The following appeared on the internet version of the Oakland diocese paper the Catholic Voice, September 21.
Archbishop Brunett will serve in the interim after Archbishop-designate Salvatore Cordileone begins his new post as the archbishop of San Francisco on Oct. 4 and before the appointment of his successor.
“Part of my job is to prepare (the diocese) for another bishop. I’m not here forever,” quipped Archbishop Brunett, as he greeted and made brief remarks to members of the chancery staff on Sept. 21 during a brief visit to the diocese.
Archbishop Brunett, a native of Detroit, Michigan, was ordained to the priesthood in 1958 in Rome. After a number of assignments in the Detroit area, Pope John Paul II appointed him as bishop of the Diocese of Helena, Montana, in 1994. He was named archbishop of Seattle in 1997, and remained in that post until he retired in 2010, at the mandatory retirement age of 75.
Though it was previously announced that Archbishop-designate Cordileone would remain apostolic administrator of the Oakland diocese even after his installation as archbishop of San Francisco, he explained in a memo to employees the appointment was made “in order to relieve me of the burden of the pastoral governance of two dioceses at the same time as I assume leadership in San Francisco.” He also expressed his gratitude to Archbishop Brunett for “the enthusiasm with which he accepted this appointment. He has a wealth of experience, and I am confident that this will benefit the diocese during this period of transition,” he added.
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As I understand it, Archbishop Brunett was a “real” Catholic Archbishop. He must have been strong, and Oakland Diocese clergy weak, for Benedict XVI to have called him out of retirement instead of appointing a local to be an administrator. I hope that Bishop Cordileone’s efforts to discipline the Berkeley-founded Catholic Association for Gay and Lesbian Ministry (CALGM) will continue under Bishop Brunett’s appointment. The SF Bay Area, and indeed the entire country, needs to be rid of the deadly sodomite influence in the Catholic Church.
described by local priests as a “centrist “( i think that means fairly liberal) and good fundraiser…..follow the money and just watch for a big capital campaign…so much for saving souls and a real Catholic bishop!
blarney,
For now, let us hope and pray that you are wrong!
God bless, yours in Their Hearts,
Kenneth M. Fisher
I think there are some limits to what an Apostolic Administrator can do, but not many. An Administrator elected by the Diocesan Consultors, on the other hand, can do almost nothing of any significance.
The Archbishop said that his job was to prepare the Diocese for a new Bishop. That says to me that there will not be a huge fund raiser under his leadership, although a pretty good sum is due on the loan for the cathedral. But, there are inner-city parishes to support, inner-city schools to maintain, a new high school to be built in the Livermore area, etc. Many people don’t realize what it takes to support a diocese now days. How many millions does it take to build a high school? How much does it take to help smaller parishes survive and build new churches in growing areas? Lots! A simple traditional church building that can hold 400-700 people, plus offices and ccd classrooms will likely be in the $10-20 million as a minimum, plus interest and permits. The permits alone, depending where it is built could run over $200K. So yes, there may be a capital campaign, but I doubt that it would be for the $250 million or more that they really need. Things are expensive now days, especially in Northern California. I doubt that the Archbishop wants to take on that burden himself.
There is no shame bigger than a priest describing a bishop in political terms.
Real reforms will start at the Seminaries. They need to start forming real priests
Arch Bishop Brunett served our city well. We were fortunate to have him here as long as we did and we miss him now that he is gone. He is a strong and dignified leader in the Catholic Church with conservative values and he finds great joy in reaching out with a strong message of faith through valued leadership. His discipline in matters of handling today’s legal matters that our diocese faced were swift and no nonsense. You can rest assured that your community will be well served and richly blessed in his presence.