"If I look at my style," he said, "most people would say I'm pretty collaborative." Once during his long career as a California priest, he had to merge two congregations into one, which says something about an ability to reconcile various points of view.

"Sometimes there's a situation where I would need to step in," he added, "and there are times when I will make a wrong decision.

"There's going to be a lot of listening and learning, and being an outsider, I have a lot to learn." He smiled again. "I promise you, I won't be a perfect bishop."

There are priests here who will welcome that collaborative spirit. Some have privately admitted that they chafed under DiLorenzo's authoritarian administration and, while Silva asserted that "there will be standards to be met," he added that "it would be very important for me to respect that the priests are the pastors."

That's a smart position for Silva to assume, especially as he has concluded that his first order of business will be working on the critical shortage of priests in Hawai'i, where several priests are working as pastors for multiple parishes.

The bishop-elect — his formal installation has not been scheduled — has some experience with this issue, serving as a vocations director in Oakland.

But he recognized that his role as bishop would be mainly supportive: It's the pastors themselves who will be the role models for others in their own church communities.

"I've never met a priest," he said, "who was inspired by the vocations director."

While that task seems daunting enough all by itself, the bishop also will have to grapple with other core challenges in running a large, diverse diocese, including giving the congregation a reason to congregate.

Many Catholics have "fallen away" from religion entirely, or they've drifted to other churches that seem friendlier, less institutionally rigid.

Silva does not seem inclined to address this issue by tinkering with beliefs or practices themselves. He classifies himself as a "conservative." "I like to think of that in terms of conserving what is best in our tradition," he said, "and not to trivialize it."

He said he believes in an activist church, one where clergy and laity work for change in their communities, and where they defend church values. And while he says how people vote is a private decision, he also emphasizes that the church should reinforce its values — the sanctity of life ranking high on the list.

So don't expect any radical moves from his corner. No about-face on the abortion issue. No big surprise.

However, somehow he's going to have to encourage more people to engage actively with their church, and that means helping Catholics to feel that their church is an extension of family.

If there's a thread from the past administration he might pick up, it would be at least the spirit of DiLorenzo's "Welcoming Parish" campaign. This was a sometimes cumbersome process involving opinion surveys and written reports. But at its heart, it was an effort to get church members to reflect on their relationships with each other and the larger community.

Those of us who have found an extended family on Sundays realize that every church has a slightly different personality — or it should have — and we feel lucky to have found a good fit for ourselves. Perhaps Silva's interest in listening to what pastors say and his commitment to respect those who know their parishioners will go farther than anything else in creating a larger, happier church family.