tvc.dsj.org | March 19, 2019
IN THE CHURCH
9
Pope Names Bishops for Memphis, Fresno and Auxiliary For Los Angeles
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Just over
four months after Pope Francis forced
Bishop Martin D. Holley to step down
as bishop of Memphis, Tennessee, he
named Bishop David P. Talley of Alex-
andria, Louisiana, to lead the diocese.
Bishop Talley’s appointment was
announced March 5 in Washington
by Archbishop Christophe Pierre,
apostolic nuncio to the United States.
The archbishop also announced
Pope Francis’ decisions to accept the
resignation of 75-year-old Bishop
Armando X. Ochoa of Fresno, Califor-
nia, and name Los Angeles Auxiliary
Bishop Joseph V. Brennan to succeed
him. In addition, Pope Francis named
Philippines-born Msgr. Alejandro D.
Aclan to be an auxiliary bishop in the
Archdiocese of Los Angeles.
Bishop Talley, 68, a former auxiliary
bishop of Atlanta, was named coadju-
tor of the Diocese of Alexandria in
2016 and succeeded Bishop Ronald P.
Herzog when he retired in 2017. Bishop
Talley will be installed as the sixth
bishop of Memphis April 2. Details
of the ceremony are to be announced
later.
“It is with deep joy that I join the
faithful of the Diocese of Memphis” in
welcoming Bishop Talley, said Arch-
bishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville,
who is apostolic administrator of the
diocese. He brings “a wealth of experi-
ence” as pastor and bishop, and “most
importantly, he brings the heart of a
pastor and a sterling reputation as a
good shepherd, the archbishop said
in a statement.
He is “devoted to Jesus Christ and
his church, deeply concerned for those
he serves, humble and wise,” Arch-
bishop Kurtz added.
Auxiliary Bishop Joseph V. Brennan, Bishop David Talley, and Bishop-designate Aclan.
(CNS photos)
Born Sept. 11, 1950, in Columbus,
Georgia, David Prescott Talley was
raised a Southern Baptist but became
a Catholic while a student at Auburn
University. He was received into
the church when he was 24. He was
ordained a priest of the Atlanta Arch-
diocese in 1989.
The Diocese of Memphis comprises
10,682 square miles. Out of a total
population of over 1.5 million, about
60,320, or 4 percent, are Catholic.
In California, Bishop Ochoa wel-
comed his successor in Fresno “as a
man of great faith, extraordinary tal-
ent, and love of his call to serve God’s
people with the heart of Christ.”
“After seven wonderful years as
bishop of the Diocese of Fresno, I
know that the clergy, religious men
and women, and all God’s people will
welcome Bishop Brennan with open
arms and open hearts,” added the prel-
ate, who has reached the age at which
canon law requires bishops to turn in
their resignation to the pope.
A native of Oxnard, California,
Bishop Ochoa was ordained a priest
for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles
May 23, 1970. He is a former auxil-
iary for the archdiocese. He had been
bishop of El Paso, Texas, for 15 years
when he was named fifth bishop of
Fresno in December 2011. He was in-
stalled Feb. 1, 2012. Bishop Ochoa has
served on several committees of the
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Bishop Brennan, who turns 65
March 20, has been a Los Angeles aux-
iliary since 2015. He will be installed
as Fresno’s sixth bishop May 2.
A native Angeleno, Bishop Brennan
is the son of a San Fernando Valley
grocer and the ninth of 10 children. He
speaks fluent Spanish, and has a twin
brother living in the diocese he will
lead, according to Angelus, the news
outlet of the Los Angeles Archdiocese.
The Fresno Diocese is a 35,000
squaremile territory with about 1.2
million Catholics. It is situated in the
heart of California’s agriculture-rich
San Joaquin Valley, known as Ameri-
ca’s “salad bowl” and the “food basket
for the world, Angelus noted.
The new auxiliary for the Los
Angeles Archdiocese, Bishop-desig-
nate Aclan, will become the second
Filipino-American priest to be named
bishop in the U.S. The first was Bishop
Oscar Solis, an auxiliary bishop in Los
Angeles from 2004 until 2017, who is
now head of the Diocese of Salt Lake
City.
The Los Angeles area is home to
the largest Filipino immigrant com-
munity in the United States, according
to Angelus.
Bishop-designate Aclan was born
Feb. 9, 1951, in Pasay City, Philippines.
He was ordained a priest for the Arch-
diocese of Los Angeles in 1993. He
served most recently as vicar for clergy
before taking a sabbatical last summer.
Archbishop Jose H. Gomez in a
March 5 statement called him a “proud
son of our vibrant Filipino commu-
nity” and “a man of prayer.”
“He has a true heart for Jesus -- and
a deep concern for the people he is
called to serve. And I know he will
be a voice for Filipino Catholics, who
are a beautiful sign of growth and
renewal in our church here in Los
Angeles and throughout the country,”
the archbishop said.
The Archdiocese of Los Angeles
covers 8,636 square miles in Southern
California. The general population of
the area totals 11.5 million, of which
over 4 million, or 35 percent, are
Catholic.
Bishop-designate Aclan told An-
gelus that his appointment is an op-
portunity to learn again” as he has
throughout his 25 years of priesthood.
“And I’m eager to learn,” he said.
“I know for a fact that there’s a lot
of people praying for me,” he said,
adding that he is assured of the con-
stant prayers of at least two prayer
groups, and, most importantly, “my
mother and father in heaven.” “With
that, I know that whatever challenges
are sent my way, with God’s grace, I
should be able to handle them.”
Daughter of Charity Sister Hermine Mary Regan Dies at 108 years old
Sister Hermine Mary Regan died
on February 16, at Labouré Residence
in Los Altos Hills, CA. She lived and
served as a faithful and loyal Daugh-
ter of Charity for 85 years. Born in
Seattle, Washington, on September 4,
1910, she graduated from San Diego
High School in 1929. She attended
Marquette University and Alverno
College in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and
received her R.N. from St. Vincent’s
School of Nursing in Los Angeles, in
1933. Later that year, she began her
Postulancy with the Daughters of
Charity of St. Vincent de Paul Com-
munity at Guardian Angel Settlement
in St. Louis, Missouri. She made vows
for the first time on January 25, 1939.
In 1965, Sister Hermine took on
the task as administrative assistant
and planning coordinator for the new
Mary’s Help Hospital. Since funding
was not available to relocate the hos-
pital from San Francisco to Daly City,
she relied on Divine Providence to
get the job done. “She used her great
creative energy to gather a group of
significant men from San Francisco for
a meeting,” said Sister William Eileen
Dunn, then a nursing supervisor at
the hospital. “She asked each one to
commit to raising $100,000, which
they did.” Ultimately, Sister Hermine
served as Board president. Mary’s
Help Hospital was renamed Seton
Medical Center in 1983.
The pla n n i ng experience t hat
helped make the new Mary’s Help a
reality in 1965 was also present when
Sister Hermine was asked to help plan
and supervise the building of Labouré
Residence at Seton Provincialate in Los
Altos Hills. Years later, as a resident of
Labouré, Sister Hermine spent many
hours of prayer time in the Labouré
Chapel and walking the halls that
played such an important part in her
varied history.
Th roughout her 85 years as a
Daughter of Charity, Sister Hermine
displayed her talent as an accom-
plished artist. Her charming note-
cards depicted Daughters of Charity
wearing their cornettes and going
about their blessed daily tasks. She is
remembered as a kind and compas-
sionate nurse, as well as a loyal and
loving friend. She was buried at Gate
of Heaven Cemetery in Los Altos.
Sister companions recall Sister
Hermine stating that she wanted to
die young, which was not realized. At
the time of her death, Sister Hermine
held the distinction of being the old-
est Daughter of Charity in the United
States, and the third oldest worldwide.