Bishop Richard Henning named new Archbishop of Boston, replacing Cardinal Sean O’Malley

BOSTON – Pope Francis has named Providence Bishop Richard Henning as the next Archbishop of Boston, replacing retiring Cardinal Sean O’Malley, according to the Archdiocese of Boston.

Cardinal O’Malley introduced Archbishop-elect Henning at a news conference Monday at the Pastoral Center in Braintree, after celebrating Mass together at 9 a.m. 

Archbishop-elect Henning will officially be installed on Thursday, October 31 in a ceremony at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Boston. 

Who is Bishop Richard Henning?

Henning, 59, grew up on Long Island in New York and was ordained a priest in 1992. He has been a bishop since 2018.

Pope Francis appointed him Coadjutor Bishop of Providence in November 2022. In May 2023, he succeeded Thomas Tobin as the Bishop of Providence. A little more than a year later, he’s heading to Boston.

“Originally, it was just shock. But I had a little time to do some praying and to think a lot about it and I’ve really loved my time in Rhode Island, so that makes it a little bit of a mixed feeling today, but I’m excited for this new ministry,” he told reporters in Braintree Monday. 

“I feel grateful to the Holy Father for his confidence. This seems like an enormous task, so it’s going to be something I’ll have to throw myself entirely into.”

His year in Providence was his first time as a diocesan bishop.

“I really loved getting to know the people there and to experience their witness of faith. So, I’m guessing that we have a few people who love the Lord here in Boston too, so I look forward to getting to know them,” Henning said. “I can tell you in Providence one of the key things for me was evangelization. I think we need to revive the faith. That’s a key priority of the Holy Father as well.”

He was asked what the people of Boston should know about him.

“They should know I’m a sinner in need of grace,” Henning said. “I come to them as one of their own. I come from a family of faith. Certainly, my parents, my mom and dad are huge influences on me as a man, as a priest, as a bishop. I want to get to know them and I guess they’ll have time to get to know me.”

Cardinal Sean O’Malley

O’Malley, 80, has been Archbishop of Boston since 2003, when he succeeded Cardinal Bernard Law, who had resigned at the height of the church sex abuse scandal. Pope Francis officially accepted his resignation Monday. He is five years past the standard retirement age for Catholic bishops.

Gov. Maura Healey said in a statement Monday that she was “humbled and privileged to seek and receive his advice many times” as attorney general and governor. 

“I greatly admire his deep faith and his empathy and compassion for all,” Healey said. “He will be remembered for his lifesaving support for families experiencing homelessness, his advocacy for more affordable housing, his support for victims of human trafficking and his global leadership in the fight against climate change.”

An Ohio native, O’Malley was named the Bishop of Fall River in 1992 before becoming Bishop of Palm Beach, Florida in 2002. Less than a year later, he became Archbishop of Boston. He was made a cardinal by then-Pope Benedict XVI in 2006.

O’Malley spoke up for accountability in the wake of Cardinal Theodore McCarrick being defrocked in 2019 after the Vatican found him guilty of sex abuse. 

“Leadership in the church must enforce accountability for cardinals and bishops…if we hope to have the opportunity to engage the laity in the work of tangible change in the church,” O’Malley said in a statement at the time.

The cardinal also apologized in 2018 after revealing a secretary never handed him a letter in 2015 detailing allegations of misconduct against McCarrick. O’Malley released a statement at the time saying, “I understand that not everyone will accept this answer given the way the Church has eroded the trust of our people. My hope is that we can repair the trust and faith of all Catholics.”

On Monday, attorney Mitchell Garabedian, who represents clergy sex abuse survivors, said O’Malley did not do a good job of naming all accused priests publicly.

“Cardinal O’Malley omits naming individuals who have been named one time or who are deceased,” Garabedian said. 

Archbishop of Boston

Henning was asked what he would say to lapsed Catholics who lost faith in the Church over the sex abuse scandal. 

“I’ll listen to their pain, their woundedness. I certainly lived through that as well. When these crimes and sins were committed, I was also a child. I’m grateful to God I was not affected by it personally, but people in my generation were,” Henning said. “If there are Catholics who are scandalized, I understand why they’re scandalized. It’s scandalous … but it has not made me lose my faith in God or my faith in the possibility of reconciliation and new life.”

While Henning won’t officially take over in Boston until October 31, he does have an early goal.

“I think my first priority has to be – listen. I don’t think I should come with answers. I’m new to New England and I’ve been spending the last year learning Rhode Island so I don’t know much yet about Massachusetts or Boston so I think the first year really has to be about visiting, listening, learning before I start setting priorities.”

Henning is fluent in Spanish, something O’Malley said “will allow him to engage directly with our large Hispanic Catholic population.”

“The arrival of a new archbishop is always a time of renewal and hope,” O’Malley said. “Bishop Henning brings the heart of a pastor to his new role.”