There was a Cleveland presence in Greensburg, Pennsylvania on Feb. 11 when Bishop Larry Kulick was ordained and installed as the sixth bishop of the Diocese of Greensburg.
It was a homecoming for Cleveland Bishop Edward Malesic who spent five years as the fifth bishop Greensburg before his appointment last July as the 12th bishop of Cleveland. Bishop Malesic was a co-consecrator for Bishop Kulick. The second co-consecrator was Greensburg Bishop emeritus Lawrence Brandt, Bishop Malesic’s predecessor there.
And there was another face familiar to those in the Cleveland Diocese: Philadelphia Archbishop Nelson Perez was the ordaining bishop.
“I guess I started all of this,” the archbishop quipped during his homily. He recalled getting the phone call in 2017 informing him that the Holy Father had appointed him the 11th bishop of Cleveland. “So then I went to Philadelphia and a few months later, Bishop Malesic got a call. And we all know what happened.”
After Bishop Malesic’s Sept. 14 installation in Cleveland, the Greensburg see was vacant. “And you were all wondering who will it be (to replace Bishop Malesic),” Archbishop Perez said. “I bet you were relieved when you learned it would be Msgr. Kulick.”
Since he’s a priest of the diocese, the archbishop said the new bishop’s learning curve would be much smaller. He also noted that the installation occurs adjacent to another significant event in the diocese: the 70th anniversary of its establishment, March 1951.
Bishop Kulick, who served as vicar general/moderator of the curia, was one of Bishop Malesic’s key assistants during his five years in Greensburg. The new bishop acknowledged the support and opportunities afforded him by his predecessor and publicly thanked his mentor in remarks at the end of the installation liturgy. “You’re welcome here any time,” he said, as Bishop Malesic acknowledged him with a wave.
Bishop Kulick also told Archbishop Perez – who was installed Feb. 18, 2020 in Philadelphia -- that he was honored to be the first bishop he ordained.
The Mass took place in the Blessed Sacrament Cathedral in Greensburg. Archbishop Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States, presented the papal bull that announced Bishop Kulick’s appointment. His parents, godparents and siblings presented the insignia of his office: the ring, miter and crosier, which belonged to the first bishop of Greensburg.
More than a dozen bishops from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and Eastern rite churches, including Bishop Milan Lach of the Eparchy of Parma, attended the liturgy.
Attendance at the installation Mass was limited due to the pandemic, but the livestreamed liturgy is archived and can be viewed on the Diocese of Greenburg website.
Photos provided by The Catholic Accent, Diocese of Greensburg.