COMMENTARY:The brutal murder of Bishop David O’Connell has aggravated the episcopal shortfall in the largest diocese in the US.
Archbishop José H. Gomez places Christian symbols; The Book fo Gospels, a Cross and Miter, on the coffin of Bishop David OConnell, before leading a procession at Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, in downtown on March 3, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (photo: Jay L. Clendenin/Pool / Getty)
Shock and grief were the initial reactions to the killing of Los Angeles Auxiliary Bishop David G. O’Connell. Beyond the horror of the brutal murder, however, lies a prosaic fact: With the death of Bishop O’Connell, the huge archdiocese faces an episcopal shortfall in one of the busiest seasons of the year for auxiliary bishops.
Bishop O’Connell was shot to death, apparently in his sleep, during the night of Feb. 18. Police charged Carlos Medina, husband of the archbishop’s housekeeper, with the crime.
Archbishop José Gomez of Los Angeles did not refer directly to these events in a Feb. 24 Lenten statement called “Learning to Forgive,” but his words seemed to fit what had happened. “None of this is easy. Jesus knows that, too. … But we have the power to forgive because in him we have been forgiven.”
While the message was comforting, it left unanswered the practical question facing the archdiocese.
In Los Angeles as elsewhere, spring means confirmations, and in dioceses with auxiliary bishops they and the ordinary share the workload of administering the sacrament to children and young people. That is no small chore in Los Angeles which, with 4,350,000 Catholics and 238 parishes organized in five “pastoral regions,” is by far the country’s largest.
Bishop O’Connell’s death brought the number of active Los Angeles bishops to just three—Archbishop Gomez and two auxiliaries — Bishop Marc Trudeau and Bishop Alejandro Aclan. But Bishop Aclan is recovering from a stroke suffered last summer.
By contrast, the Archdiocese of Chicago (2,093,000 Catholics, 221 parishes) has eight active bishops — Cardinal Blase Cupich, the ordinary, and seven auxiliaries. Even the comparatively small Archdiocese of Washington (667,000 Catholics, 139 parishes and missions) has five active bishops — Cardinal Wilton Gregory and four auxiliaries.
What accounts for the disparity in episcopal manpower between well-stocked dioceses like Chicago and Washington and the huge, undermanned Archdiocese of Los Angeles? Unforeseen accidents of timing certainly have something to do with it — Los Angeles had an additional auxiliary bishop until last June, when Bishop Robert Barron, who had served there since 2015, was named Bishop of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota.
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