WPRI Video Screengrab / YouTube
CV NEWS FEED // Pope Francis has appointed Redemptorist and Baltimore Auxiliary Bishop Bruce Lewandowski to serve as the next bishop of Providence, Rhode Island.
Cardinal Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States, announced the appointment April 8, according to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). He succeeds Archbishop Richard Henning, who was appointed Archbishop of Boston in August 2024. Monsignor Albert Kenney has served as diocesan administrator since October 2024.
Born in Toledo, Ohio, Bishop Lewandowski, has served in Baltimore as an auxiliary bishop since 2020, according to an April 8 press conference hosted by the Diocese of Providence and broadcast by WPRI 12, a CBS affiliate. Bishop Lewandowski will be installed as bishop of Providence May 20.
Bishop Lewandowski is a priest in the Redemptorist order, which was founded by St. Alphonsus Ligouri. During the press conference, he expressed joy over his vocation and his heart for service.
“I love the Church,” he said. “There’s nothing I would rather do than serve God’s people in the Church. I love being a priest, I love being a Redemptorist. I’m going to love being your Bishop, I really am.”
He also shared about his devotion to St. Alphonsus, and explained that he finds great encouragement and hope throughout his day by looking to the Cross.
“In my heart I know and I trust and I believe that the cross of Jesus makes everything possible,” he said. “It’s the cross of Christ that makes everything possible. Saint Alphonsus says ‘gaze at the cross and there you will find every reason to love God.’ And so I look to the cross at every moment throughout my day, and I find Jesus there..”
Speaking about his formation in the Redemptoris order, Bishop Lewandowski said the charism of the Redemptorists is especially focused on serving the poor.
“I have wanted my whole life to be a poor man serving among the poor, and a man who is good news for others,” he said, attributing that desire to the Redemptorist charism.
Later, he fielded a question on the Church’s role amid the current tenuous political climate in the United States. Bishop Lewandowski said that the first role is to pray, especially before Jesus in the Eucharist.
“When we’re on our knees, and I really believe this, before Our Lord in prayer, we’re at our best, and we’re doing what the Church does best,” he said. He emphasized that prayer is efficacious and that God listens.
Education, advocating for the dignity of every person from conception to natural death, and accompaniment are three other ways through which the Church has a role.
Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore said in a statement according to the Catholic Review that Bishop Lewandowski’s presence and ministry will be acutely missed in Baltimore, noting that he has served faithfully and fervently.
“As auxiliary bishop,” Archbishop Lori later said, “he preached the Gospel far and wide with zeal and effectiveness, greatly strengthened ministry to and among our growing Hispanic community and effectively conducted the Seek to City to Come parish realignment process, and much more. Fluent in Spanish and Portuguese, Bishop Bruce will bring his many gifts, his energy and his pastoral heart to the People of God in the Providence Diocese.”
