Robert Finn (bishop)
Encyclopedia
Robert William Finn is the current bishop
of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-Saint Joseph
, having succeeded Raymond James Boland
on May 24, 2005.
Bishop Finn studied for the priesthood at archdiocesan seminaries and in Rome. He is a 1971 graduate of St. Louis Preparatory Seminary North, and received a B.A. in Philosophy at Cardinal Glennon College in 1975. While a seminarian at the North American College in Rome, he earned a Master's in Theology in 1979 from the Angelicum University. He served as a deacon in 1978-79 at St. Charles Borromeo Parish, in the Archdiocese of Westminster. He was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Saint Louis
at All Souls Parish Church on July 7, 1979.
In 1989, the future Bishop Finn received a Master's in Education Administration from St. Louis University and was appointed administrator of St. Dominic High School in O'Fallon, Missouri. During his tenure at St. Dominic's, he assisted the pastors of area parishes. He served the St. Dominic High School community until 1996.
In 1996, he was appointed Director of Continuing Formation of Priests and, in 1999, while continuing as CFP Director, he was named editor of The St. Louis Review, the weekly newspaper of the Archdiocese of St. Louis.
Then-Father Finn was named by Blessed Pope John Paul II a Chaplain to His Holiness in August 2003, upon the recommendation of the then-Archbishop of St. Louis, Justin Francis Rigali (later Cardinal and Archbishop of Philadelphia), who had named him to the posts he was then exercising (the honor was bestowed while he was still serving as CFP Director and editor of the St. Louis Review; Father Finn received the title of Reverend Monsignor). Monsignor Finn served in several other capacities including Chairman of the Archdiocesan Committee on the Diaconate.
in January 2004, Monsignor Finn was named two months later as coadjutor bishop (with right of succession) of the diocese of Kansas City-Saint Joseph. Monsignor Finn was consecrated to the episcopate on May 3, 2004, at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Kansas City. He is also now a Fourth Degree member of the Knights of Columbus
. On May 24, 2005, the Vatican accepted Bishop Boland's request for retirement. As Coadjutor, Bishop Finn automatically succeeded him as sixth bishop of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph.
In April 2005, Bishop Finn became a member of Priestly Society of the Holy Cross, which is linked to the Catholic personal prelature
Opus Dei
. In an interview with the Catholic Key, Bishop Finn told of how Opus Dei had helped open his heart to the work of the Holy Spirit. Bishop Finn is not technically a member of the Opus Dei prelature, as he is a diocesan priest, but he is able to receive spiritual formation from the prelature in a similar way as its members do.
Upon his arrival in the diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph in 2005, Bishop Finn said that vocations to the priesthood and religious life would be seen as a 'super-priority' for his diocese. Under his guidance, the diocese has continued to pour considerable spiritual, human, and financial resources into efforts to encourage vocations. Before Finn's arrival, in the 2003/2004 seminary school year, the diocese reported to have nine seminarians. For 2007/2008, the diocese reported that there were 24 men studying for diocesan priesthood. In March of 2006, Bishop Finn invited to his diocese a small order of Benedictine nuns, now titled 'Benedictines of Mary, Queen of the Apostles'. With a contemplative charism of praying and sacrificing for the sanctification of priests, in addition to operating a vestment design company called "House of Ephesus", these nuns have also seen their numbers rise very quickly in recent years.
Bishop Finn currently serves on the Administrative and the Priorities and Plans Committees for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. He is Chairman of the Bishop's Task Force on the Life and Dignity of the Human Person.
The Board of Directors of the Institute on Religious Life (IRL) at their September annual meeting elected the Most Rev. Robert W. Finn, Bishop of Kansas City–St. Joseph as the organization’s new president. Bishop Finn succeeds the Most Rev. Thomas G. Doran, Bishop of Rockford, who served as IRL president since 1998.
In the report issued in September 2011, Graves said the key finding of the investigation was "that Diocesan leaders failed to follow their own policies and procedures for responding to reports" of sexual abuse by clergy.
in the United States.
in his diocese in accord with Indult provisions established during Pope John Paul II
's tenure, and welcomed the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest
to the diocese to celebrate Mass at St. Patrick's Oratory, the city's oldest church.
is a pledge to eliminate every single limit on abortions achieved over the last thirty-five years. The real freedom that is ours in Jesus Christ compels us, not to take life, but to defend it...Join me in calling upon Mary in this month of the rosary. In 1571, in the midst of the Battle of Lepanto
, when the future of Christian Europe was in the balance and the odds against them were overwhelming, prayer to Our Lady of the Rosary
brought the decisive victory. We ask her now to watch over our country and bring us the victory of life."
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-Saint Joseph
Roman Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-Saint Joseph
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-Saint Joseph is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the state of Missouri in the United States, erected on September 10, 1880, as the Diocese of Kansas City, with territories taken from the Archdiocese of Saint Louis. ...
, having succeeded Raymond James Boland
Raymond James Boland
Raymond James Boland, born February 8, 1932, in Ireland, was the second Roman Catholic Bishop of the Diocese of Birmingham in Alabama and the fifth Bishop of the Diocese of Kansas City-Saint Joseph....
on May 24, 2005.
Early life and ordination
Bishop Finn is the second of five children of the late Theodore (Pat) and Betty Schneider Finn. His family includes three sisters—Mrs. Kathleen Fornwalt, Chesterfield, Missouri; Mrs. Patricia Bax, St. Charles, Missouri; and Mrs. Nancy Meyer, Maryland Heights, Missouri—and one brother, Richard Finn, of Keller, Texas. Bishop Finn completed his elementary education at All Souls Catholic School in Overland, Missouri.Bishop Finn studied for the priesthood at archdiocesan seminaries and in Rome. He is a 1971 graduate of St. Louis Preparatory Seminary North, and received a B.A. in Philosophy at Cardinal Glennon College in 1975. While a seminarian at the North American College in Rome, he earned a Master's in Theology in 1979 from the Angelicum University. He served as a deacon in 1978-79 at St. Charles Borromeo Parish, in the Archdiocese of Westminster. He was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Saint Louis
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Louis
The Archdiocese of St. Louis is the Roman Catholic archdiocese that covers the City of St. Louis as well as the following Missouri counties: Franklin, Jefferson, Lincoln, Perry, Saint Charles, Saint Francois, Ste. Genevieve, St...
at All Souls Parish Church on July 7, 1979.
Pastoral work
Father Finn's first assignments were as associate pastor of two parishes in the Archdiocese of St. Louis. He later was appointed to the faculty of St. Francis Borgia Regional High School in Washington, Missouri, where he taught from 1983 -1989. During those years, he lived in residence and served as part-time pastoral associate in area parishes.In 1989, the future Bishop Finn received a Master's in Education Administration from St. Louis University and was appointed administrator of St. Dominic High School in O'Fallon, Missouri. During his tenure at St. Dominic's, he assisted the pastors of area parishes. He served the St. Dominic High School community until 1996.
In 1996, he was appointed Director of Continuing Formation of Priests and, in 1999, while continuing as CFP Director, he was named editor of The St. Louis Review, the weekly newspaper of the Archdiocese of St. Louis.
Then-Father Finn was named by Blessed Pope John Paul II a Chaplain to His Holiness in August 2003, upon the recommendation of the then-Archbishop of St. Louis, Justin Francis Rigali (later Cardinal and Archbishop of Philadelphia), who had named him to the posts he was then exercising (the honor was bestowed while he was still serving as CFP Director and editor of the St. Louis Review; Father Finn received the title of Reverend Monsignor). Monsignor Finn served in several other capacities including Chairman of the Archdiocesan Committee on the Diaconate.
Bishop
Having applied for membership in Opus DeiOpus Dei
Opus Dei, formally known as The Prelature of the Holy Cross and Opus Dei , is an organization of the Catholic Church that teaches that everyone is called to holiness and that ordinary life is a path to sanctity. The majority of its membership are lay people, with secular priests under the...
in January 2004, Monsignor Finn was named two months later as coadjutor bishop (with right of succession) of the diocese of Kansas City-Saint Joseph. Monsignor Finn was consecrated to the episcopate on May 3, 2004, at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Kansas City. He is also now a Fourth Degree member of the Knights of Columbus
Knights of Columbus
The Knights of Columbus is the world's largest Catholic fraternal service organization. Founded in the United States in 1882, it is named in honor of Christopher Columbus....
. On May 24, 2005, the Vatican accepted Bishop Boland's request for retirement. As Coadjutor, Bishop Finn automatically succeeded him as sixth bishop of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph.
In April 2005, Bishop Finn became a member of Priestly Society of the Holy Cross, which is linked to the Catholic personal prelature
Personal prelature
Personal prelature is an institutional structure of the Roman Catholic Church which comprises a prelate, clergy and possibly laity who undertake specific pastoral activities. Personal prelatures, similar to dioceses and military ordinariates, are under the governance of the Vatican's Congregation...
Opus Dei
Opus Dei
Opus Dei, formally known as The Prelature of the Holy Cross and Opus Dei , is an organization of the Catholic Church that teaches that everyone is called to holiness and that ordinary life is a path to sanctity. The majority of its membership are lay people, with secular priests under the...
. In an interview with the Catholic Key, Bishop Finn told of how Opus Dei had helped open his heart to the work of the Holy Spirit. Bishop Finn is not technically a member of the Opus Dei prelature, as he is a diocesan priest, but he is able to receive spiritual formation from the prelature in a similar way as its members do.
Upon his arrival in the diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph in 2005, Bishop Finn said that vocations to the priesthood and religious life would be seen as a 'super-priority' for his diocese. Under his guidance, the diocese has continued to pour considerable spiritual, human, and financial resources into efforts to encourage vocations. Before Finn's arrival, in the 2003/2004 seminary school year, the diocese reported to have nine seminarians. For 2007/2008, the diocese reported that there were 24 men studying for diocesan priesthood. In March of 2006, Bishop Finn invited to his diocese a small order of Benedictine nuns, now titled 'Benedictines of Mary, Queen of the Apostles'. With a contemplative charism of praying and sacrificing for the sanctification of priests, in addition to operating a vestment design company called "House of Ephesus", these nuns have also seen their numbers rise very quickly in recent years.
Bishop Finn currently serves on the Administrative and the Priorities and Plans Committees for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. He is Chairman of the Bishop's Task Force on the Life and Dignity of the Human Person.
The Board of Directors of the Institute on Religious Life (IRL) at their September annual meeting elected the Most Rev. Robert W. Finn, Bishop of Kansas City–St. Joseph as the organization’s new president. Bishop Finn succeeds the Most Rev. Thomas G. Doran, Bishop of Rockford, who served as IRL president since 1998.
Apology for lack of intervention
In May 2011, Bishop Finn apologized for his failure to act in a more timely manner in the case of a priest accused of engaging in inappropriate behavior with children. Bishop Finn told reporters that he failed to read a letter sent to the diocese a year earlier (May 2010) by a Catholic elementary school principal who was reporting numerous instances of inappropriate behavior. Bishop Finn's admission came five months after the diocese discovered questionable pictures of children on the priest's computer, and a week after the priest was arrested on child pornography charges.Independent investigation
On June 9, 2011, Bishop Finn appointed former U.S. Attorney Todd P. Graves to conduct an independent investigation of diocesan policies and procedures used to address sexual misconduct by church personnel including the case of Father Shawn Ratigan, a pastor who faces charges of possession of child pornography. Graves was the national co-chairman of the U.S. Justice Department's Child Exploitation Working Group. Finn also announced the appointment of an independent public liaison and ombudsman.In the report issued in September 2011, Graves said the key finding of the investigation was "that Diocesan leaders failed to follow their own policies and procedures for responding to reports" of sexual abuse by clergy.
Indictment
On October 14, 2011 Finn was charged with not telling police about child pornography found on a priest's computer. According to the indictment, the diocese was made aware of the incident in December 16, 2010 but did not report it to the authorities until May 11, 2011 in violation of a new state law making it mandatory for everyone, without distinction, to report any possible abuse of minors, if there is a suspicion. He pleaded not guilty to one misdemeanor count of failing to report suspected child abuse. Finn is among the first bishops to be indicted in the Catholic Church's sexual abuse scandalCatholic sexual abuse scandal in the United States
Catholic sexual abuse scandal in the United States refers to a series of lawsuits, criminal prosecutions, and scandals related to sexual abuse committed by Catholic priests and members of religious orders, that first rose to widespread public attention in the last two decades of the 20th...
in the United States.
Tridentine Mass
In August 2005, he encouraged use of the traditional Tridentine MassTridentine Mass
The Tridentine Mass is the form of the Roman Rite Mass contained in the typical editions of the Roman Missal that were published from 1570 to 1962. It was the most widely celebrated Mass liturgy in the world until the introduction of the Mass of Paul VI in December 1969...
in his diocese in accord with Indult provisions established during Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
's tenure, and welcomed the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest
Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest
The Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest is a society of priests in the Catholic Church that celebrates the Liturgy in Latin in accordance with its constitutions and founding documents. Its goals are to preserve and patronize traditional Latin Rite liturgical art and music...
to the diocese to celebrate Mass at St. Patrick's Oratory, the city's oldest church.
Statements on the 2008 election
In the October 24, 2008 issue of the diocesan newspaper, The Catholic Key, Bishop Finn wrote: "Our Catholic moral principles teach that a candidate’s promise of economic prosperity is insufficient to justify their constant support of abortion laws, including partial-birth abortion, and infanticide for born-alive infants. Promotion of the Freedom of Choice ActFreedom of Choice Act
The Freedom of Choice Act was a bill in the 110th United States Congress which "declares that it is the policy of the United States that every woman has the fundamental right to choose to bear a child; terminate a pregnancy prior to fetal viability; or terminate a pregnancy after viability when...
is a pledge to eliminate every single limit on abortions achieved over the last thirty-five years. The real freedom that is ours in Jesus Christ compels us, not to take life, but to defend it...Join me in calling upon Mary in this month of the rosary. In 1571, in the midst of the Battle of Lepanto
Battle of Lepanto
The Battle of Lepanto normally refers to the 1571 Holy League victory over the Ottoman fleet. There were also three earlier battles fought in the vicinity of Lepanto:*Battle of Naupactus in 429 BC, an Athenian victory during the Peleoponnesian War...
, when the future of Christian Europe was in the balance and the odds against them were overwhelming, prayer to Our Lady of the Rosary
Our Lady of the Rosary
Our Lady of the Rosary is a title of the Blessed Virgin Mary in relation to the rosary....
brought the decisive victory. We ask her now to watch over our country and bring us the victory of life."
Other Sources
- Dennis Coday, Extreme Makeover, the Diocese, in the National Catholic Reporter, May 12, 2006
- Biography of Bishop Finn at the Diocese of Kansas City-Saint Joseph website