CACrown ArchivesThe cinema collection
Menu
Research dossier · General Reference

Ronald William Gainer

Catholic bishop

Cross-disciplinary reference desk with index cards, atlas, dictionary and catalogue
General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionJun 4, 2026
Entity authorityQ938619
Source-derived summary

Ronald William Gainer (born August 24, 1947) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the bishop of the Diocese of Harrisburg in Pennsylvania from 2014 to 2023. He previously served as bishop of the Diocese of Lexington in Kentucky from 2002 to 2014.

Biography

Early life and education

Gainer was born on August 24, 1947, in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, as an only child to parents of Eastern European descent. He attended St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Philadelphia, where he obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1969 and a Master of Divinity degree in 1973.

Priesthood

Gainer was ordained to the priesthood at Saint Thomas Moore Church in Salisbury Township, Pennsylvania, by Bishop Joseph Mark McShea for the Diocese of Allentown on May 19, 1973. After his ordination, Gainer served as pastor of Holy Trinity Parish in Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania. He also served as secretary of the diocesan tribunal, as secretary for Catholic life and evangelization, and as judicial vicar. Gainer attended the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, earning a Licentiate in canon law in 1986.

Editorial summary

This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Ronald William Gainer” as catholic bishop. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.

Editorial reviewA dependable orientation record for establishing vocabulary, names and a first evidence trail. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1947, 2014, 2023, 2002—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1947-08-24. The account is most persuasive where Ronald, William and Gainer can be independently traced.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The subject matters to the general reference register because the source frames it as catholic bishop. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.

Evidence profile

The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 4, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q938619. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1947, 2014, 2023 and 2002.

Critical limits

Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

Best used for
  • Subject orientation
  • Search vocabulary
  • Locating named sources
Verify next

The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Ronald William Gainer”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Ronald William Gainer primary sources, Ronald William Gainer archive and Ronald research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Ronald William Gainer”?
  2. What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
  3. Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
Subject index

Search terms from this dossier

Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from Ronald William Gainer” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.