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	New Catholic Bishop Faces Tough Challenges in a Changing Diocese The News Journal July 9, 2007 http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080709/OPINION11/807090311/1004/OPINION Catholics in Delaware and on Maryland's Eastern Shore have a new spiritual leader, Bishop W. Francis Malooly. Pope Benedict XVI has appointed the 64-year-old auxiliary bishop of Baltimore to lead the Wilmington Diocese upon Bishop Michael Saltarelli's retirement. Bishop Malooly's credentials seem right for the job. He has established a solid record of directly addressing problems affecting the church and its followers. In fact, local representatives of Voice of the Faithful, a national organization formed in response to the crisis of sexual abuse of children by clergy, were cheered by Bishop Malooly's appointment to the Wilmington office. Bishop Malooly takes over at a time when the diocese has grown by 64,000 members in a decade, added three new schools and several new churches in fast-growing suburbs, expanded its Hispanic ministry, and ordained more than 20 priests. Shepherding this diocese into the rest of the 21st century requires someone who not just loves "being a priest" as Bishop Malooly describes himself. It also requires tough problem-solving in the face of critical shortages of new priests. Additionally, population shifts have taken their toll on traditional Catholic neighborhood schools in Wilmington and north of the city through closures and mergers of student populations. For many of these congregants the worry is a dwindling desire of parishioners willing to seek a Catholic education for their children. In addition, the diocese's many charitable agencies are feeling the strain of a tough economy. These are formidable challenges. We know his fellow church members look to his new leadership and offer a hand of help. But all of his new neighbors offer him a hearty welcome to Delaware.
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