David John Walkowiak

The Most Reverend David John Walkowiak, J.C.D. (born June 18, 1953) is a prelate of the Roman Catholic Church, who is currently serving as the twelfth bishop ordinary of the Diocese of Grand Rapids.[1]

His Excellency, The Most Reverend

David John Walkowiak

J.C.D.
Bishop of Grand Rapids
Bishop Walkowiak sits on the Cathedra of the Grand Rapids Diocesan Cathedral, May 2015
ProvinceDetroit
SeeGrand Rapids
AppointedApril 18, 2013
InstalledJune 18, 2013
PredecessorWalter Allison Hurley
Orders
OrdinationJune 9, 1979
by James A. Hickey
ConsecrationJune 18, 2013
by Allen Henry Vigneron, Richard Lennon, and Walter A. Hurley
Personal details
BornJune 18, 1953
Cleveland, Ohio
NationalityAmerican
DenominationRoman Catholic
Alma materCatholic University of America
MottoGratitas agite Domino
"Give thanks to the Lord"
(Ps. 118:1)
Coat of arms
x
Styles of
David John Walkowiak
Reference style
Spoken styleYour Excellency
Religious styleBishop

Early life and education

David John Walkowiak was born in East Cleveland, Ohio on June 18, 1952 to Dr. John and Virginia Walkowiak. He has three sisters, and the family is of Polish descent.[2] He attended Saint Bernadette school in Westlake, Ohio and, later, Cleveland's Saint Ignatius High School.

Walkowiak earned his Bachelor of Arts in government and international studies from the University of Notre Dame in 1975 and Masters of Divinity four years later from Saint Mary Seminary in Wickliffe, Ohio. Beginning in the early 1980s, he studied at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., earning his licentiate of Canon Law in 1984 and his doctorate in 1987.[3]

Priesthood

Walkowiak was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop James A. Hickey for the Diocese of Cleveland on June 9, 1979, and served the diocese as;

Additionally, he was a member of the Council of Priests of the Ecclesiastical Province of Cincinnati (Ohio) and served as an associate Judge of its Court of Appeals.

Episcopate

Bishop of Grand Rapids

On April 18, 2013, Pope Francis accepted the resignation of the Diocese of Grand Rapids' eleventh bishop, Walter A. Hurley, and appointed Walkowiak as his successor. He was consecrated to the episcopate and installed as the diocese's bishop by Detroit metropolitan archbishop Allen Vigneron on his 60th birthday (June 18, 2013) at the Cathedral of Saint Andrew. Assisting Vigneron as co-consecrators were Hurley, Apostolic Nuncio Carlo Maria Viganò, and twenty other American bishops.[4]

References
  1. "Bishops of the Diocese". dioceseofgrandrapids.org. Retrieved 2016-02-04.
  2. http://www.posteaglenewspaper.com/new-polish-bishop-in-michigan/
  3. "Biography of Bishop Walkowiak". Diocese of Grand Rapids. Retrieved February 10, 2016.
  4. "Bishop Walkowiak begins his episcopal ministry". www.dioceseofgrandrapids.org. Retrieved 2016-02-04.
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