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	Conlon Leaves for Joliet The Herald-Star July 10, 2011 http://www.heraldstaronline.com/page/content.detail/id/561371/Conlon-leaves-for-Joliet.html?nav=5010 STEUBENVILLE - After celebrating a final Mass today at Holy Name Cathedral and saying his goodbyes during a public reception in the church basement, Bishop R. Daniel Conlon will get into his car and make the eight-hour trip to his new assignment in Joliet, Ill. Conlon officially was appointed in May to become the fifth bishop of the diocese located near Chicago. He will succeed Bishop J. Peter Sartain, who was installed as archbishop of Seattle in December. Conlon will be installed as bishop of the Joliet diocese during a Mass on Thursday. The next day in Steubenville, the College of Consultors, a group of 10 diocesan priests, will meet to select a diocesan administrator until a new bishop is announced. "I have told people I believe six months to a year is a fairly good guess for when a new bishop will be appointed," Conlon remarked. Conlon was the fourth bishop of the Steubenville diocese and the first to leave for another diocese. The 62-year-old Conlon has served nine years as the spiritual leader of Catholics in 13 Eastern Ohio counties. "The past nine years have been a time of great grace for me. I didn't know what to expect being a bishop. It has been a learning experience. I have learned a lot and I have enjoyed serving the pastoral needs of these 13 counties," Conlon said during a recent interview with the Herald-Star. Conlon arrived in Steubenville in May 2002 for an official introduction to the community and expressed surprise at his selection. "Some people might say that this is the worst time in recent history to be called to the episcopacy. However. I see the positives. An opportunity for renewal in the spirit of the Second Vatican Council, an opportunity for greater lay involvement and an opportunity for leadership that is truly servantship," Conlon told the diocesan newspaper the Catholic Register during his initial visit to the city he would call home for nine years. His installation as bishop of Steubenville took place on a warm August afternoon in the Finnegan Fieldhouse on the campus of the Franciscan University of Steubenville. "It was a very joyful and solemn celebration with the power of the Holy Spirit evident that day. It was also an emotional day. Tears flowed down Bishop Conlon's face when the other bishops laid their hands on his head," said Lisa Ferguson of the university's communications office. "My task as the bishop of Steubenville is to build up the church here, to help it be one, holy and Catholic and apostolic," Conlon told the approximately 1,900 people in attendance at his ordination and installation ceremony. "Emotionally it will be difficult to leave. It was difficult when I moved from my parish in New Bremen, Ohio, nine years ago to become bishop of the Diocese of Steubenville. It will be wrenching to now leave here where I thought I would remain," Conlon said. He arrived at the beginning of a downturn in the area steel industry that saw hundreds of Steelworkers lose their jobs amid the start of a regional economic recession. The local economic crisis prompted Conlon to initiate an ecumenical Faith in the Future effort to seek God's help in economic and community revitalization. The Faith in the Future prayer ministry continues with monthly meetings in different area churches. The bishop then embarked on a campaign to consolidate six Steubenville parishes into the new Triumph of the Cross parish. It was a decision that would meet mixed reaction among parishioners and prompted a statement by Conlon in the June 24 edition of the diocesan newspaper. "I should have pushed the Steubenville Task Force to be more open in its deliberations and more consultative among the people of the city's parishes. I should have been more directive with the capital campaign. I should have made sure that the people of the diocese were more on board before we started," Conlon wrote. "Six parishes were merged and we need to provide a new church for those merged parishes. It also happens to be a cathedral. We were able to see about $3 million in donations for the new church. We anticipated a new church building will cost between $10 and $11 million to build. Legally and morally that money cannot be spent on anything else unless the donor gives permission to use the money for something other than the new church," stated Conlon. Plans for the new church have been delayed and parish meetings have been held in recent months throughout the diocese to consider a second campaign to raise funds. "So much depends on the larger issues of the economy. This has resulted in a loss of population, jobs and personal wealth. I think we have to be more creative as we move forward. We cannot continue parish and diocesan life as we have for the past 100 years. Do I have a prescription for change? No. I have some ideas. The next bishop will need to discuss what changes are needed for church life. We may need to change our church institutions as well as the way we train and utilize our personnel," stated Conlon. He said a more immediate need facing the next bishop will be priestly vocations. He will leave behind a diocese of 38,000 Catholics with 36 active priests for a diocese of 650,000 Catholics and 120 priests. "We also need to sustain our Catholic schools largely by increasing enrollment numbers," he added. "The next bishop will face the same challenges I faced when I came here, including a declining and an aging population. I worked on improving the teaching of the faith and developed an ongoing formation of our priests," cited Conlon. "I would like to think I have not lost sight of who I am as a Christian and a priest. Serving as a bishop means being a pastor to the people. Christ is the real pastor of the church. Serving him and allowing him to lead is what strengthens me. On the other side I have been strengthened by our priests. They are truly an outstanding group of men," said Conlon.
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