UNITED STATES
Omaha.com
POSTED: MONDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2014
By Michael O’Connor / World-Herald staff writer
On a hot day in August, Bishop Blase Cupich traveled three hours, pulled a folding table from the trunk of a car and used it as an altar to say Mass at a farmworker camp in rural Washington state.
The Omaha native and bishop of the Spokane Diocese had arrived to offer spiritual healing after wildfires swept through the area, destroying migrant worker camps.
Cupich (pronounced SOO-pitch) is said to carry the heart of a pastor — a trait many believe drew the attention of Pope Francis, who this fall named him as the next leader of the powerful Archdiocese of Chicago. Observers say the pontiff’s selection of Cupich as Chicago’s archbishop is the clearest indication yet of the direction Francis wants to steer American church leaders. Cupich himself isn’t so sure. …
One of the biggest controversies during his Spokane tenure involved the fallout he inherited from a previous bishop’s decision to seek bankruptcy protection over sex abuse claims.
David Clohessy of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests said Cupich could have been more open about the abuse cases tied to the bankruptcy.
Cupich disputed the group’s characterization of his actions, noting that the bankruptcy was filed before he arrived in Spokane.
The Rev. Michael Savelesky, vicar general of the Spokane Diocese, said Cupich showed compassion toward victims and understood they were still hurting emotionally.
“He made sure promises made to them for counseling and healing were followed through with,” Savelesky said.
Joe Mudd, assistant professor of religious studies at Gonzaga University, a Catholic institution in Spokane, said Cupich has carried out his duties with an eye toward people who feel broken or on the fringes of society and the church.
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