Bishop McManus reflects on the past, future

By Bronislaus B. Kush
Telegram & Gazette
June 1, 2014

http://www.telegram.com/article/20140601/NEWS/306019928/1116

Bishop Robert J. McManus at the Chancery.

Bishop Robert J. McManus celebrates Christmas Eve Mass at the Worcester County Jail and House of Correction in West Boylston on Dec. 24, 2012. He was assisted by Deacon Gary Miller and volunteer lay minister Phillip Trimby. Near the end of the Mass the bishop invited the men to join him the following year for Christmas Mass at the Cathedral of St. Paul, saying they were all welcome. Here, Bishop McManus distributes Communion.

WORCESTER — On March 3, 2004, Providence Auxiliary Bishop Robert Joseph McManus received a five paragraph letter from Archbishop Gabriel Montalvo — the Vatican's apostolic nuncio to the United States — informing him that Pope John Paul II had formally decided to appoint him as Worcester's fifth bishop.

The short note, which requested that Bishop McManus keep the matter confidential until the news was officially released six days later, confirmed a telephone conversation the two men had had two days earlier.

Though it's a very special honor for a priest to be named chief shepherd of a diocese, it wasn't the best of times to become a new bishop in the United States.

The clergy-abuse scandal was consuming the American church and Worcester was one of the dioceses at the heart of the controversy.

Additionally, the church's membership was bleeding away as a result of a variety of factors, including the rise of secularism in the Western world and a dissatisfaction with Rome on a number of issues including the debate over women priests, contraception and gay rights.

Meanwhile, parishes across the country were finding it difficult to keep their doors open because of the shrinking number of priests and a scarcity of financial resources.

Despite the challenges, Bishop McManus said he decided to take the job.

"I had no second thoughts because a priest promises to be obedient to the pope," Bishop McManus said in a wide-ranging interview on Thursday about his stewardship of the Worcester diocese. "I'm thankful and I feel blessed that he asked me to lead this diocese."

Ten years after assuming the reins, Bishop McManus is generally credited with placing the local church on a solid financial footing, launching a major reorganization plan to cope with the shortage of clergymen, boosting interest in vocations, and getting lay and religious leaders to be more attentive to the spiritual needs of parishioners.

Recognizing that the sexual abuse crisis will haunt the church for years, Bishop McManus has also warned chancery officials and pastors to be continually on the watch for sexual predators.

While he said he believes the diocese is generally in good shape, the 62-year-old prelate said there are still many challenges to be undertaken including wooing back alienated worshippers and dealing with a tide of new immigrants.

"This is a wonderful diocese but there's always going to be something that needs attention," Bishop McManus said.

One of four children of Edward W. and Helen F. (King) McManus, Bishop McManus was born on July 5, 1951, in Providence.

He was raised in a devout family that lived in Mount Pleasant, a predominantly Catholic neighborhood, and, like his siblings, he graduated from Blessed Sacrament School.

Bishop McManus' attraction to the priesthood seemed to come at an early age.

He became an altar server in Grade 3 and family members, in interviews conducted after his nomination to the episcopate, said that, by the age of 9, he had taught himself the parts of the Mass.

After attending Our Lady of Providence Seminary High School, he began his formal priestly studies at Our Lady of Providence Seminary in Warwick, R.I.

Bishop McManus continued his academic work at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., where he received bachelor's and master's degrees.

He later earned a Master of Divinity degree from the Toronto School of Theology in Canada before getting licentiate and doctoral degrees in sacred theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.

Bishop McManus was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Providence on May 27, 1978, by Bishop Kenneth A. Angell.

After his ordination, he was assigned, over the years, to a number of parishes and served as chaplain at St. Joseph Hospital and the Community College of Rhode Island before quickly moving up the ranks at the Providence chancery.

In 1986, he was appointed director of the diocesan Office of Ministerial Formation and a year later became vicar of education. For a time, he was the rector of Our Lady of Providence Seminary.

In 1997, Bishop McManus was appointed a monsignor and two years later was elevated to auxiliary bishop.

He was installed as Worcester prelate at the Cathedral Church of St. Paul on May 14, 2004, replacing retired Bishop Daniel P. Reilly.

According to the Catholic Free Press, the diocesan newspaper, there are now about 301,000 Catholics in Central Massachusetts, about 68,000 fewer than 10 years ago.

If it's to grow, then Bishop McManus said it's important for the local church to keep evangelizing.

"If you want to know about the church, don't ask your hairdresser. Buy a catechism," he said.

Bishop McManus said he will continue to ensure that Catholic schools and other institutions stay close to faith values.

That's why he was so opposed to Victoria Reggie Kennedy's selection as the commencement speaker at Anna Maria College in Paxton in 2012, he said. Some of Mrs. Kennedy's views on social issues were in opposition to those of the church.

"I believe in truth in advertising. If you're a Catholic institution, then you're a Catholic institution," Bishop McManus said. "There shouldn't be any foolishness or any trendy things about the Catholic faith."

Over the course of his tenure, the face of the Worcester church has changed markedly.

Bishop McManus said the diocese has seen an infusion of Africans and Latinos, especially a number of Brazilians who have settled in Milford and Leominster.

"These are very vibrant communities but there are challenges for us because they come from different cultures," he said.

To deal with the situation, the diocese has recruited, over the years, about 10 seminarians from Colombia.

They, along with seminarians from Central Massachusetts and from other countries, study at the Holy Name of Jesus House of Studies on Illinois Street in Main South.

Those recruited from outside the United States also study English at Clark University.

In addition to those from overseas, there has also been a slight and steady increase of priestly candidates from the area.

Some of that jump is credited to the outreach provided by the Rev. James Mazzone, who runs the studies center.

Bishop McManus said Rev. Mazzone recruits young men from area high schools and holds monthly spaghetti dinners to kindle interest in the priesthood.

The bishop, himself, holds an overnight retreat for candidates around Palm Sunday.

Bishop McManus said the key to recruitment is getting candidates interested as early as high school.

"The thinking used to be that you'd let them go to college first and then let them decide," he said. "I think it's important to reach out earlier before they're overcome with the secularism of the world."

Officials said there is still a great need for new priests.

There are now 127 active diocesan priests compared to the 159 when Bishop McManus was installed. Sixteen seminarians are now enrolled in programs compared to the 12 that were in training in 2004.

Bishop McManus said he's tried to be sensitive when it comes to the issue of closing churches, another hot button issue. He said the best way to do that is to get the impacted parishioners involved and have them look at various options.

Since Bishop McManus came on board, the number of churches and affiliated missions has dropped from 126 to 102.

"It's very difficult to close a church because it can mean so much in an individual's spiritual growth," he said. "And we have to remember that many of these churches were founded years ago by Catholic immigrants who weren't particularly welcomed to this country. These immigrants had a few coins in their pockets and they used that money to build their churches."

He said the diocese still has decisions to make about church closings in the Gardner, the Blackstone Valley and the Brookfields regions.

Bishop McManus said that one way to keep churches open is to evangelize and to ensure that the parishes are economically viable.

He said he's insisted pastors be transparent about parish finances and stressed that contributions to local churches were not being used to settle sexual abuse lawsuits.

"I'm fortunate that my predecessors took care of that before I arrived," Bishop McManus said.

He said that pastors should be assisted administratively by knowledgeable lay parishioners serving on parish councils and finance boards.

"The days of going to the pulpit and asking parishioners (blindly) for more money are over," he said. "We have to be real. People want to know how their money is being spent and the diocese has to make sure that it's doing it's best to balance its budget."

Bishop McManus said there are many things to worry about in the future, including how young people perceive priests today.

"The sex abuse crisis has had a great impact," he said. "When I grew up, we looked to priests as heroes. That's not the case today because of all the horrific things that have happened."

He said individuals are now fully aware that there are predators and they should be able to spot "red flags" of abuse.

"This discussion has carried over to the international level," he said. "People have to be continually conscious about the crisis."

Like Pope Francis has advocated, Bishop McManus said he wants his priests to be of service to the people.

"Death impacts every family and there's nothing that annoys me more than when I get a letter from an angry local Catholic complaining that their priest put them off when they were trying to arrange for a burial. I got a letter like that today," he said. "That's not what a priest is about. Our priests have to be responsive."

Bishop McManus said the church must reach out to lapsed Catholics who have left because of the crisis or other reasons.

He said that's why he insists that all area churches hold confessions every Tuesday evening during Lent.

"We have to make the sacraments available," the bishop said. "It's not enough to schedule 30 minutes worth of confession before the Saturday evening Mass or hold confessions at 11 a.m. on Saturday when people are out doing errands."

He said area Catholics want to take part in spiritual exercises and programs and noted that many took advantage of the events offered during the successful Year of the Eucharist. The closing Mass at the DCU Center alone drew 4,000.

While the local church has stabilized, Bishop McManus has been forced to deal with some personal problems.

Recently, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer and is scheduled to undergo surgery later this month.

He said he is hopeful of a full recovery.

In May 2013, he was arrested in Rhode Island after hitting a car and leaving the scene of the accident. A month later, a driving while under the influence charge was dropped after he pleaded guilty to refusing to take a Breathalyzer test.

The bishop lost his license for six months and was ordered to provide 10 hours of community service. He was also assessed a fine and fees related to the traffic court.

"There have been some rough spots in the road but overall it's been a very happy 10 years," said Bishop McManus, noting that he has no future career aspirations within the church and would be happy to retire as the bishop here.