Santa Fe archbishop talks about his experience

By Tom Joles
KOB
July 23, 2014

http://www.kob.com/article/stories/s3511617.shtml#.U8-U4PldWSo

The Archdiocese of Santa Fe is looking for a new archbishop and not because it wants to.

Archbishop Michael Sheehan just turned 75 and that means he has to retire.

In a very candid conversation KOB Eyewitness News 4’s Tom Joles talked about him, the church, and that rumored half million dollar house.

“Have you ever questioned whether there's really a God?” asked KOB’s Tom Joles.

“No. It's beyond my pay grade,” joked Sheehan.

When he became the archbishop in 1993, Sheehan did have questions about something else, the scandal engulfing the archdiocese at the time.

“When I came in I immediately put in a zero tolerance regulation and I removed priests, some of them popular,” Sheehan said.

The clergy scandal has obviously affected how the archbishop looks at things, even today.

“If you could change one thing about the church, what would it be?” questioned Joles.

"Holier priests. There wouldn't be any of this sexual abuse garbage. And stuff like that and meanness and whatever. Holier priests. That's the thing I would like to see happen,” answered Sheehan.

Sheehan understands flawed humans, which compelled Joles to ask him if Sheehan has stumbled in the job at all or had anything to regret.

“Well, I keep going.  My thing is to be happily and uncomplicatedly catholic,” said Sheehan.

Sheehan is not known for ruffling feathers, but he has.

“Your decision to replace Dominican priests at Newman Center with archdiocese priests was very controversial as you know. Why rock that boat?” asked Joles.

“I debated in my own mind. I could let the clock run out and let next bishop do what he wants or I could do something that I think is good to do,” said Sheehan. “I would like to see the Newman center have some changes and I'd like to put my own priests, my own guys in charge.”

Archbishop Sheehan isn't going anywhere anytime soon. The archdiocese thinks it could take nine to 14 months to find his replacement. Sheehan says even after he retires, he'll continue to work as a fill-in priest and in other ways for the church.