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Richard Henning
American priest of the Catholic Church (born 1964) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Richard G. Henning is an American Catholic prelate who has served as Archbishop of Boston since 2024. He previously served as Bishop of Providence from 2023 to 2024 and before that was an auxiliary bishop for the Diocese of Rockville Centre from 2018 to 2022.
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Biography
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Early life
Richard Henning was born in Rockville Centre, New York, growing up at Holy Name of Mary Parish and grade school. His father was a firefighter and his mother was a nurse. Henning credits their examples of service with inspiring his own vocation.[1] He graduated from Chaminade High School in Mineola, New York in 1982.[2]
Henning was awarded a Bachelor of Arts degree in history in 1986 and a Master of Arts degree in history from St. John's University in New York City in 1988. After graduation, he entered the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception in Lloyd Harbor, New York, for priestly formation.[3][4]
Priesthood
On May 30, 1992, Henning was ordained to the priesthood for the Diocese of Rockville Centre by Bishop John R. McGann at St. Agnes Cathedral in Rockville Centre.[5] After his 1992 ordination, the diocese assigned Henning as an assistant pastor at served in a parish in Port Washington, New York.
In 1997, the diocese sent Henning to the Catholic University of America School of Theology in Washington, D.C., where he earned his Licentiate of Sacred Theology in biblical theology in 2000. He then spent the next two years in Rome working towards a Doctor of Theology degree in biblical theology at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas, which he completed in 2007.[6]
In 2002, Henning was appointed a professor of sacred scripture at the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception. Henning in 2008 co-authored the book, Christ Our Hope: Benedict XVI’s Apostolic Journey to the United States and Visit to the United Nations.[7]
In 2012, Henning was named rector of Immaculate Conception.[8] He oversaw the transition of Immaculate Conception from a seminary to hosting retreats and a formation program for the laity.[9] He also served as the inaugural director of the Sacred Heart Institute for the Ongoing Formation of Clergy, located in the Immaculate Conception facility.[10][11]
Bishop John O. Barres appointed Henning as vicar for pastoral planning in 2018 and vicar for clergy in Rockville Centre in 2021.[12]
Auxiliary bishop of Rockville Centre
Pope Francis appointed Henning as auxiliary bishop of Rockville Centre on June 8, 2018.[3][13] He was consecrated by Barres at St. Agnes Cathedral on July 24, 2018, with Bishops William Murphy and Robert J. Brennan serving as co-consecrators.[5]
Coadjutor bishop and bishop of Providence
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On November 23, 2022, Francis appointed Henning as coadjutor bishop of Providence to assist Bishop Thomas J. Tobin. He was installed on January 26, 2023.[14][15] Henning succeeded as bishop of Providence on May 1, 2023, when Tobin retired.[16]
Archbishop of Boston
On August 5, 2024, Francis named Henning to succeed Seán Patrick O'Malley as archbishop of Boston.[17] When asked in August 2024 about the sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Church, Henning replied;
“If there are Catholics who are scandalized, I understand why they’re scandalized. It’s scandalous and certainly painful for me over the course of my life. But it has not made me lose my faith in God or my faith in the possibility of reconciliation and new life, even in the midst of what may feel devastating. So I would say to them that if I have failed you, if a leader in their Church has failed you, I’m so sorry, but God has not failed you."[7]
Henning was installed as archbishop in Boston on October 31, 2024.[18] He is fluent in Spanish and Italian and literate in French, Greek, and Hebrew.[19]
In his first six months as archbishop, Henning said that he had "been on probably more than a dozen college campuses," and "there has been something remarkable happening among the college students" regarding their interest in Catholicism.[20] He posited that Pope Leo would be able to "receive what is happening among the youth and amplify it."
In 2025, Henning led a multi-day Eucharistic procession by boat, visiting several parish communities along the North Shore of the archdiocese. Henning cited the difficulty in bringing the people of the diocese together and wanting to bring the Eucharist to people as motivations for the procession. He suggested that Eucharistic devotion is one factor driving increased interest in Catholicism in the archdiocese among college students and young adults.[20]
In June of 2025, Henning received the pallium from Pope Leo XIV at a ceremony in Rome. Henning said he felt like a "deer in the headlights" as he approached Leo. He said the ceremony was a moment of being "taken possession of... by the life of the church," and that he would return to Boston with a "sense of renewal."[21]
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Views
Hennig has stated that he thinks that the Church must emphasize Christ above all else. He has expressed that he feels the Holy Spirit urging that his ministry as a bishop be Christocentric. He contrasted this with the emphasis of the Church as "bureaucratic" institution, which he saw as making the Church into "something of a political animal."[20] Henning attended the 2024 Eucharistic Congress, which he lauded for having "the focus of every day [be] on the Lord himself."[20]
Henning has called himself a "big fan of communion ecclesiology," describing the Church as
a communion, but a communion forged by the Lord, and it all circles around the Son who is Christ. When we deepen our relationship with Christ, we are more perfectly bound to one another.[20]
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Personal life
Henning has a fondness for praying by the ocean, jokingly calling the sea coast his "happy place." He has said praying by the sea has been important in his life.[20]
See also
References
External links
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