{"id":1981,"date":"2013-01-10T21:02:00","date_gmt":"2013-01-10T21:02:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/news\/next-bishop-of-limerick-ireland-seeks-new-start\/"},"modified":"2013-01-10T21:02:00","modified_gmt":"2013-01-10T21:02:00","slug":"next-bishop-of-limerick-ireland-seeks-new-start-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2013\/01\/next-bishop-of-limerick-ireland-seeks-new-start-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Next bishop of Limerick, Ireland seeks new start"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Limerick, Ireland, Jan 10, 2013 \/ 02:02 pm (CNA\/EWTN News<\/a>).- The priest named as the next Bishop of Limerick called for a \u201cnew start\u201d three years after the diocese\u2019s previous bishop resigned in the face of severe criticism of his handling of sex abuse cases.<\/p>\n

\tPope Benedict XVI named Father Brendan Leahy, a 52-year-old theology professor at St. Patrick\u2019s College Maynooth, as the Diocese of Limerick\u2019s new bishop Thursday.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cBeing appointed Bishop of Limerick is certainly not something I foresaw as part of my life\u2019s journey, but I am very grateful to Pope Benedict for opening up for me a new stage in life among the people and places of the historical and renowned diocese of Limerick,\u201d Bishop-designate Leahy said Jan. 10 at a gathering at Limerick\u2019s St. John\u2019s Cathedral.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cConfidence comes certainly not from me. I am only too conscious of the contrast between who I am and the task ahead of me. But I recognize that the Church is first and foremost based on a promise that does not deceive: Jesus\u2019 promise: 'remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age,'\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\tBishop-designate Leahy was born in Dublin in 1960 and ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Dublin in 1986. He is a member of the Focolare movement.<\/p>\n

\tHe has published several books on topics like the Mass, the Stations of the Cross and Pope John Paul II. He is an expert in the theology of Hans Urs von Balthasar and helped organize a well-received three-day theological symposium ahead of the International Eucharistic Congress in Dublin in 2012.<\/p>\n

\tThose in attendance at the announcement of the bishop-designate\u2019s appointment included apostolic nuncio to Ireland Archbishop Charles Brown, diocesan administrator Fr. Tony Mullins and former Bishop of Limerick Donal Murray, the Diocese of Limerick said.<\/p>\n

\tFr. Mullins welcomed the bishop-to-be.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cFr. Brendan Leahy\u2019s appointment as our bishop and shepherd comes at a time of great challenge. But every challenge presents us with a new opportunity to proclaim the good news of the gospel,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\tBishop Murray, 72, resigned from the diocese in December 2009 after an Irish government report found he had acted \u201cinexcusably\u201d by not investigating serial sex abuser Fr. Tom Naughton when he was an auxiliary bishop of Dublin in the 1980s. The findings came amid continued reaction and controversy over the Catholic bishops\u2019 response to the sexual abuse of minors.<\/p>\n

\tBishop-designate Leahy said Catholics in Ireland have been through \u201ca very dark moment\u201d but he affirmed that God is \u201cnot absent\u201d and invites people to \u201clook at things with new eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\u201cThat the Church is going through a period of great transition is not new news and yet it is good news,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cGod is indeed at work in our lives. In response to God\u2019s action, we must do all we can to make sure that Church settings are always good places to be, where genuine mutual love is experienced,\u201d the bishop-designate continued. He noted the \u201crobust measures\u201d the diocese has in place to protect children.<\/p>\n

\tBishop-designate Leahy has studied at many institutions including the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. He has served as a corresponding member of the Pontifical Academy of Theology and is a visiting lecturer at the Sophia University Institute in Florence.<\/p>\n

\tHe is the chairman of the Archdiocese of Dublin\u2019s Diocesan Ecumenical Committee and secretary of the Irish bishops\u2019 Advisory Committee on Ecumenism .<\/p>\n

\tBishop-designate Leahy prayed for those who contribute to Limerick\u2019s community and he thanked the \u201cvery committed\u201d laity of his diocese, the vowed religious, clergy, and Christians of other denominations.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cIn particular I greet people who feel they are hanging on in the Church by their finger tips and all who are struggling with their faith,\u201d he said. \u201cI invite you not to give up. This is a Year of Faith. It can be a new start for us all.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tHe entrusted himself to the Virgin Mary and asked Catholics for their prayers.<\/p>\n

\tThe Diocese of Limerick has 171,000 Catholics in a population of 178,000. The diocese has 167 priests, with 89 active in ministry in 94 churches. There are 411 vowed religious in the diocese.<\/p>\n

\n<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Limerick, Ireland, Jan 10, 2013 \/ 02:02 pm (CNA\/EWTN News).- The priest named as the next Bishop of Limerick called for a “new start” three years after the diocese’s previous bishop resigned in the face of severe criticism of his hand…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1031,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1981","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-europe"],"yoast_head":"\nNext bishop of Limerick, Ireland seeks new start<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Limerick, Ireland, Jan 10, 2013 \/ 02:02 pm (CNA\/EWTN News).- The priest named as the next Bishop of Limerick called for a “new start” three years after the diocese’s previous bishop resigned in the face of severe criticism of his hand...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, 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