New Bishop: Msgr. Hebda gets hoisted into Gaylord, MI!

I'm hearing very good things about the Monsignor appointed to be the next bishop of the Diocese of Gaylord today.

From the USSCB website:

Pope Benedict XVI accepted the resignation of Bishop Patrick R. Cooney of Gaylord, Michigan, and named as his successor, Msgr. Bernard A. Hebda, 50, a Pittsburgh priest and Under-Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts.

...  Bernard Hebda was born in Pittsburgh, September 3, 1959. He attended South Hills Catholic High School in Pittsburgh, Harvard University, where he was awarded a Master of Arts degree in 1980, and Columbia University, where he was awarded a Juris Doctor degree in 1983.

He attended North American College in Rome and earned a Doctor of Canon Law degree from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas in 1990. 

... yet another Canon lawyer appointed to be a new bishop. A canon law degree is almost a litmus test for becoming a bishop these days.

Here is a map of the Gaylord, MI diocese:

"The Gaylord Diocese includes 11,171 square miles. The total population of the diocese is estimated at 510,532 people, with 66,217, or 13 percent, of them Catholic."

The Gaylord diocesan website (which includes a fuller bio of Msgr. Hebda) says a news conference was hosted this morning. It has not yet been announced when his episcopal ordination and installation will be. 

The Msgr. Hebda quote of the day:

"Never in my wildest dreams have I ever imagined that I would one day be the Bishop of Gaylord. I can remember being fascinated by a display of Bishop Baraga’s deerskin chasuble and having the greatest admiration for him."

Ah, dearskin chasubles - it's a different world up there. :)