By JOSEPH McALEER
Fairfield County Catholic,
February 24, 2007
On February 15, Bishop William E. Lori announced the appointment of
Msgr. J. Peter Cullen, V.G., as the new pastor of Saint Michael
the Archangel Parish in Greenwich and its mission, Saint Timothy Chapel.
Msgr. Cullen had been serving as temporary administrator of the parish
since January 24, following the resignation of Father Michael Moynihan.
Msgr. Cullen (pictured
at right) will also assume a leadership role at Greenwich Catholic School.
Loving Shepherd
"A loving shepherd
of souls as well as an experienced pastor and administrator, Msgr. Cullen
has devoted his every waking hour to the needs of Saint Michael's and
Greenwich Catholic School during these challenging days," Bishop Lori
wrote in a letter mailed to all parishioners. "He continues to offer
wise, steady, and caring guidance to a parish family that needs healing
and desires to move forward. Together with Father William Kennedy, Father
Mark Connolly, and Father Liam Quinlan, and with existing and emerging
lay leadership, Msgr. Cullen will unite and strengthen Saint Michael's
as a community of faith, worship, and service."
Msgr. Cullen, 67,
brings to his new parish family broad experience as a priest, pastor,
and diocesan official.
Born in Dorchester,
MA, Msgr. Cullen lived in New Jersey before his family moved to Riverside,
CT. He attended Saint Mary Seminary in Baltimore, MD, and was ordained
to the priesthood in 1967 by Bishop Walter W. Curtis.
His first assignment
was as parochial vicar at Saint Mary Parish in Stamford. After studies
at the Catholic University of Ponce in Puerto Rico, and attaining fluency
in Spanish, he was assigned to Saint Mary Parish in Bridgeport in 1970.
He became pastor there in 1974 during the period of Saint Mary's transition
to a mostly Hispanic parish.
In 1979, Msgr. Cullen
crossed the Park City to become pastor of Saint Peter Parish, serving
there until his appointment as pastor of Saint Aloysius Parish in New
Canaan in 1985. He spent the next 17 years there, renewing the family
of faith and expanding the facilities of both the parish and its elementary
school.
Msgr. Cullen was
named moderator of the curia and vicar general in 2002.
A Pastor's Heart
"In those roles,
he has worked side by side with me and with the leadership team at the
Catholic Center in strengthening the administration of the diocese,
in reorganizing our Catholic schools, revamping Catholic Charities,
strengthening religious education, devising and implementing the Pastoral
Plan for Evangelization, and in addressing the significant challenges
the Church is facing locally and nationally," Bishop Lori says. "All
this and more he did with a pastor's heart.
"To my regret,"
Bishop Lori concludes, "I will lose Msgr. Cullen's day-to-day services,
but I shall retain him as a vicar general so that I may continue to
benefit from his wise counsel and assistance."
Msgr. Cullen holds
a master's degree in theology from Saint Mary Seminary in Baltimore,
MD; a certificate of completion of the School of Intercultural Communications
from the Catholic University of Ponce in Puerto Rico; and a doctorate
of pastoral ministry from the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkeley,
CA.
Unity and Trust
Acknowledging that
he becomes pastor amid a "heartbreaking situation," Msgr. Cullen promises
to be a "spiritual and pastoral resource" to his new family of faith.
"I am happy to be
a priest, for 40 years now, and happy to serve this parish and the Church,"
Msgr. Cullen says. "But the only way I can be the pastor I have to be,
and the one the good people of Saint Michael's need, is through the
prayers and participation of everyone. I promise that we will all work
together in a spirit of unity and trust."
(For background
information on the ongoing investigation of Saint Michael the Archangel
Parish, click here.)
(To learn about
the new program of enhanced financial controls, procedures, and monitoring
for all 87 parishes of the Diocese of Bridgeport, click
here.)
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