There’s a new sheriff in town
Robert Brennan formally takes over as Bishop of the Brooklyn Diocese
BY BEN BRACHFELD
Robert Brennan has offi -
cially assumed the role as the
eighth Bishop of Brooklyn, taking
over the Diocese of Brooklyn
and Queens from scandal
plagued Bishop Nicholas
DiMarzio, who has presided
over the Diocese’s 1.3 million
Catholics since 2003.
Brennan, 59, formally assumed
the role at an installation
ceremony, presided over by
Timothy Cardinal Dolan, Archbishop
of New York, and Archbishop
Christophe Pierre, Apostolic
Nuncio to the US, at the
Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph in
Prospect Heights. Brennan previously
served as the Bishop of
Columbus, Ohio since 2019.
“From the day that my appointment
was announced at
the end of September through
today and going forward, I just
experienced such an incredible
welcome,” Brennan said at
a press conference before the
mass on Nov. 30. “Back in September
my heartstrings were
tugging as I was leaving Columbus,
but now that I’ve been here
a couple days, I can’t wait to get
started.”
DiMarzio submitted his retirement
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COURIER L 10 IFE, DECEMBER 3-9, 2021
papers to Pope Francis
back in 2019, upon reaching
75 years of age, but they were
not accepted until September of
this year, at which point DiMarzio
announced his retirement
and the Church announced the
selection of Brennan as the new
Bishop.
Though Brennan is technically
coming to Brooklyn by
way of Ohio, he’s no transplant:
he was born in the Bronx and
was raised on Long Island. Before
his service in Columbus,
he was an Auxiliary Bishop in
the Diocese of Rockville Centre
in Nassau County.
Brennan’s coat of arms as
the new Bishop has the motto
“thy will be done,” a part of the
Lord’s Prayer symbolizing how
God will do what he wills. He
said he chose the simple motto
because when he would visit the
grave of his grandfather whom
he never met on Long Island as
a child, he saw the phrase on
the gravestone.
Brennan again noted the
cultural richness and diversity
of Brooklyn and Queens as he
addressed his congregation in
his fi rst speech as Bishop.
“The world is found in
Brooklyn and Queens,” Brennan
said. “Every language, every
nationality. We truly are
the Diocese of Immigrants.”
DiMarzio, in a tweet, offered
“congratulations and
prayers” to Brennan and expressed
pride in his nearly two
decades of service.
“Today I offer congratulations
& prayers to my successor,
Bishop Robert J. Brennan as he
is installed as the Eighth Bishop
of the Diocese of Brooklyn,” Di-
Marzio said. “I am grateful to
have served as your Bishop for
18 years. May God continue
to bless you & all the people of
Brooklyn and Queens.”
DiMarzio’s tenure was not
without controversy, as he
himself was accused of child
sexual abuse in 2019 dating
back to his time as a priest in
New Jersey in the 70s. One accuser
claimed that DiMarzio
abused him when he was 11
or 12 years old while the other
said the abuse happened when
he was just 6.
DiMarzio denied all wrongdoing,
and in September the
Vatican exonerated him of any
wrongdoing, fi nding the allegations
against him “not to have
the semblance of the truth.” Di-
Marzio said he had been vindicated
by the ruling, and Brennan
was announced as the new
Bishop just a few weeks later.
A lawyer for the accusers,
Mitchell Garabedian, said
at the time that the Church’s
probe had no legitimacy as it
was controlled and paid for by
the Church, which found no
wrongdoing on its own part.
Civil litigation is ongoing in
New Jersey under that state’s
Child Victims Act.
Robert Brennan, the new Bishop of Brooklyn. Photo by Adrian Childress
Bill de Blasio
Mayor
Dave A. Chokshi, MD, MSc
Health Commissioner
Pediatricians recommend
the COVID-19 vaccine
for 5-17 year olds.
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