Peoria's John Myers takes conservative message to Newark

National Catholic Reporter, August 24, 2001 by ROBERT McCLORY

New see has six times as many Catholics, areas of deep poverty

Bishop John Myers, 60, considered one of the most conservative bishops in the nation, will have a much larger pulpit from which to preach as he moves from predominantly rural Peoria, Ill., to the densely packed, urban archdiocese of Newark, NJ. The seventh-largest diocese in the nation, Newark has almost six times as many Catholics as Peoria, more than three times as many priests, three times as many Catholic schools, plus four auxiliary bishops (Peoria has none) -- all packed into a geographical area one-thirtieth the size of the Peoria diocese.

Peoria has a growing Hispanic population (and Myers is fluent in Spanish), but their numbers are dwarfed by the half million Hispanics in Newark. Newark also has substantial groups of Portuguese, Haitians, Filipinos and Koreans. Peoria has suffered economic decline, but Newark has experienced greater loss. As a result of massive flight of business and industry, devastated neighborhoods proliferate.

Newark's social service agency is the largest in New Jersey. The former archbishop, Theodore McCarrick, recently appointed to Washington, is considered a theological conservative but is regarded as a progressive in social justice issues. He is often cited for his talent in diplomacy. Under McCarrick, Newark became a mecca for Catholic-Jewish relations, much of it through programs at Seton Hall University. Newark is also the home of Renew, a lay leadership formation program that has spread nationwide but is a frequent target of conservative criticism.

Myers may see his elevation as a license to wield stronger conservative leadership in Newark and within the U.S. hierarchy. Last year he agreed to be one of 10 bishop advisers to the Cardinal Newman Society, an organization seeking rigorous compliance with Ex Corde Ecclesiae, the controversial Vatican document on higher education. His peers in that body include Bishops Fabian Bruskewitz of Lincoln, Neb., Thomas Doran of Rockford, Ill, and Raymond Burke of LaCrosse, Wis.

During his 11 years as Peoria's ordinary, Myers demonstrated a top-down, autocratic management style that earned him respect in some quarters and intense, though rarely public, resentment in others. Some 30 priests have opted to leave the diocese during Myers' tenure, though their positions have been more than filled by younger clergy fully committed to the bishop's approach.

Fr. Patrick Collins, former rector of the Peoria cathedral, left the diocese shortly after Myers became bishop, in part because of disagreements, in part because he wanted to teach and give retreats. Myers' "operative style has been doggedly conservative in its agenda and firmly clerical in its style," he said. "He has been able to assemble around himself a determined and cohesive group of supporters."

Msgr. Steven Rohlfs, vicar general under Myers, said Catholics with few exceptions approve the bishop's policies. The diocese, he said, "is almost a Camelot with no significant financial problems and a high degree of spirituality among the faithful." The bishop's reputation as conservative developed, he explained, "because he did a number of things in an upfront fashion when it was not customary for bishops to do so."

Among Myers' controversial moves was a 1990 pastoral letter declaring that Catholics holding pro-choice positions should not receive Communion. Wrote Myers, "Catholic faith does not recognize a right to dissent from teachings that have been proposed authoritatively and are integral to Catholic life." Myers oPpoSed use of the "morning after" pill for rape victims in Catholic hospitals, later modifying his position in cases where tests determined the victim was not yet pregnant.

He has been insistent that teachers in Catholic schools be impeccable in conduct and orthodox in their views. Positions are denied to anyone in an invalid marriage, practicing a homosexual lifestyle or dissenting from official positions including the intrinsic evil of contraception, the ban on women's ordination and the prohibition of intercommunion among Catholics and Protestants.

Concerned about children's "minimal knowledge" of the faith, Myers called in Regis Martin, a professor from Franciscan University of Steubenville, to assess the religious education program. In a scathing report, Martin cited "egregious omissions" including failure to emphasize the primacy of Rome, the sacrificial nature of the Mass and "the ontological distinction between the ministerial and common priesthood." Subsequently, the four top educational administrators resigned, and since then, many decision-making positions in religious education have gone to graduates of the Franciscan University.

Rohlfs also cited Myers' success in ordaining surprisingly large numbers of priests for such a small diocese (13 in 1992, 12 in 1996). Many were recruited during Myers' tenure came from outside the diocese and most studied theology at Mount St. Mary's Seminary in Emmitsburg, Pa., known for its conservative approach.