Bishop transfers to Indiana

HARRISBURG - According to an announcement made by Pope Benedict XVI Saturday, Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades will be leaving the Diocese of Harrisburg in 2010 and transferring to Indiana.

Rhoades will be installed as the new bishop of the Fort Wayne-South Bend Diocese, the ninth person to hold the position. He is scheduled to be installed to the post Jan. 13, 2010. He succeeds Bishop John D'Arcy, who served the faithful for more than 24 years as bishop.

A press conference discussing Rhoades' appointment is set for 2 p.m. today in Harrisburg. Rhoades met with the press in Indiana on Saturday.

"I am both humbled and honored by Pope Benedict XVI's appointment of me as ninth Bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend. I am particularly humbled to succeed Bishop John D'Arcy, who has served the faithful of this diocese with such great devotion and love for over 24 years. I am deeply grateful to Bishop D'Arcy for his very warm welcome and I look forward to learning from him about this wonderful diocese as I prepare to become your new shepherd," Rhoades said at the press conference.

The Very Rev. Francis Karwacki, a classmate of Rhoades, said the bishop will be missed in this area.

"Our loss is definitely Indiana's gain," Karwacki said Saturday. "He has done so many wonderful things in the area and the diocese, and he is greatly loved by all."

Karwacki, the pastor of the Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and the Dean of the Northumberland Deanery, said that in his five-year tenure as bishop, Rhoades worked to bring several new programs to Harrisburg.

"He created a new office for people with disabilities, did work with prison ministries and made many visits to Lourdes Regional School in the area," Karwacki said. "He will be wonderful for that diocese."

In a statement released by the diocese, Rhoades expressed his feelings about leaving Pennsylvania.

"Naturally, it will not be easy for me to bid farewell to my family and friends, my brother priests and the faithful of the Harrisburg diocese," he said. "I express my deep gratitude to them for their support, prayers and affection. It has been a tremendous blessing in my life to serve as Bishop at Harrisburg and indeed to have served as a priest of the Diocese of Harrisburg for 26 years."

The Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend has five Catholic colleges and universities, including the internationally renowned University of Notre Dame.

"I am looking forward to visiting the parishes, schools and other communities of my new diocese. My only previous visit to this diocese was in 2006 when I visited the University of Notre Dame for a game between my two favorite college football teams, Notre Dame and Penn State," Rhoades said. "I remember well celebrating Holy Mass in the beautiful Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus."

The bishop said that he accepted the Pope's appointment "with faith and trust in the Lord." He asked for the people's prayers that he might be "a true shepherd after the heart of Christ."

"I pledge to the people of my new diocese my love and my prayers. I was very happy to learn that the Blessed Virgin Mary, under the title of the Immaculate Conception, is the patroness of the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend," he said. "Let us implore her intercession that we may fulfill the task which Christ has entrusted to us. Our Blessed Mother accompanies us with her maternal care as we journey together on our earthly pilgrimage of faith, hope and love."

The Diocese of Harrisburg awaits Pope Benedict's appointment of a new bishop. If one is not appointed by Jan. 13, a group of priests, called The Consulters, will select an administrator until an appointment is made.

Sign up for Text Alerts

Sign up for e-mail newsletters