Thomas Wenski

His Excellency,The Most Reverend Thomas Gerard Wenski
Archbishop of Miami
Archdiocese	Archdiocese of Miami
Appointed	April 20, 2010
Installed	June 1, 2010
Predecessor	John Clement Favalora
Orders
Ordination	May 15, 1976 byColeman Carroll
Consecration	September 3, 1997 byJohn Favalora,Edward A. McCarthy,andAgustin Roman
Personal details
Born	(1950-10-18)October 18, 1950 West Palm Beach, Florida,US
Previous post(s)	Bishop ofOrlando(2004–2010) Coadjutor BishopofOrlando(2003–2004) Auxiliary BishopofMiamiandTitular BishopofKearney(1997–2003)
Motto	Omnia omnibus (All things to all men)

Styles of Thomas Gerard Wenski
Reference style	His Excellency The Most Reverend
Spoken style	Your Excellency
Religious style	Archbishop

Ordination history of Thomas Wenski
History Episcopal consecration Consecrated by John Favalora(Miami) Date September 3, 1997
Episcopal succession Bishops consecrated by Thomas Wenski as principal consecrator Gregory Parkes June 5, 2012 Peter Baldacchino March 19, 2014

Thomas Gerard Wenski(born October 18, 1950) is an Americanprelateof theRoman Catholic Church.He was appointed archbishop of theArchdiocese of MiamibyPope Benedict XVIon April 20, 2010, and was installed on June 1, 2010.He previously served as bishop of theDiocese of Orlando(2004–2010),coadjutor bishopof Orlando (2003–2004), andauxiliary bishopof Miami (1997–2003).

Early life and education

Thomas Wenski was born on October 18, 1950, inWest Palm Beach, Florida,to Chester and Louise (née Zawacki) Wenski.His father was born inPolandwith the last name "Wiśniewski",and came to the United States with his parents in 1910 at age 2.The family eventually adopted theAnglicizedversion, "Wenski".Both Chester and Louise were raised in the Polish neighborhoods ofDetroit,Michigan,but moved to Florida after their marriage.Together they ran a business spray-painting stucco houses.

Wenski was raised inLake Worth, Florida,where he attended Sacred Heart School.He decided to become apriestin the third grade, later recalling, "I never imagined myself as anything else; it was what God wanted me to do, although I sometimes vacillated on whether I wanted to do it."At age 13, he enteredSaint John Vianney Seminaryin Miami.During his twelve years at the seminary, he was a self-described "very liberalseminarian,"questioning Catholic teaching onclerical celibacyand theordination of women.His views eventually became more conservative through his experience working with Cuban immigrants and reading about communism in Poland andCuba.He graduated from St. John Vianney, in 1970 with anassociate's degree.

Wenski then began his studies inphilosophyandtheologyat St. Vincent de Paul Minor Seminary inBoynton Beach.He earned aBachelor of Philosophydegree (1972) and aMaster of Divinitydegree (1975).He later received aMaster of Artsdegree from the School of Sociology ofFordham Universityin New York City in 1993,and took summer courses at theCatholic University of Lublinin Lublin, Poland.

Priesthood

Wenski wasordaineda priest for theArchdiocese of Miamiby ArchbishopColeman Carrollon May 15, 1976.His first assignment was as anassociate pastorat Corpus Christi Parish in Miami,where he remained for three years.At Corpus Christi, he took an interest in theHaitianparishioners who attended Mass inCreole;he was later sent to Haiti to study Creole andHaitian culture.

After returning to Miami in 1979, Wenski was appointed to a Haitian apostolate operating out of theCathedral of Saint Mary.Wenski then served as associate director and later director of the Pierre Toussaint Haitian Catholic Center in Miami until 1997.He also served concurrently aspastorof three Haitian parishes in the archdiocese: Notre-Dame d'Haiti in Miami,Divine Mercy inFort Lauderdale,and St. Joseph inPompano Beach.His outreach to the Haitian Catholic community in Miami was initially met with staunch opposition by Haitian priest and activistGérard Jean-Juste,who later came to regard Wenski as an ally.He also befriendedJean-Bertrand Aristide,a now laicized priest who later became the first democratically electedPresident of Haiti,

Wenski celebrated the weekly Mass in English for shut-ins atWPLG,the local ABC affiliate, from 1992 to 1997, and directed the Ministry to Non-Hispanic Ethnic Groups.He became an adjunct professor at St. Vincent de Paul Seminary in 1994.In January 1996, Wenski was named director of the archdiocesanCatholic Charities.In this capacity, he helped form a relationship withCaritas Cuba,the social service arm of theCatholic Church in Cuba.Later in 1996, he spearheaded a relief operation that delivered over 150,000 pounds (68,000 kg) of food toCaritas Cubafor distribution to people left homeless byHurricane Lili.

Episcopacy

Auxiliary Bishop of Miami

On June 24, 1997, Wenski was appointedauxiliary bishopof the Archdiocese of Miami and titular bishop ofKearneybyPope John Paul II.He received hisepiscopalconsecrationon September 3, 1997, from ArchbishopJohn Favalora,with ArchbishopEdward A. McCarthyand BishopAgustin Romanserving asco-consecrators,at theMiami Arena.Wenski selected as his episcopal motto: "All Things to All Men" (1 Corinthians9:22).As an auxiliary bishop, he served asepiscopal vicarforBrowardandMonroe Counties.

In addition to his episcopal duties, Wenski served on numerous boards, including Catholic Hospice, Catholic Charities, Catholic Charities Legal Services, andSt. Thomas Universityin Miami Gardens, Florida. He served as chair of Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (1998–2001),and of theUnited States Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee on Migration (2001–2004).He also served on theMiami-Dade CountyHomeless Trust and the Coordinating Council of Broward, and was appointed by Florida GovernorJeb Bushto the Florida Council on Homelessness, in 2001, and the Task Force on Haiti in 2004.

Bishop of Orlando

Wenski was appointedcoadjutor bishopof the Diocese of Orlando on July 1, 2003, by John Paul II.His installation took place on August 22, 2003.Following the retirement of BishopNorbert Dorsey,Wenski succeeded him as the fourth bishop of Orlando on November 13, 2004.He was the first Florida-born bishop of Orlando.

Wenski convoked the firstsynodfor the diocese in 2004.He held listening sessions with a diverse group of Catholics to hear about their concerns.He designated 2008 as the "Year of Evangelization," putting a greater emphasis on deepening the faith of all people.At the time of his appointment to Miami in 2010, he was leading the diocese through the early stages of both a $150 million capital campaign and an extensive renovation ofSt. James Cathedralin Orlando

In October 2007, Wenski was selected to serve on the board of directors of the Florida Specialty Crop Foundation, a non-profit public charity that assists specialty crop producers and their stakeholders.In September 2008, he gave an invocation at theRepublican National Conventionin Saint Paul, Minnesota.In March 2009, he joined the conservative Catholic Leadership Institute's national advisory board for their "Good Leaders, Good Shepherds" program.In May of that year, Wenski held a Mass of reparation for theUniversity of Notre Dame'sdecision to have PresidentBarack Obamadeliver itscommencement speechand receive anhonorary degree,given Obama's views onabortion rightsfor women.At the Mass, he denounced Obama for his "rather extremist views on abortion" and said that Notre Dame's "actions suggest that, unlike aCarrie Prejean,it lacks the courage of its convictions. "

In June 2009, Wenski was elected to a four-year term on the board ofthe Catholic University of Americain Washington, D.C.He chaired the USCCB Committee on International Policy (2004–2008), and currently serves as a consultant to the Committee on Migration and a member of the Secretariat for the church inLatin America,Committee for International Justice and Peace,and the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc.Wenski is currently the episcopal moderator for Catholic Health Services for the Florida Catholic Conference.

During his tenure, Wenski created six new parishes and two missions.His capital and endowment campaign raised $100 million.He petitioned and was granted that two diocesan churches be raised to the status of minorbasilicas.He started the Spanish language radio station,Buena Nueva FM.along with the Spanish language newspaper,El Clarin.

Archbishop of Miami

On April 20, 2010, Wenski was appointed the fourth Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Miami byPope Benedict XVI.Following his appointment, he said he was "humbled by the Holy Father's confidence in me and aware of my own limitations and shortcomings..."He succeeded Archbishop Favalora. He became the first native of the archdiocese to become its archbishop.Wenski was installed at the Cathedral of Saint Mary on June 1, 2010.At the end of June, he received thepallium,a vestment worn bymetropolitan bishops,from Benedict XVI atSt. Peter's Basilica.

On February 2, 2012, Wenski celebrated aPontifical High Mass,a solemn form ofTridentine Mass,the first such celebration in the state of Florida in more than 40 years.Wenski has created the annual Archbishop's Motorcycle Ride, in part due to his enjoying of motorcycles, to raise money for St. Luke's Patient Addiction Recovery Center.

In June 2015, Wenski reacted to theUS Supreme Courtdecision that legalizedsame sex marriageby comparing it to theDred Scottdecision. That Supreme Court decision in 1857 effectively classifiedenslaved African-Americansas being property, not people.On August 7, 2016, Wenski and two other Catholic prelates issued a statement condemning Catholic politicians who officiate at same sex weddings. This came a week after then Vice PresidentJoe Bidenofficiated a wedding for two maleWhite Housestaff members.

See also

• Catholic Church hierarchy
• Catholic Church in the United States
• Historical list of the Catholic bishops of the United States
• List of Catholic bishops of the United States
• Lists of patriarchs, archbishops, and bishops

External links

• Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Miami Official Site
• Official Bishop Wenski page including columns, homilies and speeches
• Diocese of Orlando