Former Stockton Bishop Montrose Recalled with Warmth, Respect
The Record
May 12, 2008
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080512/A_OPINION01/805120322/-1/A_OPINION
The two words that come up most often are "humble" and "spiritual."
Those two words were used time and again by people recalling Bishop Donald Montrose, the fourth bishop of the Stockton Diocese, who died early Wednesday, a week shy of his 85th birthday and on the 59th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood.
 |
Montrose came to Stockton in 1986 from Los Angeles, where he was an auxiliary bishop and served as the head of St. John's Seminary College before Pope John Paul II tapped him to become bishop of the Stockton Diocese. He served until he reached the mandatory retirement age of 75 in 1999.
The quiet, unassuming Montrose was a big change for the diocese, where he replaced the outspoken and charismatic Roger Mahony. By comparison, Montrose seemed at times almost shy, some say.
But he wasn't shy about pushing his beliefs, including the need for the church to reach out more to the growing Latino community.
"Bishop Montrose will be remembered for meeting the needs of Hispanics in this diocese in many ways but particularly for bringing Spanish-speaking priests and sisters to this area," said Bishop Stephen Blaire, who succeeded Montrose.
Montrose, for example, was instrumental in bringing the cloistered Sisters of the Cross to Modesto from Mexico in 1988. He went to Colombia, Mexico and several other countries to see which bishops would allow priests to come to the Stockton Diocese, Blaire said.
But if the diocese under Montrose reached out, it also turned inward during periods of self-examination as it dealt with some of the most painful events in its history.
 |
Montrose had been bishop for seven years when former St. Anne's Church priest Oliver O'Grady pleaded guilty to four counts of sexual abuse with children. In 1998, two brothers were awarded $30 million in a sexual-abuse suit stemming from the O'Grady case. The award was reduced to $13 million.
Then there was the 1997 case involving a priest accused of embezzling $76,000 from Annunciation Cathedral. The priest, William Ryan, eventually pleaded no contest to felony theft and tax evasion charges.
Shortly before he retired, Montrose graded his performance as bishop as mediocre. There were the lawsuits, a small number of deeply troubled priests and the pain they visited on those in their trust, of course. He apologized for those transgressions. But he also said he regretted his failure to add more churches and priests as the diocese grew from 135,000 to 175,000 Catholics during his tenure.
Today the diocese stretches across six counties and includes 34 parishes and 12 missions serving nearly 220,000 Catholics. Two days before he died, the diocese announced a donation of land in east Stockton that eventually will be used for construction of a new headquarters, consolidating three sites and 40 employees.
Montrose's self-evaluation seems harsh. Certainly that's not how others saw him.
Sister Gloria de Jesus knew Montrose for 40 years.
"I think it was a good life. He lived to the fullness of his life. He always thought he was a lucky guy," she said.
"When people recall the life of Bishop Montrose, they note his gentle spirit and humility," Blaire said, "and those close to him always appreciated his sense of humor and storytelling."
"His strength," said the Rev. Joseph Illo of St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Modesto, "was his fidelity to the priesthood, to Jesus Christ and the church.
"He loved to pray."
He will be buried today at San Joaquin Catholic Cemetery on Harding Avenue in Stockton after his 1 p.m. funeral at Cathedral of the Annunciation.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.