Expressing Advent joy and gratitude to Pope Francis, Archbishop Bernard Hebda of St. Paul and Minneapolis congratulated Holy Cross Father Patrick Neary, pastor of a parish in Portland, Oregon, on his appointment as the next bishop of St. Cloud.
“I very much look forward to collaborating with him as he joins the bishops of our state in providing pastoral leadership after the heart of Jesus,” Archbishop Hebda said in a statement Dec. 15, the same day Bishop-designate Neary’s appointment was announced in Washington by Archbishop Christophe Pierre, the Vatican nuncio to the United States.
Bishop Kettler, who has headed the Diocese of St. Cloud since 2013, turned 78 Nov. 26. Canon law requires bishops to submit their resignation to the pope at age 75.
Bishop-designate Neary, 59, has been pastor of Holy Redeemer Parish in Portland since 2018. He was district supervisor of East Africa for his religious order, Congregation of Holy Cross, from 2011 to 2018, and before that was director of the McCauley Formation house in Nairobi for a year.
Archbishop Hebda cited Bishop-designate Neary’s experience in consecrated life, seminary formation, missionary outreach, and parish leadership in making him “a fitting successor to Bishop Donald Kettler, who will long be remembered as a humble and generous shepherd.”
The archbishop asked the faithful to join him “in praying for Bishop-elect Neary, for Bishop Kettler, and for the faithful of the Diocese of Saint Cloud at this time of transition.”
The archbishop’s statement can be found at archspm.org/statement-regarding-bishop-elect-rev-patrick-neary-csc/.
A news conference with Bishop-designate Neary was scheduled for 10 a.m. Dec. 15 in St. Cloud. It will be livestreamed at bit.ly/3iXtX62.
