Early Life and Ministry
Vincent Nichols was born in Crosby, Lancashire (now Merseyside), to Henry Joseph and Mary (née Russell) Nichols; his parents were teachers. As a child he wanted to be a lorry driver, but felt a calling to the priesthood as a teenager.
He attended St. Mary's College in Crosby from 1956 to 1963. From St. Mary's he entered the Venerable English College in Rome. He was ordained for the Archdiocese of Liverpool on 21 December 1969. He obtained the degree of Licentiate of Sacred Theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in 1970.
Upon his return to England, Nichols studied at the University of Manchester for a year and earned a M.A. in Theology in 1971, specializing in the theology of St. John Fisher. He then served as assistant pastor at St. Mary's Church, Wigan, as well as chaplain to the St John Rigby College, Wigan, Orrell, and St. Peter's High School, Wigan.
He received a Master's in Education from Loyola University Chicago in 1974, and was assigned to St. Anne's Church in Edge Hill in 1975. Father Nichols spent a total of 14 years in the Liverpool archdiocese. In 1980, he was appointed director of the Upholland Northern Institute. He also sat on the archiepiscopal council.
Nichols served as General Secretary of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales from 1984 to 1993. In addition to his role within the CBCEW, he was moderator of the Steering Committee of the Council of Churches for Britain and Ireland from 1989 to 1996. He was chair of the Catholic Education Service since 1998.
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