Seven Days, Four Appointments in Canadian Episcopacy

Matthew Harrison

March 1, 2011
There's been lots of changes in the last week on the Episcopal scene in Canada.
Last Tuesday Pope Benedict XVI made two appointments involving Auxiliary Bishops of the Archdiocese of Quebec.
The first involved Bishop Gérald Cyprien Lacroix.  He has been named the new Archbishop of Quebec City, succeeding Cardinal Marc Ouellet, who was appointed as the Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops last June.  Bishop Lacroix has served as the Diocesan Administrator of the Archdiocese since Cardinal Ouellet's appointment.  He has been an Auxiliary Bishop in Quebec City since April 2009, and has been on the Executive Council of the World Conference of Secular Institutes and the Ad Hoc Committee on Life and Family of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops.  The Archdiocese of Quebec City has a Catholic population of over one million people in 220 parishes and missions, served by 431 diocesan priests, 275 religious order priests, 93 permanent deacons, 2,916 religious Sisters and Brothers, and 67 lay pastoral workers.
The second announcement involved Auxiliary Bishop Gilles Lemay.  Bishop Lemay was appointed the new Bishop of Amos, Quebec, replacing retiring Bishop Eugène Tremblay.  Bishop Lemay had served Quebec City as an Auxiliary since February 2005.  He is the CCCB liaison bishop with the French Sector of the Pontifical Missions Societies, and served as a missionary in Paraguay for 15 years. His new diocese has a Catholic population of just over 95-thousand faithful in 60 parishes and missions, served by 8 diocesan priests, 15 religious order priests and 78 religious Sisters and Brothers.  Bishop Lemay will be installed as Bishop of Amos on April 15th.
Today, Episcopal appoints from the Holy Father focused on eastern Canada, specifically Newfoundland.
Bishop Anthony Daniels, presently the Auxiliary Bishop of London, Ontario, has been named the new Bishop of the Diocese of Grand Falls, Newfoundland.  The Diocese had been in the pastoral care of Archbishop Martin Currie, who is also the Archbishop of St. John's.  With the announcement, Archbishop Currie will only be responsible for the one Archdiocese.  Bishop Daniels has been the Auxiliary of the Diocese of London since November 2004.  The Diocese of Grand Falls has a Catholic population of nearly 36-thousand people in 70 parishes and missions, served by 28 diocesan priests, 21 religious Sisters and two lay pastoral assistants.
Since April 2006 Bishop Peter Hundt has served the Archdiocese of Toronto as an Auxiliary Bishop.  He will now be the new bishop for Corner Brook and Labrador.  He succeeds Bishop Douglas Crosby, OMI, who became the Bishop of the Diocese of Hamilton in November of last year.  Bishop Hundt is currently the Chair of the Standing Committee on Canon Law of the CCCB, as well as liaison Bishop with the English Canadian Sector of the Pontifical Mission Societies. The Diocese of Corner Brook and Labrador has a Catholic population of just over 32-thousand faithful in 64 parishes and missions, served by 26 diocesan priests, five priests who are members of religious orders, 27 women religious and five lay pastoral assistants.
Let us pray for these men in their new appointments, and all the leaders of the Church in Canada, that they may be faithful to the mission that God has called them!