Selection 'a real blessing for me'
By Mary Kaye Ritz
Advertiser Religion & Ethics Writer
The Rev. Larry Silva was formally introduced yesterday as bishop-elect for the Diocese of Honolulu, returning to the place where he was born, and where members of the Portuguese community and his army of relatives are proud to hear one of their own had been selected.
Bruce Asato • The Honolulu Advertiser
"It's a real blessing for me to be able to come back to where I and my family have roots," said Silva, who currently serves as the vicar general of the Diocese of Oakland, Calif.
The Rev. Larry Silva, appointed to become the next bishop of the Honolulu Diocese, will run the diocese where his great-grandparents arrived from the Azores more than 125 years ago. He will oversee 66 parishes and 30 missions.
The bishop-elect will run the diocese where his great-grandparents landed when they came from the Azores more than 125 years ago. He, his two older siblings, his parents and his grandparents were born here.
In taking over the top job, Silva will lead 66 parishes and 30 missions, filling a position that had been vacant for a year.
Relatives and those who have worked with him had kind words yesterday for the bishop-elect, relating stories that shed light on the kind of leader he may prove to be.
When his aunt, Mabel Neves, needed to get Christmas presents to her relatives in California, she would load him up when he came to visit every January and February.
When he served at an Oakland-area church with the Rev. Mark Wiesner, now pastor of St. Augustine and communication director for the Diocese of Oakland, he'd insist on celebrating at least one Mass per weekend, even if someone else was scheduled to do the services, so he could stay in touch with the Scriptures and the congregation. Until yesterday, Silva held the No. 2 position at the Oakland diocese.
The Rev. Larry Silva will celebrate Mass today at noon at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace downtown.
When he took over as vicar general for Oakland's new bishop, Allen Vigneron, he faced the daunting task of cutting $1.2 million from the diocesan budget, and managed to do it without eliminating a single job.
"Always, he was very kind," said Neves, who does the linen ministry for her church, Holy Trinity in East Honolulu.
Neves thought of her late sister, Silva's mother, and her voice softened.
"Catherine (Alves) passed away on Christmas Day" about a decade ago, Neves said, recalling the beautiful funeral Mass, filled with Christmas touches. When Silva came to visit Monday, telling his aunt he'd been made bishop, Neves told him, "The reason why you're bishop, your mom was very holy.
"She was a living saint, she was so nice. I said, 'She's been praying for you, so you'll be a bishop.' She would be very happy to be here."
Believe it ... or not
But when Silva gave Neves the news, at first his aunt didn't believe him — even though Silva's oldest brother used to tell Neves laughingly after she attended Silva's ordination in 1975 that she would someday see Silva installed as bishop.
Born: Aug. 6, 1949, at St. Francis Hospital and baptized at St. Anthony's in Kailua. He moved to California at age 1. Parents: Richard and Catherine (Alves) Silva (both deceased) Education: Attended Catholic elementary and high schools in California; then St. Patrick College and St. Patrick Seminary. Ordained: May 2, 1975, at St. Francis de Sales Cathedral by the Most Rev. Floyd L. Begin. (After ordination, he studied Spanish in Cuernavaca, Mexico, for two summers and had a year's sabbatical at the Theological Education, Pontifical North American College in Rome.) Churches where he served (all in California): St. Augustine (deacon), St. Bernard (associate pastor); Our Lady of the Rosary (associate pastor); St. Bede Church (associate pastor); St. Peter Martyr (pastor); St. Anthony Church (pastor); St. John the Baptist (pastor); St. Andrew-St. Joseph Church (pastor); St. Patrick Church (pastor); Our Lady of Guadalupe Church (pastor). Diocesan assignments: 1979-1983, director of vocations, diocese of Oakland; 2003-2005, vicar general and moderator of the curia, Diocese of Oakland.
"I said, 'No!' He had to call his brother, Eddie, on the phone, say, 'Tell Auntie Mabel what I told you.' "
Bishop-elect Larry Silva
His brothers are expected to come to Hawai'i for his installation, which is expected to be performed by Vigneron. The exact date of the installation has not been set, though Silva said at a press conference yesterday that there's a four-month window in which to make the change.
Diocesan administrator the Very Rev. Thomas Gross will continue in the post until Silva is officially installed, "though I will, of course, be conferring with him directly," Gross said when he introduced Silva to the media yesterday.
Vigneron had praise for the choice yesterday. In a statement, he said: "All the priests and people of the Oakland Diocese are filled with joy at the news that our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, has appointed Father Larry Silva to be bishop of Honolulu. ... All of us know his great zeal for preaching Christ and his unbounded love for those he serves. The church in Honolulu is getting our very best."
Yesterday, Silva offered a rare peek into the workings of Rome when he told how he learned he was up for the top post.
When asked if he actively sought the job, he smiled widely and said, "No."
"I never thought I'd be bishop of anywhere," Silva said later.
First, he said, when the Honolulu occupancy was announced, letters were sent to various people here, asking what kind of bishop was needed.
"These are all supposed to be top secret, but some people can't keep a secret," he said, drawing a laugh. "There were people who said my name."
'I was shocked'
On May 5, his bishop called him into his office and said he'd received a call from the apostolic nuncio in Washington, the ambassador of the Vatican in the United States, Archbishop Gabriel Montalvo, saying, "The Holy Father selected you to be bishop of Honolulu and he wants me to talk to you to see if you'll accept. I was shocked."
He described the journey as "surreal — I've pinched myself many times."
Silva's extended family of relatives and members of the Portuguese community embraced news of his appointment with pride.
"We needed him," said Bernadette Suganuma (a second cousin on his mother's side), adding that she's prepared for the onslaught of ribbing from comedian Frank DeLima, a former classmate at the Menlo Park seminary that Silva attended.
Richard Ambo • The Honolulu Advertiser
Is she expecting jokes at her second cousin's expense?
Mabel Neves, aunt of Larry Silva, at first didn't believe he was named bishop-elect of the Honolulu diocese. She's shown with her husband, Lucius, and her pastor, the Rev. Hal Weidner of Holy Trinity Church.
"Many!" she said with a giggle. "I'll wring (DeLima's) neck! But it's good to laugh."
It's a good thing, too, he knows a little something about diversity: Like Honolulu, Oakland is a diverse diocese, with Mass celebrated in 15 languages on a given Sunday.
His Oakland colleague, Wiesner, said that though Silva is a good listener, he's also "very direct. You never have to worry about where you stand with him."
Wiesner watched as his old friend, Silva, stepped into the new post as vicar general in 2003.
"There was a lot of trepidation going in, with people on edge, as you can imagine," he said. "Later, people were OK with it. When (the big budget cut and reorganization was) announced, some weren't sure how it would play out. Now it's much better, and things are clicking along nicely. Father Larry guided that whole process along."
What's in store
The challenges awaiting him here, Silva said, include a shortage of priests and continuing the suggested improvements included in the communitywide Synod 2000 recommendations under former Honolulu Bishop Francis DiLorenzo, now bishop of Richmond, Va.
One comment he made during the press conference may give a sense of the way he hopes to run the diocese:
"I've often said that I really don't have any problem with what the church teaches, but sometimes I do have a problem with the way it teaches. It's because we can't teach in sound bites, but in profound truths in a simple way."
Reach Mary Kaye Ritz at mritz@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8035.
