On Wednesday, his family was assembled in the front pew of the Cathedral of St. Patrick, and a battery of priest friends had made the trip to witness his installation. But most of the congregants were strangers who nonetheless gave their new bishop the warm welcome due an old friend.

The Most Rev. Michael R. Cote, center, waves to parishioners and well-wishers as he walks down the center aisle of the Cathedral of St. Patrick in Norwich on Wednesday following his installation as the fifth bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Norwich. Photo by Tim Martin.

The ceremony had the feel of an Easter Mass, the church's annual celebration of rebirth. The spring day was brilliant, and worshippers arrived early, anticipating their introduction to the bishop whose arrival coincides with the 50th anniversary of the diocese.

"What we pray is that he'll be a good shepherd," said Catherine Postemski, of St. Philip the Apostle parish in Ashford.

Wednesday's pomp began at 10:40 a.m. with an organ and trumpet fanfare that accompanied 140 priests in starched, white vestments down the nave of the cathedral. Behind them were the yellow, green and purple plumed helmets of the Knights of Columbus, who lined both sides of the aisle and raised their swords to create a metal bower for the next group of celebrants.

Bishop Cote, left, embraces Cardinal Edward Egan during a Mass at the Cathedral of St. Patrick following Cote s installation ceremony on Wednesday. Photo by Tim Martin.

The entrance of this next group prompted a cascade of applause. Forty bishops formed a train that ushered Cote to the altar a line that included appearances by Cardinal Edward Egan, archbishop of New York, and Cardinal William Keeler, archbishop of Baltimore.

Cote, 53, is younger than most of the bishops who preceded him into the church. The Most Rev. Daniel A. Cronin, archbishop of Hartford, voiced high expectations for the "young, energentic and talented" new bishop in his opening address.

A procession of 140 priests takes part in the installation of Bishop Michael R. Cote at the Cathedral of St. Patrick in Norwich on Wednesday. Photo by Tim Martin.

Cronin's tribute preceded a series of formal gestures that marked the changing of the guard. Monsignor Robert Brown, chancellor of the diocese, recited from a tasseled scroll sent by the Vatican, a missive that relieved Cote from his post as auxiliary bishop of Portland and appointed him as head of the church of Norwich.

With this proclamation, Cronin bestowed Cote with a crosier, a gilded version of a shepherd's staff representing his tri-part role as a bishop priest, teacher and shepherd.

Until this moment in the ceremony, Cote had remained silent. But after he received the crosier, he delivered his homily to the congregation, revealing his personality and character for the first time.

Cote (above) has said that listening to the needs of priests and laity will be his first move. He vows not to be a distant leader, but rather one who will circulate broadly in order to assess the needs of the diocese. Photo by Tim Martin.

He preached a simple piety, an adherence to the church's values in the routine of home and office.

"Whether we are bishops, priests or members of the laity, we are called to holiness," Cote said. "God, our loving father, has called each of us regardless of our position in life, irrespective of our daily tasks, without concern for our strengths and weaknesses, to be His holy people."

Throughout his homily, Cote's pronoun of choice was "we." In his first moments as bishop, he placed himself on an even plane with the people in the pews.

"He seems to be very open and warm," John King of St. Bernard's parish in Rockville said after the Mass.

In statements to the press, Cote has said that listening to the needs of priests and laity will be his first move. He vows not to be a distant leader, but rather one who will circulate broadly in order to assess the needs of the diocese.

"The first thing I have to do is learn what Norwich is, who its people are," he said in an interview last week.

In his homily Wednesday, Cote told a story of meeting one of those people right after he arrived in the city last week. The bishop said that as he was trying to open his front door, the mailman angled his hand through the mail slot in a vigorous, if faceless, welcome.

"You have no mail today, bishop, but be sure it will be delivered on time. Welcome!" Cote quoted him.

The other salient message of Cote's homily was the unity he hopes to bring to the diocese. At a time when the Catholic Church nationwide has been fractured by sexual abuse scandals, Cote said twice he was "confident that we can face the future in unity and hope."

He absorbed this idea of unity during the years he had direct contact with the papacy. He earned a master's degree in theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome and was ordained a priest by Pope Paul VI. He later worked at the Apostolic Nunciature, the Vatican's embassy in Washington, D.C.

The diverse sectors of the Norwich diocese united Wednesday in celebration of Cote's arrival. The liturgy was read in Spanish and English, and the Prayer of the Faithful, recited by the congregation at the end of Mass, was in Creole, Portugese and French as well.

Jewish, Lutheran and Episcopalian emissaries attended the service. The Pintor family of Sagrado Corazon parish in Windham arrived in traditional Mexican dress.

"At the installment, you could see all the different groups," said Danny Holtsdaw of the Church of the Holy Family in Hebron. "There was a message of inclusion for all the different lives served by the diocese. You can see what [Cote's] commitment is."

k.moran@theday.com