Michael Robert Kennedy (born 13 May 1968) is an Australian prelate of the Catholic Church who was appointed
bishop
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
of the
Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle in February 2023. He was bishop of Armidale from 2012 to 2023.
Early life
Kennedy was born in Wagga Wagga on 13 May 1968
[ and was the youngest of the nine children of John Kennedy and his wife Fidelma (nee Madden).] He received his primary education in a small, two-class country school at San Isidore, a small rural suburb outside of Wagga Wagga. He later attended the Wagga Christian Brothers High School.
After completing high school, he obtained a Diploma in Education and taught at Xavier High School
A multitude of schools and universities have been named after St. Francis Xavier, a Spanish Roman Catholic saint and co-founder of the Society of Jesus. This page lists notable educational institutions named after St. Xavier, arranged by country a ...
in Albury for three years. He entered Vianney College, the seminary for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wagga Wagga
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in 1992. He would continue his studies in Rome, obtained a Licentiate in Sacred Theology from the Pontificio Collegio Urbano de Propaganda Fide
The Pontificio Collegio Urbano de Propaganda Fide () was established in 1627 for the purpose of training missionaries to spread Catholicism around the world (the Latin term "''de propaganda fide''" means “for the propagation of the faith”).
...
and a Diploma of Mariology from the Marianum
The ''Marianum'' is a pontifical institute in Rome, Italy founded by Gabriel Roschini for the study of Mariology.
History
Background
The name ''Marianum'' itself goes back to Pope Boniface IX, who in 1398 granted the Servites the right to co ...
.[
]
Priesthood
Kennedy was ordained a priest for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wagga Wagga
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on 14 August 1999. He was appointed assistant parish priest in Griffith for the first two years of his ministry. In 2001, he becaem the rector of St Francis’ Residential College at Charles Sturt University
Charles Sturt University is an Australian multi-campus public university located in New South Wales, Australian Capital Territory and Victoria. Established in 1989, it was named in honour of Captain Charles Napier Sturt, a British explorer w ...
. In 2004, he was appointed assistant priest in Albury and in 2007, became the parish priest of Leeton, where he served until he was appointed Bishop of Armidale in 2011.[
During his priestly ministry, he used his teaching background to lecture at Vianney College where he taught Moral Theology and Church History. He was also Vicar Forane (Dean) of the Murrumbidgee Deanery.][
]
Episcopacy
Armidale
On 7 December 2011, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Kennedy the 10th Bishop of Armidale, following the retirement of Bishop Luc Julian Matthys
Luc Julian Matthys (3 May 1935 – 26 January 2021) was a Belgian-born Australian Roman Catholic bishop.
Matthys was born in Drongen, Ghent, Belgium and was ordained to the priesthood in 1961 for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Johannesbur ...
. He was ordained a bishop and installed on 9 February 2012, in a two hour long ceremony at Saints Mary and Joseph Catholic Cathedral
Saints Mary and Joseph Catholic Cathedral is a heritage-listed cathedral at 132 Dangar Street, Armidale, Armidale Regional Council, New South Wales, Australia. It is the diocesan cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Armidale and the seat o ...
in Armidale. His ordination was consecrated by Bishop Matthys and co-consecrated by Archbishop of Sydney George Cardinal Pell
George Pell (born 8 June 1941) is an Australian cardinal of the Catholic Church. He served as the inaugural prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy between 2014 and 2019, and was a member of the Council of Cardinal Advisers between 2013 an ...
and Bishop of Wagga Wagga Gerard Hanna. The ceremony was attended by 1000 people, including 90 priests, 29 bishops and two cardinals.[
]
Apostolic Administrator
In December 2012, Kennedy was appointed the Apostolic Administrator of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wilcannia-Forbes
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
, becoming the third person to take over the role following the resignation of Bishop Christopher Henry Toohey in 2009. He remained in this role until July 2014 when Columba Macbeth-Green was ordained and installed as the new bishop of the Diocese of Wilcannia-Forbes.
Maitland-Newcastle
On 2 February 2023, Pope Francis announced Kennedy had been appointed to be the Bishop of Maitland-Newcastle, which had been without a bishop since the death of Bishop William Wright in November 2021.
Response to clerical abuse
Kennedy has been a strong advocate for standing with and providing redress for victims of clerical abuse, particularly in the Diocese of Armidale. In a piece in The Catholic Weekly
''The Catholic Weekly'' is an English language newspaper currently published in Sydney, Australia. It is published in tabloid format. Throughout its history, it has also been published as ''The Freeman's Journal'' and ''Catholic Freeman's Jou ...
, written in 2016, he praised the courage and integrity of victims coming forwards, adding it was "crucial that the Church truly hear their cry". In the same piece, he slammed the Catholic Church's response to responding to clerical abuse, saying it was "completely inept".
Kennedy was a staunch defender of Cardinal George Pell despite the cardinal's conviction for child sexual abuse crimes. Those convictions were later unanimously quashed by the High Court of Australia in 2020.
Following the initial conviction, Kennedy defended the cardinal during a Sunday mass homily, telling parishioners: "When you and I look at the cardinal’s life isn’t it reasonable to apply today’s gospel and think ‘surely a good tree doesn’t produce rotten fruit but good fruit?’ There are many people who, on the information they have gleaned, cannot understand how the jury could have come to a guilty verdict. The evidence and testimonies, at least those that have come to public knowledge, seem to leave plenty of room for incredulity or ‘reasonable doubt’ to say the least."[ He also urged parishioners to remember Cardinal Pell in their prayers.
]
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kennedy, Michael
21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in Australia
Roman Catholic bishops of Broken Bay
Living people
1968 births