Early life and ministry Martin John Amos was born on December 8, 1941, in
Cleveland,
Ohio. He was the oldest of six children born to Martin and Mary Amos. He grew up in a working-class neighborhood on the west side of Cleveland, attending Our Lady of Good Counsel Church. Amos was educated at Benjamin Franklin Elementary School and
James Ford Rhodes High School, both in Cleveland.
Priesthood On May 25, 1968, Amos was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Cleveland by Bishop
Clarence Issenmann at St. John Bosco Church in
Parma Heights, Ohio.
Bishop of Davenport On October 12, 2006,
Pope Benedict XVI appointed Amos as the eighth bishop of the Diocese of Davenport. He was installed by
Archbishop Jerome Hanus on November 20, 2006, with Archbishop
Pietro Sambi present, at St. John Vianney Church in
Bettendorf, Iowa. Two days before Amos assumed office, the diocese filed for
Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection. As a result of the bankruptcy, the diocese was forced to sell off property, including the bishop's residence, to pay for a financial settlement to sexual abuse victims. Amos had previously requested a small
fixer-upper house to live in, believing the bishop's residence too big for him. In 2007, Amos announced that the board of trustees of
St. Ambrose University had decided to remove the name of Bishop
Gerald O'Keefe from the school library. O'Keefe had covered up sexual abuse crimes by priests in the diocese. The diocese sold the chancery building, the St. Vincent Center, and the surrounding property to
St. Ambrose University in 2009. A $22 million capital campaign was also initiated in 2009 to replenish diocesan finances and to provide the finances for other projects. In 2010, the diocese bought back the St. Vincent Center and five acres of land from St. Ambrose. In 2012, Amos rescinded an invitation to a representative of the Rich Eychaner Charitable Foundation to present a scholarship to Keaton Fuller, a student at the
Prince of Peace Catholic School in Clinton, Iowa. The Eychander Foundation promotes
anti-bullying legislation and seeks to promote tolerance and non-discrimination for
LBGTQ+ youth. Amos and the foundation reached a compromise in which a foundation representative from the foundation would award the statue to Fuller and a diocesan representative would deliver a pre-approved statement from the foundation.
Retirement On April 19, 2017,
Pope Francis accepted Amos' letter of resignation as Bishop of Davenport and named Monsignor
Thomas Zinkula as his replacement. Amos attended the installation mass in Cleveland on July 13, 2015, of Bishop
Edward C. Malesic, the new bishop of Cleveland. After the sudden death of Bishop
George Murry from the
Diocese of Youngstown in Ohio on June 5, 2020, the Vatican assigned Amos to assist Monsignor Robert Siffrin in running the diocese until a new bishop was installed. Amos' role was to ordain priests, deacons and transitional
deacons in the diocese. In January 2021, Amos was invited to the installation mass of the new bishop of Youngstown, Reverend
David J. Bonnar. ==See also==