Pope's Pick of Caggiano Shows Will to Modernize

By Brittany Lyte
Stamford Advocate
July 31, 2013

http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/local/article/Pope-s-pick-of-Caggiano-shows-will-to-modernize-4699602.php

You can discern a lot about the style and ambitions of a pope from his bishop appointments.

Father Anthony Ciorra, a professor of theology at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, said Pope Francis' appointment Wednesday of the Rev. Frank J. Caggiano to become the fifth bishop of the Diocese of Bridgeport illustrates of the pope's will to modernize the church by infusing it with new, crisp energies. Caggiano, he said, appears to be no small part of that plan.

Ciorra knows Caggiano personally from his time helping parishes in Brooklyn. He describes the 53-year-old auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Brooklyn, N.Y., as a skilled listener. Smart. Enthusiastic. Forward-thinking.

They are words Ciorra also uses to describe Pope Francis.

"There's a certain synergy between the name of the new pope, Francis, and the name of the new bishop to this diocese, Frank or Francis," Ciorra said. "It's the same name. Now, I don't know the pope, but I think it's fair to say that the pope is a breath of fresh air in the church in terms of his style, his way of being. And I'd say that you could say the same thing about Caggiano."

Pope Francis' choosing of a bishop who embraces an all-inclusive, collegial approach to leadership marks a stark departure from the lofty, more conservative style of his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, Ciorra said.

Ciorra points to conversations between Pope Francis and the bishops of Brazil last week when the pope challenged them to step outside the walls of their parishes and into the lives of the people.

Pope Francis told the bishops, "Let us courageously look to pastoral needs, beginning on the periphery (of where we live), with those who are farthest away, with those who do not usually go to church. They, too, are invited to the table of the Lord."

A statement like that, Ciorra said, marks a sharp pivot from the words of Pope Benedict.

"The choice of Caggiano is consistent with that the pope has said he wanted," Ciorra said. "He said he wants bishops that are shepherds. He does not want careerists. I think that is exactly what we got with Caggiano."

He added, "I truly believe that Bishop Caggiano's style will not be hierarchical, coming from on high," he said. "Like the pope, his style is one that is very inclusive and connected to the people. I think there is a real parallel between the two."

Jamie Dance, chairwoman of Voices of the Faithful in the Diocese of Bridgeport, said she is hopeful that Pope Francis and Caggiano will bring transparency and closure to a church that has been marred by wrenching sex scandals involving priests.

"This is a man who is extraordinarily humble and who is very concerned about the marginalized and the poor among us," Dance said of the pope. "We think very well of Pope Francis and wish him well. Of course, as Voice of the Faithful, one of the things we are waiting to see is how he will deal with scandals in the church.

"We're certainly hopeful he will take the bull by the horns and come to some finality in seeing how these scandals can be taken care of. I think that everyone is quite tired of them."