Auxiliary Bishop

As an adviser to the bishop of Brooklyn, N.Y., in the early 1980s, then-Auxiliary Bishop Anthony J. Bevilacqua recommended that a sexually abusive priest wishing to return after treatment "seek an assignment outside the diocese," according to letters released Tuesday by an advocacy group. The Rev. Roman Ferraro went on to the Diocese of Metuchen, N.J., in which he molested two young boys a few years later. The victims reached an out-of-court settlement with the diocese. In 2004, Ferraro was convicted of child sexual assault for abusing a Massachusetts boy in the 1970s.

The Most Rev. Joseph P. McFadden, an approachable cleric and former basketball coach known as a "bishop of the people," took his place this week as the 10th bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg. McFadden, 63, who served the Archdiocese of Philadelphia for six years as an auxiliary bishop, was officially installed Wednesday during a 2 1/2-hour liturgy at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Harrisburg, a couple of blocks from the Capitol. Hundreds of white-clad priests from around the 15-county diocese, as well as many from Philadelphia, filled up the half-hour opening procession, followed by nearly 30 bishops in peaked miters and several archbishops, including Cardinal Justin Rigali of Philadelphia and Cardinal William H. Keeler of Baltimore.

Bishop Joseph P. McFadden, an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, has been named bishop of the 244,000-member Diocese of Harrisburg. McFadden, 63, will become the 10th bishop of Harrisburg at his installation Aug. 18. He succeeds Bishop Kevin Rhoades, who left last year to head the Fort Wayne-South Bend, Ind., diocese. "I come with only one agenda, and that is to share with you my faith in Jesus Christ," McFadden said at a Tuesday news conference in Harrisburg.

Bishop Joseph P. McFadden, an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, has been named bishop of the 244,000-member Diocese of Harrisburg. McFadden, 63, will become the 10th Bishop of Harrisburg at his installation August 18. He succeeds Bishop Kevin Rhoades, who left last year to head the Ft. Wayne-South Bend, Ind. diocese. "I come with only one agenda, and that is to share with you my faith in Jesus Christ," McFadden, 63, said at a Tuesday news conference in Harrisburg.

Msgr. John J. McIntyre, longtime secretary to Cardinals Justin Rigali and Anthony J. Bevilacqua, has been named the newest auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. McIntyre, 46, succeeds Auxiliary Bishop Robert P. Maginnis, 76, who will retire when McIntyre is consecrated a bishop on Aug. 6. With his voice at times strong and then choked with emotion during a news conference Tuesday, McIntyre thanked Rigali, his parents, and "my brother priests" for their support of his ministry over the years.

Francis P. Thomas Jr., 83, who rose from driving gasoline trucks to helping design control rooms in nuclear power plants, died of pneumonia Feb. 3 at St. Mary Manor in Lansdale, where he had lived since 2007. One of his sons is the Most Rev. Daniel E. Thomas, an auxiliary bishop of Philadelphia, who, among other things, oversees the diocesan seminary and newspaper. "He did not graduate high school," Bishop Thomas said of his father. "He left high school to support his family.

RE "Consolidation on the Table at Catholic Schools": I believe it is vitally important that we continue a positive discussion about the future of Catholic education, which illustrates why I gladly participated in your cover story about the challenges we face related to enrollment. As I stated, we are firmly committed, despite the formidable challenges, to maintain the archdiocese's 100-year legacy of offering parents the option to provide their children a superior academic education accompanied by a daily focus on moral and spiritual development.

Bishop Joseph Martino, head of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Scranton and one of the most fervent pro-life voices in the nation, is widely reported to be resigning next week after just six years in the office and long before traditional retirement age. Martino, 62, who served as a priest and auxiliary bishop in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, has rarely appeared in public during his term in the 350,000-member Scranton diocese. Yet he has not shied from controversy, denouncing pro-choice politicians, theologically liberal academics, and Catholic teachers' unions.

The Rev. Joseph R. Cistone, an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, has been named bishop of Saginaw, Mich., by Pope Benedict XVI. Cistone, 60, will be installed July 28, the fifth anniversary of his ordination as a bishop. He succeeds the Most Rev. Robert Carlson, who left Saginaw last month to become archbishop of St. Louis. The Diocese of Saginaw counts 120,000 Catholic members. Cistone was in Saginaw yesterday for the announcement. In a statement he said it was "humbling and exciting to be given the opportunity to serve God's people as a diocesan bishop.