Allentown, Pa., May 27, 2009 / 09:04 am
A Delaware priest who was baptized by Bishop Fulton Sheen in 1960 has been named the new Bishop of Allentown, Pennsylvania.
Bishop-elect John Oliver Barres will succeed Bishop Edward Cullen, 76, whose resignation was accepted by the Holy Father after reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75.
Bishop of the Diocese of Wilmington W. Francis Malooly addressed the faithful in Allentown saying that they will receive a bishop with “a missionary spirit not unlike Saint Paul.”
"He is always looking to see how he can invite others to experience the Lord in their lives. You will quickly discover why, for twenty years of priesthood, he has been one of the most loved and respected priests of our diocese. We are saddened to lose his ministry here in Wilmington."
Born in Port Chester, New York in 1960, Msgr. Barres was baptized by Bishop Fulton J. Sheen in the same year. His parents had converted to Catholicism only five years earlier after spending years studying to become Protestant ministers, according to the Diocese of Wilmington.