of the Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, where he led the parish through the complete interior redecoration of the historic church, which was rededicated last November.

Father Howren served as vicar forane of the Central Deanery of the Archdiocese of Atlanta and as a member of the Council of Priests.

He is survived by his mother, father and stepfather, his sister Angela Baldonado (Bob), nieces Olivia Walsh and Gabby Walsh and by countless brother priests and loving parishioners and friends.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Saint Meinrad Archabbey in Indiana or to the Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Atlanta.

A Mass for the repose of the soul of Father Howren, will be Wednesday, Jan. 14, at 7 p.m. at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, 353 W Peachtree St NE, Atlanta. The Mass will be livestreamed.

The funeral Mass will be announced later.