Archbishop Bernard Hebda is the 12th bishop or archbishop to lead the 166-year-old Archdiocese of
St. Paul and Minneapolis, with its 825,000 Catholics and 187 parishes. He succeeds a list of bishops and archbishops with varied backgrounds and impressive legacies.
More than 150 years after Father Louis Hennepin traveled down the Mississippi River and first saw what in 1680 he named St. Anthony Falls — the site of present-day Minneapolis — French missionaries came to Minnesota filled with zeal to bring the faith to native tribes.
Those who have had some close-up contact with Archbishop Bernard Hebda during his brief time in Minnesota say they like what they’ve seen in the new ordinary of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.
The needs of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis may be difficult, Archbishop Emeritus Harry Flynn said, but he thinks Archbishop Bernard Hebda “is the leader we are looking for.”
A month before his installation as Archbishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis, Archbishop Bernard Hebda sat down with The Catholic Spirit for a broad interview. He spoke about his mentors, his life before the seminary, and his hopes and prayers for the archdiocese.
When Archbishop Bernard Hebda — then Father Hebda — was asked by his bishop in 1996 to move to Rome to work on the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, he didn’t want to go. Despite a degree in canon law and experience living in Rome while studying at the Pontifical North American College, the priest was happy where he was: Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania, an hour’s drive north of Pittsburgh.
Humble. Down to earth. Intelligent. Funny. Prayerful.
Talk to anyone who’s worked with Archbishop Bernard Hebda, and they’re likely to use one of those words to describe him. As a priest and, for the last six-and-a-half years, as a bishop, they say Archbishop Hebda has let his joyful personality guide all his interactions with God’s people.
Before he joined seminary, Archbishop Bernard Hebda spent a year working at the largest law firm in Pittsburgh, Reed Smith.
“I loved it,” he said — a fact that surprised him, since even in law school he hadn’t imagined working as a lawyer, although he was intrigued by the subject matter.
Katie Hebda, 19, said it’s special to have an archbishop for an uncle. On the day of Archbishop Bernard Hebda’s installation Mass May 13 at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul, the incoming sophomore at Flagler College in St. Augustine, Florida, described her uncle as witty, kind and awesome.
Sister Maureen O’Brien admits that when she learned of Archbishop Bernard Hebda’s appointment to the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, she thought, “Oh, no. Poor Bernie.”
“On one level, I’m just so proud of him and grateful for the gifts he brings to the Church,” said Sister Maureen, 72, a Sister of Charity. “And on a personal level, I just feel sad that he’s been uprooted.”
Tom Ryan has many memories of growing up in Pittsburgh with Bernard Hebda — among them, playing tennis and going on family vacations.
“I always was so jealous that he got a deep, rich tan,” Ryan joked.
But his fondest memories involve sitting around the Hebdas’ kitchen table, visiting with Bernard and his mom, Helen, over Diet Cokes. It was a second home to him.
