Edward Urban Kmiec (, ; June 4, 1936 – July 11, 2020) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the 13th bishop of the
Diocese of Buffalo
The Diocese of Buffalo is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church headquartered in Buffalo, New York, United States. It is a suffragan diocese within the metropolitan province of the Archdiocese of New York. The Diocese of Buffalo includ ...
in New York from 2004 to 2012.
Kmiec previously served as an auxiliary bishop for the Diocese of Trenton from 1982 to 1992 and as bishop of the Diocese of Nashville in Tennessee from 1992 to 2004
Biography
Edward Kmiec was born in
Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. It was the capital of the United States from November 1 to December 24, 1784.Martin O’Connor in Rome on December 20, 1961.
Auxiliary Bishop of Trenton
Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...
appointed Kmiec on August 26, 1982, as an auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Trenton and Titular Bishop of Simidicca. He was consecrated on November 3, 1982 by Bishop
John C. Reiss
John Charles Reiss (May 13, 1922 – March 4, 2012) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Trenton, Diocese of Trenton in New Jersey from 1980 to 1997. He previously serv ...
.
Bishop of Nashville
John Paul II appointed Kmiec as bishop of the Diocese of Nashville on October 13, 1992; he was installed on December 3, 1992.
Bishop of Buffalo, New York
On August 12, 2004, Kmiec was appointed by John Paul II as bishop of the Diocese of Buffalo. He was installed on October 28, 2004. In 2007, Kmiec announced that the diocese had a balanced budget, after spending cuts reduced a $2.1 million deficit from the previous year.
In August 2009, the ''Buffalo News'' reported the removal of Monsignor Fred R. Voorhes, as Administrator of St. Teresa's Parish in
South Buffalo
South Buffalo is a neighborhood that makes up the southern third of the City of Buffalo, New York. Traditionally known for its large Irish-American community, this community also has a strong presence of various other nationalities. The once-hea ...
and the subsequent dismissal of Marc J. Pasquale, as business administrator and director of religious education at St. Teresa's. Parishioners expressed in interviews their discontent with these removals. Pasquale had gone to the Erie County District Attorney's Office prior to his dismissal to raise concerns about questionable financial practices.
Kmiec was heavily criticized for downsizing the diocese from 274 parishes and missions in 2005 to 170 in 2011. He also oversaw the closures of 25 elementary schools.At 75, Kmiec reaches a crossroads ''Buffalo News'', June 4, 2011. ''Buffalo Business First'', September 11, 2006; retrieved January 3, 2014. The Diocese under Kmiec ordained only 18 priests from 2004-11.
Retirement and legacy
On May 29, 2012,
Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...
accepted Kmiec's resignation as bishop of the Diocese of Buffalo. Bishop Richard Malone from the
Diocese of Portland
The Diocese of Portland is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the New England region of the United States comprising the entire state of Maine. It is led by a bishop, and its cathedral, or mother church, is the Cat ...
in
Maine
Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...
replaced him.
Edward Kmiec died in Buffalo on July 11, 2020, at age 84.
See also
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Catholic Church hierarchy
The hierarchy of the Catholic Church consists of its bishops, priests, and deacons. In the ecclesiological sense of the term, "hierarchy" strictly means the "holy ordering" of the Church, the Body of Christ, so to respect the diversity of gif ...
*
Catholic Church in the United States
With 23 percent of the United States' population , the Catholic Church is the country's second largest religious grouping, after Protestantism, and the country's largest single church or Christian denomination where Protestantism is divided i ...
*
Historical list of the Catholic bishops of the United States
This is a historical list of all bishops of the Catholic Church whose sees were within the present-day boundaries of the United States, with links to the bishops who consecrated them. It includes only members of the United States Conference of Cat ...
*
List of Catholic bishops of the United States
The following is a list of bishops of the Catholic Church in the United States, including its five inhabited territories.
The U.S. Catholic Church comprises:
* 176 Latin Church dioceses led by bishops
* 18 Eastern Catholic eparchies led by e ...
*
Lists of patriarchs, archbishops, and bishops
This is a directory of patriarchs, archbishops, and bishops across various Christian denominations. To find an individual who was a bishop, see the most relevant article linked below or :Bishops.
Lists
Catholic
* Bishop in the Catholic Chur ...