{"id":258840,"date":"2017-12-05T08:53:57","date_gmt":"2017-12-05T13:53:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/aleteia.org\/?post_type=post&p=258840"},"modified":"2017-12-05T08:53:57","modified_gmt":"2017-12-05T13:53:57","slug":"breaking-son-of-a-deacon-to-be-bishop-of-richmond","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/deaconsbench\/2017\/12\/breaking-son-of-a-deacon-to-be-bishop-of-richmond\/","title":{"rendered":"BREAKING: Son of a deacon named bishop of Richmond"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

This is big.\u00a0<\/a> <\/strong><\/p>\n

It may well be the first time the son of a deacon has ever been named the ordinary of a diocese\u2014at least, in modern times:<\/p>\n

Pope Francis has appointed Bishop Barry Knestout to lead the diocese of Richmond, Virginia. Knestout, currently an auxiliary bishop in the archdiocese of Washington, will succeed Bishop Francis DiLorenzo who was bishop from 2004 until his death in August.<\/p>\n

Knestout was ordained a priest in the Archdiocese of Washington by Cardinal James Hickey in 1989. He went on to serve as priest-secretary to Hickey from 1994 until his death in 2004. In 2008, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him as an auxiliary bishop to the archdiocese.<\/p>\n

Knestout is one of nine children. His younger brother Mark also serves as a priest in the archdiocese, and his father, who died in 1997, was a deacon. At his installation mass in 2008, Knestout highlighted his family\u2019s Catholic heritage and lauded his mother for her efforts.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou and Dad have given your children the most precious gift you could give: Faith, and that continues to bear fruit,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Cardinal Donald Wuerl, archbishop of Washington, praised the pope\u2019s decision to appoint Knestout to Richmond as \u201cgood news and reason for us to rejoice with the Diocese of Richmond.<\/p>\n

\u201cBishop Knestout carries with him the affection, respect and admiration of all of us with whom he so generously gave his time and efforts,\u201d said Wuerl in a statement on Tuesday.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

He grew up in a large family<\/strong><\/a> in suburban Washington\u2014part of a set of twins and, significantly, the son of a deacon:<\/p>\n

For nine months Caroline Knestout, Washington Auxiliary Bishop Barry Knestout\u2019s mother, thought she was having a baby \u2014 just one.<\/span><\/p>\n

Although she occasionally complained to her doctor about feeling like the pregnancy was a little different from the five she had had before, nothing came of it. Her doctor listened for the heartbeat with a stethoscope because sonograms weren\u2019t used yet. It was confirmed \u2014 one baby and one heartbeat.<\/p>\n

But five minutes after she delivered her first child \u2013 Bishop Barry Knestout \u2013 at 6 lbs., 12 oz. she delivered a second baby \u2013 Thomas Knestout at 6 lbs., 10 oz.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy dad almost passed out,\u201d Thomas Knestout said people told him later. The doctor, for whom Bishop Barry Knestout is named, also had a moment of shock while the idea of \u201ctwins\u201d registered, he said.<\/p>\n

Thomas Knestout, whose name means twin, said his father \u2013 the late Deacon Thomas Knestout, who headed the archdiocesan office for the permanent diaconate for many years \u2013 is also a twin. The Knestouts raised nine children \u2013 three girls and six boys.<\/p>\n

Growing up, both Bishop-elect Knestout and Thomas Knestout had a love for drawing, Thomas Knestout said. Bishop Knestout eventually harnessed his love for drawing and earned his bachelor\u2019s degree in architecture from the University of Maryland, his brother added.<\/p>\n

Of the twins, Thomas Knestout, not Bishop Knestout, was the twin who got in trouble most often.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf anybody did something, I was the first one to get blamed,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Nowadays, Thomas Knestout and Bishop Knestout travel on completely different career paths. Thomas is a realtor and businessman. Bishop Knestout is part of the Church\u2019s hierarchy.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I blogged about Bishop Barry\u2019s family nearly a decade ago<\/a><\/strong>, and the impact of his father\u2019s vocation on him:<\/p>\n

Bishop-elect Knestout was baptized at St. Ambrose Parish in Cheverly, and later grew up as a member of St. Pius X Parish in Bowie, with five brothers and three sisters. He is the son of the late Deacon Thomas Knestout, who headed the archdiocesan office for the permanent diaconate for many years, and Caroline Knestout, who worked as a nurse. In a 1989 interview, the future bishop said the example of his family played a key role in his vocation. Deacon Knestout would bring his children along with him as he ministered to a hospital that served people with disabilities.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cI was a seventh grader (then). He (dad) would cart us along, my brothers and me\u2026 We as a family felt very much a part of his vocation,\u201d the future bishop said. He said he was also inspired by the \u201cquiet service\u201d of his mom.<\/p>\n

In June 1989, Deacon Thomas Knestout and his son, Deacon Barry Knestout, served as deacons together at Mass for the first time at St. Pius X Church, bowing together reverently before the altar. Caroline Knestout said then that the biggest similarity between father and son was \u201ctheir love for the Lord.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

Ad multos annos!<\/em><\/p>\n

Photo: Archdiocese of Washington<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This is big.\u00a0 It may well be the first time the son of a deacon has ever been named the ordinary of a diocese\u2014at least, in modern times: Pope Francis has appointed Bishop Barry Knestout to lead the diocese of Richmond, Virginia. Knestout, currently an auxiliary bishop in the archdiocese of Washington, will succeed Bishop […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":132,"featured_media":258850,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11252],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-258840","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-open-mind"],"yoast_head":"\nBREAKING: Son of a deacon named bishop of Richmond<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"This is big.\u00a0 It may well be the first time the son of a deacon has ever been named the ordinary of a diocese\u2014at least, in modern times: Pope Francis has\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/deaconsbench\/2017\/12\/breaking-son-of-a-deacon-to-be-bishop-of-richmond\/\" 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