Bishop DiNardo officially welcomed in his new diocese

By JENNIFER LIM, Herald Staff Writer
April 1, 2004

HOUSTON - The Diocese of Galveston-Houston welcomed an Iowa prelate as her next spiritual leader March 26, when Bishop Daniel N. DiNardo was formally received as the local Church's new coadjutor bishop.

A Mass of Welcome at St. Michael Church, 1801 Sage, marked the start of Bishop DiNardo's episcopacy in the Southwest. More than 1,000 people wedged their way into the Galleria-area parish for the Friday evening liturgy, and spectators seemingly fell into two camps: the handful of those who knew Bishop DiNardo from his ministry in Iowa and Pennsylvania, and the horde of area Catholics anxious to catch a glimpse of the stranger who will eventually become their bishop in Texas.

Bishop DiNardo, 54, strived to answer some of the faithful's basic questions during his homily, offering a synopsis of his 20 years as a priest in Pittsburgh and his recent six and half years as the bishop of Sioux City, Iowa.

A native of Steubenville, Ohio, Bishop DiNardo was ordained Coadjutor Bishop of Sioux City in 1997 and became head of the Iowa diocese in 1998.

"I promise to be a good coadjutor, because I know how to do it," Bishop DiNardo said in his homily.

After thanking the people, priests and bishops of Pittsburgh and Sioux City, the coadjutor bishop spoke of the challenges awaiting him in his newest assignment.

"It seems to me, in looking over this assembly and driving around this diocese the last two days, that all humankind is represented in the Diocese of Galveston-Houston, from every race and tongue, every tribe and nation," Bishop DiNardo said. "Each group enriches this local Church. But I must admit it seems as though you cannot be numbered, and I'm a little scared."

Bishop DiNardo is charged with some day leading a diocese more than 10 times the size of Sioux City and, consequently, much more racially and ethnically diverse.

He repeatedly referenced the multicultural character of the diocese, acknowledging the Asian, African, European, Latin and African-American populations scattered among the region's parishes. "I know you conceptually now, and globally; I want to make this knowledge vivid and concrete, and I need your help," Bishop DiNardo said. "I need to meet you."

St. Michael Church was flooded with Catholics likewise hoping to greet the coadjutor, and ready to pose to him a few inquiries of their own. University of Houston senior Bethanie Fies arrived at St. Michael parish at 3:15 p.m. for the 6:40 Mass, hoping to hear Bishop DiNardo speak about "what he has found most inspirational about his vocation and what pulled him towards being a bishop.

"I know he's from the North; that's all I know," she laughed.

Knight of Columbus Pat Russeck lightheartedly said he wanted to ask if the new coadjutor was a brother Knight. Russeck also wanted to know the ways the coadjutor would carry on the traditions and ministries established by the current ordinary, Bishop Joseph A. Fiorenza.

Bishop Fiorenza, who has been head of the Galveston-Houston since 1985, requested the Holy See appoint a coadjutor bishop for the diocese. A coadjutor serves alongside the local bishop and automatically succeeds the local bishop when he retires. Bishop Fiorenza is 73 years old; bishops may submit their resignations at age 75.

"Bishop Fiorenza had great wisdom in asking for (a coadjutor) two years before (he retires), so that the coadjutor can really get to know the diocese," said Father Trung Nguyen, associate pastor at St. Laurence (Sugar Land). "It will take him time to adjust to a new place - and to the traffic."

Like several others working in local ministries, Father Nguyen expressed curiosity about Bishop DiNardo's management style. "Is he more an administrator or more a pastoral bishop? Maybe he is gifted in both areas," offering a combination of administrative and personal skills, Father Nguyen speculated.

Anne Comeaux, diocesan director of the Office of Continuing Christian Education, recalled the coadjutor displayed a blend of those aptitudes as a priest in Pittsburgh. Comeaux served as a catechetical leader at a Pittsburgh parish when then-Monsignor DiNardo worked in the Pittsburgh diocesan Office of Education. "I just remember how everybody respected him, because of his learning, but also because of his pastoral approach to things," Comeaux said. "Everybody respected him because he was very learned and very orthodox in his teaching, but he was also very pastoral."

Bishop DiNardo promised to remain in "intense communion" with Pope John Paul II, and stressed prayer as the necessary beginning and end of his day-to-day work in Galveston-Houston.

"As a bishop called to new service in the Church, I recognize the urgent summons of the Holy Father, of the whole Church, of the whole tradition of the Church to contemplate the face of Christ before I could ever be sent forth to head a program, to manage, to administer," Bishop DiNardo said.

"I do not have a program," the coadjutor said. "I do have a sense of our Catholic faith and the truth of its teaching."

Bishop DiNardo outlined his conviction about the dignity of the human person, including the ill and infirm, the innocent and guilty, and the poor and marginalized.

The diocese has been anticipating the arrival of Bishop DiNardo since the Jan. 19 announcement of his appointment to Galveston-Houston. He will become the eighth bishop to lead the Galveston-Houston diocese, after Bishop Fiorenza retires.

Bishop Fiorenza served as the principal celebrant of Bishop DiNardo's Mass of Welcome, attended by 29 bishops and more than 200 priests. Archbishop Gabriel Montalvo, papal nuncio to the U.S., was present to deliver Pope John Paul II's letter officially mandating Bishop DiNardo's appointment. Auxiliary Bishops Vincent M. Rizzotto and Joe S. Vasquez, Archbishop Patrick Flores of San Antonio and Archbishop Montalvo concelebrated the Mass. Former Galveston-Houston auxiliary Bishops James A. Tamayo and Curtis J. Guillory were also in attendance.

During a welcome address at the start of the liturgy, Bishop Fiorenza pledged the coadjutor would have "the full support and cooperation of all in the Diocese of Galveston-Houston."

Local Catholics are enormously active in the parishes and institutions of the diocese, Bishop Fiorenza said. "The Church here is strong, alive, dynamic and faithful to the Supreme Pastor, Pope John Paul II, and loyal to its bishops," he said.

Bishop Fiorenza also assured Bishop DiNardo's guests from Ohio, Pennsylvania and Iowa that "we will take very good care of Daniel."

Addressing visitors from Sioux City, "I can guarantee you that the Diocese of Galveston-Houston will give Bishop DiNardo a similar love and reverence, and in greater measure, simply because there are more of us here than there are of you in Sioux City," Bishop Fiorenza told a laughing crowd.

Bishop DiNardo similarly displayed a playful wit, recounting a comical letter he received from an Iowa second grader and narrating an amusing story about his parents. He said his older brother, twin sister and younger sister "make sure I never take myself too seriously. Isn't that important?"

His sermon started with a quip, when the coadjutor said he would answer the question most commonly asked of him in recent days. "As far as I know," Bishop DiNardo said, "I am not related to the former coach of the LSU (football) team."

To view pictures of Bishop Daniel N. DiNardo's Mass of Welcome, visit www.diogh.org.