Pope Francis Names New Auxiliary Bishop of Saint Paul and Minneapolis
Pope Francis has appointed Reverend Kevin Thomas Kenney, as auxiliary bishop of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. Bishop-elect Kenney is a priest of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, and currently serves as pastor of Saint Olaf Catholic Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
WASHINGTON - Pope Francis has appointed Reverend Kevin Thomas Kenney, as auxiliary bishop of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. Bishop-elect Kenney is a priest of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, and currently serves as pastor of Saint Olaf Catholic Church, administrator of Saints Cyril and Methodius Catholic Church, and chaplain at DeLaSalle High School, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The appointment was publicized in Washington, D.C. on July 25, 2024, by Cardinal Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States.
The following biographical information for Bishop-elect Kenney was drawn from preliminary materials provided to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops:
Father Kenney was born on December 29, 1959, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He graduated from the University of Saint Thomas in Saint Paul (1978-1983), with a bachelor’s degree in business administration and Spanish and a master of divinity from Catholic Theological Union in Chicago (1992). Bishop-elect Kenney entered the Archdiocesan Seminary of Saint Paul in 1992. He was ordained to the priesthood on May 28, 1994.
Bishop-elect Kenney’s assignments after ordination include: assistant priest at Saint Olaf Catholic Church (1994-1998); pastor at Our Lady of Peace Catholic Church in Minneapolis (1998-2004); pastor at Our Lady of Guadalupe Diocesan Shrine in Saint Paul (2004-2015); regional vicar of Latino ministry (2011-2018); representative of the comprehensive assignment board (2014-2020); pastor of Saint Michael’s Catholic Church in Kenyon (2015-2019); and pastor of Divine Mercy Catholic Church in Faribault (2015-2019). Since 2019, Bishop-elect Kenney has served as administrator of Saints Cyril and Methodius Catholic Church in Minneapolis, chaplain at DeLaSalle High School in Minneapolis, and pastor of Saint Olaf Catholic Church in Minneapolis. Bishop-elect Kenney speaks English and Spanish.
The Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis is comprised of 6,187 square miles in the state of Minnesota and has a total population of 3,532,316 of which 720,000, are Catholic.
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