Restoring Trust -- You or Paul Marcoux?

By Diogenes ( articles ) | Nov 13, 2003

From the Woodstock Center Panel Discussion, "Restoring Trust in Church Leadership":

Question: Please indicate three top bishops who have earned trust of their people by their servant leadership and their collaborative outlook. Who do you think sets the pace, shows a good example, offers perhaps a model for imitation?

Peggy Steinfels: It is probably safe to offer the name of Joseph Bernardin, the late, in this respect since I think he certainly was a model for imitation. I'll hazard another name, Archbishop Rembert Weakland. I always felt that he was a man who was in touch with what was going on in his archdiocese and in the church in the United States, and I guess his end was unfortunate, but I still cling to the idea that he was a good bishop.

Sr. Sharon Euart, RSM: From our own experience in my archdiocese, one bishop I would name is retired now, Archbishop William Borders, who was Baltimore's archbishop until around 1989. He was that kind of person. Perhaps some said he was over-consultative, but he wanted to err on that side rather than on not consulting the appropriate groups. Another bishop, who is currently heading a diocese where people find him willing to listen, is Bishop Matthew Clark from Rochester, New York.