Thirteen months after his installation, Auxiliary Bishop Robert Christian, OP, passed away in his sleep at St. Patrick’s Seminary & University in Menlo Park. Bishop Christian, the seminary’s rector-president, was 70 years old.
Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone said “I was deeply saddened to learn this morning of the passing of Bishop Christian. The Archdiocese was greatly blessed to have his wisdom and leadership even if for so brief a time as auxiliary bishop and even briefer time as rector of the Seminary. We join with the Dominican community in praying for the repose of his soul and for peace and comfort for his wonderful family in their time of mourning.”
Bishop Christian was installed as the 18th auxiliary bishop in the Archdiocese of San Francisco June 5, 2018. He had deep roots in San Francisco and the Bay Area, attending St. Brendan School and later St. Vincent de Paul School and St. Ignatius High School in San Francisco. He graduated from Santa Clara University and afterwards entered the Dominican order in Oakland.
Bishop Christian was ordained to the priesthood in 1976, and received his doctorate in theology in 1984. Over the course of 35 years, he held teaching and administrative positions at Rome’s Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (the Angelicum) and served on ecumenical commissions.
In Oakland, Bishop Christian served in the Western Dominican Province’s leadership and was the master of students at St. Albert’s Priory at the time of his appointment as a bishop. He was appointed to lead St. Patrick’s Seminary & University January 14, 2019.
Full story at Catholic San Francisco.
Very sad event. May he and all the faithful departed rest in God’s peace.
May Almighty God bless and keep him!
I hope the ‘personnel office’ is looking for a younger replacement. Should Bishop selectees have to undergo a thorough physical exam before assuming office??
Ageism! By the time you are old enough to have some wisdom, you generally don’t have a lot of time left on this earth.
If I have learned anything in the last 20 years, it is that just because a Priest, Bishop, or Cardinal is older, it does not mean that they are any more wise than a younger person.
In some cases, they have marinated in evil for so many years, they are a testament to the power of the demonic.
They are walking among us to this day.
It does work both ways. The priest who saved my life by giving good advice against taking the “birth control pill” was older. He thus helped give me twenty-eight more years of life. The priest who allowed the couple to give a speech on Natural Family Planning in his church was also older. They were very wise men.
On the other hand a younger priest, probably taught by an older one, gave me poor advice which helped contribute to medical problems. My gut feeling was not to follow his advice:as it did not seem to be solid Catholic teaching. I should have listened. Mea culpa.
To clarify: I should have listened to my gut feeling It is usually best to get a second opinion if the first one does not sound right.
Sounds to me that you should been seeking a physician for medical advice instead of a priest, to begin with.
I should not have brought this up, but I hate to see other women suffer from similar situations. I already had discussed it with a physician who did not do such procedures and was told to ask my parish priest. The priest said it was all right, but I found later it was not according to church teaching. I do not believe there was malice involved, just misguided compassion. It was not about abortion as I have never had one. That is all wish to tell.
May Auxiliary Bishop Robert Christian and all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.