Thomas Wenski
Encyclopedia
Thomas Gerard Wenski is an American
prelate
of the Roman Catholic Church
. He is currently Archbishop of Miami
, having been appointed by Pope Benedict XVI
on April 20, 2010 and installed on June 1, 2010. He previously served as Bishop of Orlando
(2004–2010), coadjutor bishop
of Orlando (2003–04), and auxiliary bishop
of Miami (1997–2003).
, Florida
, to Chester and Louise (née Zawacki) Wenski. His father was born in Poland
with the last name Wisniewski, and came to the United States
with his parents in 1910 at age 2. The family eventually adopted the Anglicized
version, Wenski. Both Chester and his wife were raised in the Polish neighborhoods of Detroit, Michigan
, but moved to Florida after their marriage. Together they ran a business spray-painting
stucco
houses.
Wenski was raised in Lake Worth
, where he attended Sacred Heart School. He decided to become a priest
in the third grade, later recalling, "I never imagined myself as anything else; it was what God wanted me to do, although I sometimes vacillated on whether I wanted to do it." At age 13, he entered St. John Vianney Minor Seminary in Miami. During his twelve years at the seminary, he was a self-described "very liberal seminarian," questioning Catholic teaching on clerical celibacy
and the ordination of women
. His views eventually became more conservative through his experience working with Cuba
n immigrants and migrant worker
s, running a summer camp for African American
children, and reading about communism
in Poland and Cuba. He graduated from St. John Vianney in 1970 with an Associate's degree
.
Wenski then began his studies in philosophy
and theology
at St. Vincent de Paul Major Seminary in Boynton Beach
. He there earned a Bachelor of Arts
degree in Philosophy (1972) and a Master of Divinity
degree (1975). He later received a Master of Arts
degree from the School of Sociology of Fordham University
in 1993, and took summer courses at the Catholic University of Lublin
in Poland.
a priest for the Archdiocese of Miami
by Archbishop Coleman Carroll
on May 15, 1976. His first assignment was as an associate pastor
at Corpus Christi Church in Miami, where he remained for three years. At Corpus Christi, he took an interest in the Haiti
an parishioners who attended Mass
in Creole
, and was sent to Haiti to study Creole and Haitian culture. When he returned to Miami in 1979, he was appointed to a Haitian apostolate operating out of the Cathedral of Saint Mary
. Wenski then served as associate director and later director of the Pierre Toussaint Haitian Catholic Center in Miami until 1997. He also served concurrently as pastor
of three Haitian parishes in the archdiocese: Notre-Dame d'Haiti Church in Miami, Divine Mercy Church in Fort Lauderdale
, and St. Joseph in Pompano Beach
. His outreach to the Haitian Catholic community in Miami was originally met with staunch opposition by Haitian priest and activist Gérard Jean-Juste
, who eventually came to regard Wenski as an ally. He also befriended Jean-Bertrand Aristide
, a priest who later became the first democratically-elected President of Haiti.
Wenski celebrated the weekly Mass in English for shut-ins at the local ABC affiliate
from 1992 to 1997, and directed the Ministry to Non-Hispanic Ethnic Groups. He became an adjunct professor at St. Vincent de Paul Seminary in 1994. In January 1996, he was named director of the archdiocesan Catholic Charities
. In this capacity, he helped form a relationship with Caritas Cuba, the social service arm of the Catholic Church in Cuba
. Later that year, he spearheaded a relief operation that delivered over 150,000 pounds of food to Caritas Cuba for distribution to people left homeless by Hurricane Lili
.
of Miami and titular bishop
of Kearney
by Pope John Paul II
. He received his episcopal
consecration
on the following September 3 from Archbishop John Favalora, with Archbishop Edward A. McCarthy
and Bishop Agustin Roman
serving as co-consecrators
, at the Miami Arena
. He selected as his episcopal motto
: "All Things to All Men" . As an auxiliary bishop, he served as episcopal vicar
for Broward
and Monroe Counties
.
In addition to his episcopal duties, Wenski served on numerous boards including Catholic Hospice, Catholic Charities, Catholic Charities Legal Services, and St. Thomas University. He served as chair
of Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (1998–2001), and of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
' Committee on Migration (2001–2004). He also served on Miami-Dade County
's Homeless Trust and the Coordinating Council of Broward, and was appointed by Governor Jeb Bush
to the Florida Council on Homelessness in 2001 and the Task Force on Haiti in 2004.
of the Diocese of Orlando
on July 1, 2003. His installation took place on August 22 of that year. Following the retirement of Bishop Norbert Dorsey
, Wenski succeeded him as the fourth Bishop of Orlando
on November 13, 2004. He was the first Florida-born Bishop of Orlando.
Wenski convoked the first synod
for the Diocese of Orlando in 2004. He held listening sessions with a diverse group of Catholics to hear about their concerns and hopes for the future for the diocese. He designated 2008 as the "Year of Evangelization," putting a greater emphasis on deepening the faith of all people. At the time of his appointment to Miami in 2010, he was leading the diocese through the early stages of both a $150 million capital campaign and an extensive renovation of St. James Cathedral.
In October 2007, he was selected to serve on the Board of Directors of The Florida Specialty Crop Foundation, a non-profit public charity that responds to challenges that confront specialty crop producers and their stakeholders. In September 2008, he gave an invocation at the Republican National Convention
in Saint Paul
, Minnesota
. In March 2009, he joined the Catholic Leadership Institute's national advisory board for their "Good Leaders, Good Shepherds" program. In May of that year, Wenski held a Mass of Reparation for the University of Notre Dame
's decision to have President
Barack Obama
deliver its commencement speech and receive an honorary degree
, given Obama's pro-choice
views. At the Mass, he denounced Obama for his "rather extremist views on abortion
" and said that Notre Dame's "actions suggest that, unlike a beauty queen from California
, it lacks the courage of its convictions."
In June 2009, he was elected to a four-year term on the Board of Trustees
of The Catholic University of America
. He chaired of the USCCB Committee on International Policy (2004–2008), and currently serves as a consultant to the Committee on Migration and a member of the Secretariat for the Church in Latin America, Committee for International Justice and Peace, and the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. He is currently the episcopal moderator for Catholic Health Services for the Florida Catholic Conference.
During his tenure, he created six new parishes and two missions. His capital and endowment campaign raised $100 million. He petitioned and was granted that two diocesan churches be raised to the status of minor basilica
s. He started the Spanish language radio station Buena Nueva FM along with the Spanish language newspaper, El Clarin. The diocese spent $10 million upgrading the St. James cathedral in 2010. The upgraded building contained a new stained glass window commemorating the contribution of Wenski to building improvements.
by Pope Benedict XVI
. Following his appointment, he said he was "humbled by the Holy Father
's confidence in me and aware of my own limitations and shortcomings..." He succeeded Archbishop John Favalora. He became the first native of the Archdiocese to become its archbishop.
Wenski was installed at the Cathedral of Saint Mary on June 1, 2010. At the end of June, he received the pallium
, a vestment worn by metropolitan bishop
s, from Pope Benedict XVI at St. Peter's Basilica
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
prelate
Prelate
A prelate is a high-ranking member of the clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin prælatus, the past participle of præferre, which means "carry before", "be set above or over" or "prefer"; hence, a prelate is one set over others.-Related...
of the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
. He is currently Archbishop of Miami
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Miami
The Archdiocese of Miami is a particular church of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States of America. Its ecclesiastic territory includes Broward, Miami-Dade, and Monroe counties in the U.S. state of Florida. The archdiocese is the metropolitan see for the Ecclesiastical Province of Miami,...
, having been appointed by Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
on April 20, 2010 and installed on June 1, 2010. He previously served as Bishop of Orlando
Roman Catholic Diocese of Orlando
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Orlando is a Roman Catholic diocese in Florida. It was established on June 18, 1968. Prior to that the Central Florida area was part of the Diocese of St. Augustine. Today the diocese encompasses nine counties including Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Marion, Lake,...
(2004–2010), coadjutor bishop
Coadjutor bishop
A coadjutor bishop is a bishop in the Roman Catholic or Anglican churches who is designated to assist the diocesan bishop in the administration of the diocese, almost as co-bishop of the diocese...
of Orlando (2003–04), and auxiliary bishop
Auxiliary bishop
An auxiliary bishop, in the Roman Catholic Church, is an additional bishop assigned to a diocese because the diocesan bishop is unable to perform his functions, the diocese is so extensive that it requires more than one bishop to administer, or the diocese is attached to a royal or imperial office...
of Miami (1997–2003).
Early life and education
Wenski was born in West Palm BeachWest Palm Beach, Florida
West Palm Beach, is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and is the most populous city in and county seat of Palm Beach County, the third most populous county in Florida with a 2010 population of 1,320,134. The city is also the oldest incorporated municipality in South Florida...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, to Chester and Louise (née Zawacki) Wenski. His father was born in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
with the last name Wisniewski, and came to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
with his parents in 1910 at age 2. The family eventually adopted the Anglicized
Anglicisation
Anglicisation, or anglicization , is the process of converting verbal or written elements of any other language into a form that is more comprehensible to an English speaker, or, more generally, of altering something such that it becomes English in form or character.The term most often refers to...
version, Wenski. Both Chester and his wife were raised in the Polish neighborhoods of Detroit, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, but moved to Florida after their marriage. Together they ran a business spray-painting
Spray painting
Spray painting is a painting technique where a device sprays a coating through the air onto a surface. The most common types employ compressed gas—usually air—to atomize and direct the paint particles. Spray guns evolved from airbrushes, and the two are usually distinguished by their size and the...
stucco
Stucco
Stucco or render is a material made of an aggregate, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as decorative coating for walls and ceilings and as a sculptural and artistic material in architecture...
houses.
Wenski was raised in Lake Worth
Lake Worth, Florida
Lake Worth is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, which takes its name from the body of water along its eastern border, originally called "Lake Worth", and now generally known as the Lake Worth Lagoon. The lake itself was named for General William J. Worth, who led U.S. forces during the last...
, where he attended Sacred Heart School. He decided to become a priest
Priesthood (Catholic Church)
The ministerial orders of the Catholic Church include the orders of bishops, deacons and presbyters, which in Latin is sacerdos. The ordained priesthood and common priesthood are different in function and essence....
in the third grade, later recalling, "I never imagined myself as anything else; it was what God wanted me to do, although I sometimes vacillated on whether I wanted to do it." At age 13, he entered St. John Vianney Minor Seminary in Miami. During his twelve years at the seminary, he was a self-described "very liberal seminarian," questioning Catholic teaching on clerical celibacy
Clerical celibacy (Catholic Church)
Clerical celibacy is the discipline by which, in some Churches, only unmarried men are, as a rule, to be ordained to the priesthood. The same discipline holds in some other Churches for ordination to the episcopate....
and the ordination of women
Ordination of women
Ordination in general religious usage is the process by which a person is consecrated . The ordination of women is a regular practice among some major religious groups, as it was of several religions of antiquity...
. His views eventually became more conservative through his experience working with Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
n immigrants and migrant worker
Migrant worker
The term migrant worker has different official meanings and connotations in different parts of the world. The United Nations' definition is broad, including any people working outside of their home country...
s, running a summer camp for African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
children, and reading about communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
in Poland and Cuba. He graduated from St. John Vianney in 1970 with an Associate's degree
Associate's degree
An associate degree is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by community colleges, junior colleges, technical colleges, and bachelor's degree-granting colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study usually lasting two years...
.
Wenski then began his studies in philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
and theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
at St. Vincent de Paul Major Seminary in Boynton Beach
Boynton Beach, Florida
Boynton Beach is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population was 60,389 at the 2000 census. As of 2006, the city had a population of 66,714 according to the University of Florida, Bureau of Economic and Business Research...
. He there earned a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree in Philosophy (1972) and a Master of Divinity
Master of Divinity
In the academic study of theology, the Master of Divinity is the first professional degree of the pastoral profession in North America...
degree (1975). He later received a Master of Arts
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
degree from the School of Sociology of Fordham University
Fordham University
Fordham University is a private, nonprofit, coeducational research university in the United States, with three campuses in and around New York City. It was founded by the Roman Catholic Diocese of New York in 1841 as St...
in 1993, and took summer courses at the Catholic University of Lublin
John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin
John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin is located in Lublin, Poland. Presently it has an enrollment of over 19,000 students...
in Poland.
Priesthood
Wenski was ordainedHoly Orders
The term Holy Orders is used by many Christian churches to refer to ordination or to those individuals ordained for a special role or ministry....
a priest for the Archdiocese of Miami
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Miami
The Archdiocese of Miami is a particular church of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States of America. Its ecclesiastic territory includes Broward, Miami-Dade, and Monroe counties in the U.S. state of Florida. The archdiocese is the metropolitan see for the Ecclesiastical Province of Miami,...
by Archbishop Coleman Carroll
Coleman Carroll
Coleman Francis Carroll was an American clergyman of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Miami from 1958 until his death in 1977.-Biography:...
on May 15, 1976. His first assignment was as an associate pastor
Curate
A curate is a person who is invested with the care or cure of souls of a parish. In this sense "curate" correctly means a parish priest but in English-speaking countries a curate is an assistant to the parish priest...
at Corpus Christi Church in Miami, where he remained for three years. At Corpus Christi, he took an interest in the Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
an parishioners who attended Mass
Mass (liturgy)
"Mass" is one of the names by which the sacrament of the Eucharist is called in the Roman Catholic Church: others are "Eucharist", the "Lord's Supper", the "Breaking of Bread", the "Eucharistic assembly ", the "memorial of the Lord's Passion and Resurrection", the "Holy Sacrifice", the "Holy and...
in Creole
Haitian Creole language
Haitian Creole language , often called simply Creole or Kreyòl, is a language spoken in Haiti by about twelve million people, which includes all Haitians in Haiti and via emigration, by about two to three million speakers residing in the Bahamas, Cuba, Canada, France, Cayman Islands, French...
, and was sent to Haiti to study Creole and Haitian culture. When he returned to Miami in 1979, he was appointed to a Haitian apostolate operating out of the Cathedral of Saint Mary
Cathedral of Saint Mary in Miami
The Cathedral of Saint Mary is the seat of the Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Miami. The cathedral is named for Mary, mother of Jesus, and is located at 7525 N.W. 2nd Ave., Miami, Florida...
. Wenski then served as associate director and later director of the Pierre Toussaint Haitian Catholic Center in Miami until 1997. He also served concurrently as pastor
Pastor
The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....
of three Haitian parishes in the archdiocese: Notre-Dame d'Haiti Church in Miami, Divine Mercy Church in Fort Lauderdale
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Fort Lauderdale is a city in the U.S. state of Florida, on the Atlantic coast. It is the county seat of Broward County. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 165,521. It is a principal city of the South Florida metropolitan area, which was home to 5,564,635 people at the 2010...
, and St. Joseph in Pompano Beach
Pompano Beach, Florida
Pompano Beach ) is a city in Broward County, Florida, along the coast of the Atlantic Ocean just to the north of Fort Lauderdale. The nearby Hillsboro Inlet forms part of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 99,845...
. His outreach to the Haitian Catholic community in Miami was originally met with staunch opposition by Haitian priest and activist Gérard Jean-Juste
Gérard Jean-Juste
Fr. Gérard Jean-Juste was a Roman Catholic priest and rector of Saint Claire's church for the poor in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. He was also a liberation theologian and a supporter of the Fanmi Lavalas political party, the largest in Haiti. In 1978, Father Jean-Juste founded the Haitian Refugee Center...
, who eventually came to regard Wenski as an ally. He also befriended Jean-Bertrand Aristide
Jean-Bertrand Aristide
Jean-Bertrand Aristide is a Haitian former Catholic priest and politician who served as Haiti's first democratically elected president. A proponent of liberation theology, Aristide was appointed to a parish in Port-au-Prince in 1982 after completing his studies...
, a priest who later became the first democratically-elected President of Haiti.
Wenski celebrated the weekly Mass in English for shut-ins at the local ABC affiliate
WPLG
WPLG, channel 10, is an ABC network affiliated television station located in Miami, Florida. WPLG is owned and operated by Post-Newsweek Stations, a subsidiary of the Washington Post Company. The station's studios are located in Pembroke Park, and its transmitter is located at the massive broadcast...
from 1992 to 1997, and directed the Ministry to Non-Hispanic Ethnic Groups. He became an adjunct professor at St. Vincent de Paul Seminary in 1994. In January 1996, he was named director of the archdiocesan Catholic Charities
Catholic Charities
Catholic Charities is a network of charities whose aim is "to provide service to people in need, to advocate for justice in social structures, and to call the entire church and other people of good will to do the same." It is one of the largest charities in the United States...
. In this capacity, he helped form a relationship with Caritas Cuba, the social service arm of the Catholic Church in Cuba
Roman Catholicism in Cuba
The Roman Catholic Church in Cuba is part of the worldwide Roman Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope and curia in Rome....
. Later that year, he spearheaded a relief operation that delivered over 150,000 pounds of food to Caritas Cuba for distribution to people left homeless by Hurricane Lili
Hurricane Lili (1996)
Hurricane Lili was a relatively long-lived hurricane during the very active 1996 Atlantic hurricane season. Lili formed on October 14 from a tropical wave, which emerged from the coast of west Africa on October 4. The tropical wave which developed into Lili was slow to form due to unfavorable wind...
.
Auxiliary Bishop of Miami
On June 24, 1997, Wenski was appointed auxiliary bishopAuxiliary bishop
An auxiliary bishop, in the Roman Catholic Church, is an additional bishop assigned to a diocese because the diocesan bishop is unable to perform his functions, the diocese is so extensive that it requires more than one bishop to administer, or the diocese is attached to a royal or imperial office...
of Miami and titular bishop
Titular bishop
A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese.By definition a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop the tradition of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches is that he be ordained for a specific place...
of Kearney
Kearney, Nebraska
Kearney is a city in and the county seat of Buffalo County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 30,787 at the 2010 census. It is home to the University of Nebraska-Kearney....
by 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 ...
. He received his episcopal
Bishop (Catholic Church)
In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders and is responsible for teaching the Catholic faith and ruling the Church....
consecration
Consecration
Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service, usually religious. The word "consecration" literally means "to associate with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different groups...
on the following September 3 from Archbishop John Favalora, with Archbishop Edward A. McCarthy
Edward A. McCarthy
Edward Anthony McCarthy , was the second Archbishop of Miami, Florida. He was appointed Coadjutor Archbishop of Miami on September 17, 1976 and succeeded Coleman Francis Carroll as Archbishop of Miami on July 26, 1977. Archbishop McCarthy retired as Archbishop on November 3, 1994...
and Bishop Agustin Roman
Agustin Roman
Agustin Roman is the retired Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Miami.His parents were Rosendo Román and Juana M. Rodríguez...
serving as co-consecrators
Consecrator
Consecrator is a term used in the Roman Catholic Church to designate a bishop who ordains a priest to the episcopal state. The term is often used in Eastern Rite Churches and in Anglican communities. The term "Principal Consecrator" is used to designate the primary bishop who ordains a new bishop...
, at the Miami Arena
Miami Arena
The Miami Arena was an indoor arena in Miami, Florida.-History:Completed in 1988, at a cost of $52.5 million, its opening took business away from the Hollywood Sportatorium and eventually led to its demise...
. He selected as his episcopal motto
Motto
A motto is a phrase meant to formally summarize the general motivation or intention of a social group or organization. A motto may be in any language, but Latin is the most used. The local language is usual in the mottoes of governments...
: "All Things to All Men" . As an auxiliary bishop, he served as episcopal vicar
Vicar general
A vicar general is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ordinary executive power over the entire diocese and, thus, is the highest official in a diocese or other particular...
for Broward
Broward County, Florida
-2000 Census:As of the census of 2000, there were 1,623,018 people, 654,445 households, and 411,645 families residing in the county. The population density was 1,346 people per square mile . There were 741,043 housing units at an average density of 615 per square mile...
and Monroe Counties
Monroe County, Florida
Monroe County is a county located in the state of Florida. As of 2000, the population was 79,589. The U.S. Census Bureau 2006 estimate for the county was 74,737....
.
In addition to his episcopal duties, Wenski served on numerous boards including Catholic Hospice, Catholic Charities, Catholic Charities Legal Services, and St. Thomas University. He served as chair
Chair (official)
The chairman is the highest officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office is typically elected or appointed by the members of the group. The chairman presides over meetings of the assembled group and conducts its business in an...
of Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (1998–2001), and of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops and United States Catholic Conference, it is composed of all active and retired members of the Catholic...
' Committee on Migration (2001–2004). He also served on Miami-Dade County
Miami-Dade County, Florida
Miami-Dade County is a county located in the southeastern part of the state of Florida. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 2,496,435, making it the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States...
's Homeless Trust and the Coordinating Council of Broward, and was appointed by Governor Jeb Bush
Jeb Bush
John Ellis "Jeb" Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd Governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007. He is a prominent member of the Bush family: the second son of former President George H. W. Bush and former First Lady Barbara Bush; the younger brother of former President George W...
to the Florida Council on Homelessness in 2001 and the Task Force on Haiti in 2004.
Bishop of Orlando
Wenski was appointed Coadjutor BishopCoadjutor bishop
A coadjutor bishop is a bishop in the Roman Catholic or Anglican churches who is designated to assist the diocesan bishop in the administration of the diocese, almost as co-bishop of the diocese...
of the Diocese of Orlando
Roman Catholic Diocese of Orlando
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Orlando is a Roman Catholic diocese in Florida. It was established on June 18, 1968. Prior to that the Central Florida area was part of the Diocese of St. Augustine. Today the diocese encompasses nine counties including Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Marion, Lake,...
on July 1, 2003. His installation took place on August 22 of that year. Following the retirement of Bishop Norbert Dorsey
Norbert Dorsey
Norbert Mary Leonard James Dorsey, C.P. was the Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Miami and the third Bishop of the Diocese of Orlando...
, Wenski succeeded him as the fourth Bishop of Orlando
Roman Catholic Diocese of Orlando
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Orlando is a Roman Catholic diocese in Florida. It was established on June 18, 1968. Prior to that the Central Florida area was part of the Diocese of St. Augustine. Today the diocese encompasses nine counties including Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Marion, Lake,...
on November 13, 2004. He was the first Florida-born Bishop of Orlando.
Wenski convoked the first synod
Synod
A synod historically is a council of a church, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. In modern usage, the word often refers to the governing body of a particular church, whether its members are meeting or not...
for the Diocese of Orlando in 2004. He held listening sessions with a diverse group of Catholics to hear about their concerns and hopes for the future for the diocese. He designated 2008 as the "Year of Evangelization," putting a greater emphasis on deepening the faith of all people. At the time of his appointment to Miami in 2010, he was leading the diocese through the early stages of both a $150 million capital campaign and an extensive renovation of St. James Cathedral.
In October 2007, he was selected to serve on the Board of Directors of The Florida Specialty Crop Foundation, a non-profit public charity that responds to challenges that confront specialty crop producers and their stakeholders. In September 2008, he gave an invocation at the Republican National Convention
2008 Republican National Convention
The United States 2008 Republican National Convention took place at the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota, from September 1, through September 4, 2008...
in Saint Paul
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul is the capital and second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies mostly on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the area surrounding its point of confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Minneapolis, the state's largest city...
, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
. In March 2009, he joined the Catholic Leadership Institute's national advisory board for their "Good Leaders, Good Shepherds" program. In May of that year, Wenski held a Mass of Reparation for the University of Notre Dame
University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...
's decision to have President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
deliver its commencement speech and receive an honorary degree
Honorary degree
An honorary degree or a degree honoris causa is an academic degree for which a university has waived the usual requirements, such as matriculation, residence, study, and the passing of examinations...
, given Obama's pro-choice
Pro-choice
Support for the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-choice movement, a sociopolitical movement supporting the ethical view that a woman should have the legal right to elective abortion, meaning the right to terminate her pregnancy....
views. At the Mass, he denounced Obama for his "rather extremist views on abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
" and said that Notre Dame's "actions suggest that, unlike a beauty queen from California
Carrie Prejean
Caroline Michelle "Carrie" Prejean Boller is an American model, author, former Miss California USA 2009 and Miss USA 2009 first runner-up. Prejean received national attention in 2009 when she told a pageant judge that marriage should be between a man and a woman; pageant judge and gossip blogger...
, it lacks the courage of its convictions."
In June 2009, he was elected to a four-year term on the Board of Trustees
Board of Trustees of The Catholic University of America
As of May 2010, the Board of Trustees at The Catholic University of America was composed of:*Carl A. Anderson, Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus*Richard D. Banziger, B.A. 1981, Managing Director, Salomon Smith Barney...
of The Catholic University of America
The Catholic University of America
The Catholic University of America is a private university located in Washington, D.C. in the United States. It is a pontifical university of the Catholic Church in the United States and the only institution of higher education founded by the U.S. Catholic bishops...
. He chaired of the USCCB Committee on International Policy (2004–2008), and currently serves as a consultant to the Committee on Migration and a member of the Secretariat for the Church in Latin America, Committee for International Justice and Peace, and the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. He is currently the episcopal moderator for Catholic Health Services for the Florida Catholic Conference.
During his tenure, he created six new parishes and two missions. His capital and endowment campaign raised $100 million. He petitioned and was granted that two diocesan churches be raised to the status of minor basilica
Basilica
The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a Roman public building, usually located in the forum of a Roman town. Public basilicas began to appear in Hellenistic cities in the 2nd century BC.The term was also applied to buildings used for religious purposes...
s. He started the Spanish language radio station Buena Nueva FM along with the Spanish language newspaper, El Clarin. The diocese spent $10 million upgrading the St. James cathedral in 2010. The upgraded building contained a new stained glass window commemorating the contribution of Wenski to building improvements.
Archbishop of Miami
On April 20, 2010, Wenski was appointed the fourth Archbishop of MiamiRoman Catholic Archdiocese of Miami
The Archdiocese of Miami is a particular church of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States of America. Its ecclesiastic territory includes Broward, Miami-Dade, and Monroe counties in the U.S. state of Florida. The archdiocese is the metropolitan see for the Ecclesiastical Province of Miami,...
by Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
. Following his appointment, he said he was "humbled by the Holy Father
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
's confidence in me and aware of my own limitations and shortcomings..." He succeeded Archbishop John Favalora. He became the first native of the Archdiocese to become its archbishop.
Wenski was installed at the Cathedral of Saint Mary on June 1, 2010. At the end of June, he received the pallium
Pallium
The pallium is an ecclesiastical vestment in the Roman Catholic Church, originally peculiar to the Pope, but for many centuries bestowed by him on metropolitans and primates as a symbol of the jurisdiction delegated to them by the Holy See. In that context it has always remained unambiguously...
, a vestment worn by metropolitan bishop
Metropolitan bishop
In Christian churches with episcopal polity, the rank of metropolitan bishop, or simply metropolitan, pertains to the diocesan bishop or archbishop of a metropolis; that is, the chief city of a historical Roman province, ecclesiastical province, or regional capital.Before the establishment of...
s, from Pope Benedict XVI at St. Peter's Basilica
St. Peter's Basilica
The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter , officially known in Italian as ' and commonly known as Saint Peter's Basilica, is a Late Renaissance church located within the Vatican City. Saint Peter's Basilica has the largest interior of any Christian church in the world...
.