A new era is about to begin in the Catholic Church in Boston, as 80-year-old Cardinal Seán O’Malley steps down as archbishop of Boston and the Most Rev. Richard Henning is named by Pope Francis to succeed him. The bishop of Providence, Rhode Island, for the past year, Henning will be the tenth bishop and seventh archbishop of the Archdiocese of Boston.
The two held a news conference Monday morning, with O’Malley reflecting on his 21 years as archbishop in Boston — most notably, on his appointment at the height of the clergy sex abuse scandal that rocked the Catholic Church in Boston and around the world.
“When I arrived, it was at a time of great crisis and great pain because of the terrible scourge of sexual abuse. But despite all the challenges that we have, I am filled with hope. And I see the faith of our people,” O’Malley said.
In 2002, the Catholic clergy sex abuse scandal resulted in the resignation of Cardinal Bernard Law after a Boston Globe investigation and five Roman Catholic priests were criminally prosecuted for sexually abusing minors. The Archdiocese of Boston paid $85 million in a legal settlement with almost 550 survivors the following year, which was then the largest settlement in the history of the U.S. Catholic Church.
O’Malley, who is 80 years old, said 59-year-old Henning will be installed as Archbishop of Boston on October 31, 2024, at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Boston. According to O’Malley, the archdiocese includes more than 250 parishes and more than 100 Catholic schools.
Henning thanked Pope Francis for the conferral of the new mission and admitted getting the appointment came as a surprise after his two previous ministry calls — one as an auxiliary bishop, and then last year as Bishop of Providence.
“This one was the most shocking of the three because I had only been in Providence a short time, so I guess I felt safe where I was,” Henning said. “And then he told me the news. I think it took me about three minutes to respond. I had to go sit down first. You know, because my first thought, really, was: The people in Rhode Island, they have been so good to me for a year.”
He expressed his gratitude to O’Malley and the pope for the calling, and said he was grateful to God “for the abundance of life made possible by his love and his grace.”
He added how much he’ll miss his work in Providence, “I hope you understand, those of you in Boston today, that I do feel a special tug in my heart today for my beloved Rhode Islanders. This has been an extraordinary year with them. I’ve only been with them for a brief time, but it’s been a very intense and joyful time.”
Gov. Maura Healey congratulated O’Malley on his retirement in a statement Monday.
“[O’Malley] will be remembered for his lifesaving support for families experiencing homelessness, his advocacy for more affordable housing, his support for victims of human trafficking and his global leadership in the fight against climate change,” Healey wrote Monday. “I congratulate Bishop Henning on his appointment and look forward to working with him.”
A 2014 survey from the Pew Research Center found that 30% of people in the Boston area consider themselves Catholic, still the largest religious affiliation apart from “unaffiliated” despite shrinking enrollment. The same survey showed Boston-area Catholics are typically white and that 1 in 6 are Latino.
Henning, who like O’Malley is fluent in Spanish, was born in Rockville Centre, New York, to Richard and Maureen Henning, the first of five children. He grew up on Long Island and received his training for the priesthood at the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception in Huntington, New York, and was ordained in 1992.
When asked at the press conference Monday if he could have done more in handling the clergy sex abuse scandal and lack of transparency and the bankruptcy that followed in the Rockville Centre Diocese, where Henning worked as an auxiliary bishop, Henning deferred and defended the actions and decisions of Bishop John Barres.
Henning expressed a message of sympathy and understanding to the lapsed Catholics of Greater Boston who left the church over the institution’s handling of the clergy sex abuse scandal, “My message to them is: I’ll listen to their, you know, their pain, their woundedness. I certainly lived through that as well. You know, when these crimes and sins were committed, I was also a child. Then, you know, I’m grateful to God that I was not affected by it personally.”
Henning said survivors deserve a listening heart.
“If there are Catholics who are scandalized, I understand why they’re scandalized. It’s scandalous. And it’s certainly been painful for me over the course of my life. But it has not made me lose my faith in God, or my faith in the possibility of reconciliation and new life — even in the midst of what may feel devastating,” he said.
Attorney Mitchell Garabedian, known for representing sexual abuse victims worldwide for decades including Boston, Providence and Rockville Centre during the Catholic priest sexual abuse scandal, including cases against the Archdiocese of Boston, issued a statement.
“To most clergy sexual abuse victims, the replacement of Cardinal O’Malley by Bishop Henning is business as usual within the Catholic Church. Bishop Henning does not have track record of protecting children through either strongly speaking out against clergy sexual abuse or supporting substantive change. Victims believe Bishop Henning will basically ignore the ugly problem of clergy sexual abuse and hope it just goes away. Bishop Henning is another company man.”
