Fr. Bob McLaughlin
Leadership Consultant
Rev. Dr. Robert P. McLaughlin, aka “Father Bob”, has been involved in Church ministry his entire life. Long before entering the seminary, while still in high school, he volunteered in several ministries and was even elected to the parish council. Later he worked in youth ministry both at the parish and diocese level. Eventually answering God’s call, Fr. Bob received a Master’s in Divinity and a Master’s in Theology from Seton Hall University’s Immaculate Conception Seminary before being ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Newark in 2011. As an ordained priest he has served in parishes, in campus ministry, as a hospital chaplain, and is currently the Administrator of the parish of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Oakland, NJ.
Fr. Bob has long had a passion for social justice and working with the most vulnerable members of society. This ultimately led him to pursue advanced graduate studies in Social Work, obtaining both a Master from Ramapo College and a Doctorate from Fordham University. In defending his dissertation that assessed the interdisciplinary, interagency collaboration of service providers supporting survivors of human trafficking in New Jersey as understood through a complexity theory lens, he learned the benefits and challenges of bringing together the community, with all of its diversity, talents, and resources to be amplified towards a common vision. Combined with his diverse experiences within the Church and his understanding of the complexities, Fr. Bob hopes to assist parishes and dioceses in overcoming the barriers and challenges of collaboration towards achieving their goals.
When Fr. Bob is not working for the Church, he enjoys spending time with family, traveling, and occasionally playing golf (though he never keeps score). He enjoys supporting worthy causes including LifeWay Network and the America’s Special Children’s Pilgrimage Group (ASCPG). And at least a couple of times a month he appreciates a trip to the Broadway theater, or at least the movies to provoke the imagination.
