John Barres

His Excellency, The Most Reverend

John Oliver Barres

Bishop of Rockville Centre
Diocese| Rockville Centre
Appointed| December 9, 2016
Installed| January 31, 2017
Predecessor| William Murphy
Orders
Ordination| October 21, 1989
by Robert Edward Mulvee
Consecration| July 30, 2009
by Justin Francis Rigali, William Francis Malooly, and Michael Angelo Saltarelli
Personal details
Born|  (1960-09-20) September 20, 1960 (age 62)

Larchmont, New York, US

Denomination| Roman Catholic
Previous post(s)|

* Bishop of Allentown (2009–2017)

Alma mater| Princeton University
New York University
Catholic University of America
Motto| Holiness and mission
Styles of
John Oliver Barres

Reference style|

* His Excellency
* The Most Reverend

Spoken style| Your Excellency
Religious style| Bishop

John Oliver Barres (/ˈbærɪs/ BARR-iss; born September 20, 1960) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church, who has been serving as the bishop of the Diocese of Rockville Centre in New York State since January 2017. He previously served as bishop of the Diocese of Allentown in Pennsylvania from 2009 to 2017.

## Early life and education[edit]

The fifth of six children, John Barres was born on September 20, 1960, to Oliver and Marjorie (née Catchpole) Barres in Larchmont, New York.[1] His parents were Brethren ministers[2] who met each other at Yale Divinity School and then converted to Catholicism in 1955. Oliver Barres wrote about their conversion in the book One Shepherd, One Flock. John Barres was baptized by Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen.[3]

John Barres attended Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, before entering at Princeton University In Princeton, New Jersey, here he obtained a Bachelor of English Literature degree. He then attended the New York University School of Business Administration in New York City, earning a Master of Business Administration degree in management (1984). Barres received a Bachelor of Sacred Theology degree in 1988, and a Licentiate in Systematic Theology from the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. and received his seminary formation at its theological college.[1]

## Ordination and ministry[edit]

Barres was ordained to the priesthood for the Diocese of Wilmington by Bishop Robert Mulvee on October 21, 1989. He served as an associate pastor at Holy Family Parish[4] in Newark, Delaware, until 1992, and at St. Elizabeth Parish in Wilmington, Delaware, from 1992 to 1996. He went to the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome, where he earned a Licentiate of Canon Law in 1998 and a Doctor of Spirituality degree in 1999; his thesis was entitled "Jean-Jacques Olier's Priestly Spirituality: Mental Prayer and Virtue as the Foundation for the Direction of Souls."[3]

Upon his return to Delaware in 1999, Barres became vice chancellor for the diocese.[1] In 2000, he was named chancellor by the bishop and a chaplain to his holiness by the Vatican. In 2005, Barres was named by the Vatican as an honorary prelate. He served on various diocesan boards and committees, as well as the administrative board of the Maryland Catholic Conference, the board of St. Francis Hospital in Wilmington, and the board of the Cathedral Foundation.[3] In addition to his duties as chancellor, Barres briefly became pastor of Holy Child Parish in Wilmington in May 2009.

Barres is a member of Opus Dei. In addition to his native English, he is fluent in Italian, French, and Spanish.

## Bishop of Allentown[edit]

Coat of Arms as Bishop of Allentown

On May 27, 2009, Barres was appointed the fourth bishop of the Diocese of Allentown by Pope Benedict XVI, succeeding Bishop Edward Cullen. Barres received his episcopal consecration on July 30, 2009, at the Cathedral of St. Catharine of Siena in Allentown. Cardinal Justin Rigali was the principal consecrator, with Bishop W. Francis Malooly and Bishop Emeritus Michael Saltarelli as principal co-consecrators.[5]

Barres was the first diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Allentown who had not served previously in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Barres established the Saint Thomas More Society for lawyers in the diocese and expanded the diocese's Hispanic ministry and evangelization.[5]

## Bishop of Rockville Centre[edit]

Pope Francis appointed Barres as bishop of the Diocese of Rockville Centre on December 9, 2016.[6] He was installed on January 31, 2017 at the Cathedral of Saint Agnes. In October 2017, Barres announced the creation of the Independent Reconciliation and Compensation Program (IRCP) for survivors of acts of child sexual abuse committed by clergy in the diocese. Barres serves on the Committee on Evangelization and Catechesis of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).[5] In 2017, Barres created with Telecare, the diocesan television network, a video series targeted to commuters, entitled "The Catholic Spirituality of Commuter Delays."[5]

In August 2018, a Pennsylvania grand jury report criticized Barres for failing to remove a priest from the ministry after credible allegations of sexual misconduct while he was bishop in the Diocese of Allentown.[7] In 2009, the diocese received a report from a man who alleged that Michael Lawrence, a diocese priest, had "fondled his genitals" when he was age 13. Lawrence, who had admitted to sexually abusing a 12-year-old boy in 1982, had previously been sent to a monitored rural facility for sex offenders. In 2002, Lawrence retired from pastoral work. At some point, Barres considered having Lawrence laicized. However, according to a spokesperson for the diocese, Barres finally decided:

> "... to withdraw the application to remove Lawrence from the clerical state out of concern that if they did, he may leave the supervised, secure facility and re-enter society, where he might be a danger to children. 'Bishop Barres stands by his decision'".[8]

A second case mentioned in the Pennsylvania grand jury report involved Thomas J. Benestad, a monsignor in the Diocese of Allentown. A 2011 accusation stated that Benestad forced a boy in the 1980's to perform oral sex on him, then later he performed oral sex on the boy. According to the grand jury report "... the Diocese reported the allegation to the Northampton County District Attorney's office, which ... found the victim's allegations to be credible." No charges were filed because the statute of limitations had expired.[9] A response from Barres to the grand jury report regarding the handling of the Lawrence and Benestad cases was posted online.[10]

## See also[edit]

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

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b c "Pope Accepts Resignation of Bishop of Allentown, Pennsylvania, Appoints Successor; Names Auxiliary Bishop in St. Paul-Minneapolis". United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. May 27, 2009.
2. ^ "Bishop John Barres - Son of Former Brethren Ministers - The Coming Home Network". Retrieved September 8, 2016.
3. ^ a b c "Pope names Wilmington's Msgr. John Barres, Bishop of Allentown". Roman Catholic Diocese of Wilmington. May 27, 2009.
4. ^ Holy Family Church, Newark, Del.
5. ^ a b c d "The Most Reverend John Oliver Barres, S.T.D., J.C.L., D.D.", The Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre". January 28, 2020. Archived from the original on February 25, 2021. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
6. ^ "Bishop Murphy of Rockville Centre retires; Bishop Barres named successor". Catholic News Service. December 9, 2016. Archived from the original on December 10, 2016. Retrieved December 9, 2015.
7. ^ "How the Allentown Diocese dealt with an admitted abuser". The Inquirer. August 14, 2018. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
8. ^ Grieco, Sue. "Bishop John Barres named in report detailing alleged clergy sexual abuse cover-up in Pennsylvania", LI Herald, August 15, 2018
9. ^ "Report 1 of the 40th Statewide Investigating Grand Jury," Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General, July 27, 2018, pages 321-322.
10. ^ https://www.drvc.org/wp-content/uploads/28-8-18-Letter-to-Hon-DanielDye.pdf[bare URL PDF]

## External links[edit]

* The Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre Official Site

Catholic Church titles

Preceded by

Edward Peter Cullen

|  Bishop of Allentown
2009–2017  | Succeeded by

Alfred Andrew Schlert

Preceded by

William Murphy

|  Bishop of Rockville Centre
2017–present  | Succeeded by

Incumbent

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