Columbus Catholic Bishop Robert Brennan gives last Masses before departing for Brooklyn
At a Catholic church in Long Beach, New York, where Bishop Robert Brennan long ago served as pastor, there once stood a bell tower.
It had no bell and it had no light. But as Brennan recounted during a homily on Sunday at Christ the King Catholic Church on the Near East Side, the tower nevertheless functioned as a beacon guiding the ships and boats navigating the Atlantic ocean to the south.
In much the same way, Brennan told nearly 200 parishioners who had gathered for the 10 a.m. mass on Sunday, their church on Livingston Avenue functions as a beacon guiding residents of the surrounding neighborhoods who seek out Jesus Christ.
"Pointing the way," said Brennan, "showing the direction toward hope."
It was at this church where on Sunday — the Feast of Christ the King — Brennan would celebrate his final Mass as head of the Columbus diocese before heading back to New York.
Brennan, 59, the 12th bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Columbus who was installed in 2019, was reassigned by the Vatican to serve as the Diocese of Brooklyn's eighth bishop in September and has officially been serving as the apostolic administrator since then. He will be installed as their bishop on Nov. 30.
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A few days later, the diocesan College of Consultors, a group of priests that typically advise the bishop, will meet and elect a diocesan administrator until a new bishop of Columbus is appointed, said Deacon Thomas Berg, diocesan chancellor.
That person will be a priest who will oversee the business of the diocese for a few weeks or a few months, as it's not certain when the next bishop will be selected, Berg said.
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"That is very difficult to predict," he said. "We're hoping sooner rather than later, but there is a vetting process that happens with the Vatican and among the U.S. bishops, and it's extremely difficult to predict how long that will take."
The two bishops of Columbus who served previous to Brennan — Bishop Frederick Campbell and Bishop James Griffin — both retired from the job and served until the installation of the next bishop, Berg said.
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Before Campbell and Griffin, there also may have also been an auxiliary bishop who could step into the role while waiting for a new bishop to be installed, he said. There is currently not an auxiliary bishop, so the group of priests will decide who among the diocesan priests should lead.
The College of Consultors includes:
Monsignor Stephan J. Moloney, who also serves as the pastor at St. Andrew Parish in Upper Arlington
The Rev. Stash Dailey, pastor at Holy Family in Franklinton
The Rev. Daniel Dury, pastor at St. John Neumann in Sunbury
The Rev. Mark Hammond, pastor at St. Luke Catholic Church in Danville
The Rev. Michael Hartge, moderator of the curia for the diocese
The Very Rev. Michael Lumpe, vice rector of the College of Liberal Arts at the Pontifical College Josephinum on the North Side
The Rev. Robert Penhallurick, pastor at St. Brendan the Navigator in Hilliard
The Rev. David Schalk, pastor at Christ the King on the East Side and vicar for Hispanic ministry
The Rev. David Sizemore, pastor at St. Francis de Sales in Newark.
During his homily on Sunday at Christ the King, Brennan did not acknowledge his impending departure. Instead, he chose to devote that time to professing condolences for the sudden death recently of the parish's Father Dennis Stevenson, as well as to offering his congratulations and well-wishes to the parish's Deacon Pete Labita, who retired after more than 41 years.
"Thank God for the generations who have built this parish for us," Brennan said. "Thank God for the priests who have served here and who serve here now."
But after Communion services, Father David Schalk spoke before the congregation and thanked Bishop Brennan for his dedication to both the Columbus diocese and the Christ the King church.
"We owe you a debt of gratitude, and it's a pleasure to thank you for all you've done," Schalk said.
Parishioners themselves had the chance to say their goodbyes following the Mass during a reception at the adjacent gymnasium.
Merie Bissou and her 7-year-old son, Samuel, were among those who wished him well and thanked him for his service.
"He has done so much for this church," Bissou said. "Having him here in Columbus has been very good, but he has been called to go somewhere else."
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Bittersweet goodbye: Columbus Catholic bishop gives last local Masses
