Bishop Christensen (2007- 2014)

"He is a man of energy and prayer and love for the church"
Bishop Michael Driscoll, Former Bishop of Boise, ID

• Introduction
• Early life and ordination to priesthood
• Appointment to Superior
• Bishop's Coat of Arms
  • The Left Half of the Crest
  • The Right Half of the Crest
  • The Episcopal Cross Behind the Crest
  • External Elements of the Crest
• Highlights of Years in Superior
  • A New Look for the Catholic Herald
  • "Gus" Perspective
  • Support for Catholic Schools
  • Diocesan Mission Statement
  • Corporate Status of Parishes
  • School of Servant Leadership
  • Parish Self-Assessment Process
  • Staff Reduction
  • Capital Campaign Feasibility Study
  • Launching of the "Faith in Our Future Campaign
  • Campaign Logo
  • Other Milestones
  • A Favorite Quote
• Involvement in USCCB and other National Affairs
• Appointment to the Diocese of Boise

Introduction

Peter Forsyth Christensen was born on December 24, 1952. He is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as Bishop of Superior from 2007 - 2014.

Bishop Christensen, one of eight children, was born on December 24, 1952 in Pasadena, California.

He moved to Minneapolis-St. Paul in 1975. He worked as a commercial artist prior to entering St. John Vianney College Seminary located at the University of St. Thomas. He also attended St. Paul Seminary for his graduate studies.

He was ordained to the priesthood at age 32 on May 25, 1985 by Archbishop John Roach and served as associate pastor of St. Olaf Parish in Minneapolis before becoming spiritual director (1989) and rector (1991) of St. John Vianney Seminary. In June of 1999 he was appointed pastor of Nativity of Our Lord Parish in St. Paul where he served until being named the 10th Bishop of Superior on June 28, 2007 by His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI.

On June 5, 2007, he received word through the Papal Nuncio, Archbishop Pietro Sambi, that His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI had chosen him to be the Tenth Bishop of the Diocese of Superior. The official announcement was made on June 28, 2007, in Superior. His Episcopal Consecration took place on September 14, 2007 at the Cathedral of Saint Paul, St. Paul, Minnesota, with Archbishop Harry J. Flynn the Presider and Principal Consecrator, and Bishop Raphael M. Fliss, Diocese of Superior, and Bishop William H. Bullock, Diocese of Madison, Co-Consecrators. On September 23, 2007, he was installed as Bishop of the Diocese of Superior at the Cathedral of Christ the King, Superior, Wisconsin.

Bishop Christensen’s crest was designed by James-Charles Noonan, Jr., a well-known church historian and ecclesial heraldist from Gwynedd Valley, Pennsylvania. Linda Nicholson, a craft painter of the Society of Heraldic Arts in England, painted the arms designed by Noonan.

The Left Half of the Crest
A portion of the Coat of Arms of the Diocese of Superior, the three Latin crosses represent the Blessed Trinity. They are topped by fleurs-de-lis and pointed like stakes at the bottom to honor the French missionaries who first brought the faith to the area that would become the Diocese of Superior. The blue wave-like lines evoke the waters of the Great Lake Superior. The color blue (used on both sides of the shield) also gives tribute to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

The Right Half of the Crest
The right half of the crest is Bishop Peter F. Christensen’s personal arms which pays homage to St. Peter, the first bishop of Rome, and to a lesser degree, St. Francis de Sales.

The barque (boat) on the coat of arms was based on a design by Bishop Christensen, who has a background in the graphic arts. Above a depiction of a wave in silver, is the barque of Peter in gold. Gold represents the first of the heavenly attributes, as well as divine wisdom and the Petrine office.

The mast of the boat is in the form of a cross in gold, representing the heroic sacrifice of Christ. This image is particularly significant, since Bishop Christensen was ordained to the episcopacy on the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.

The sail of the boat is silver, its fullness representing the fullness of truth that the apostle Peter carried to Rome. The star on the sail is the Star of Mary, with red rays representing the graces that flow from her. Its position near the base of the mast recalls Mary’s steadfast presence at the foot of the cross.

On the top, in gold rectangle, is a circlet representing a halo of holiness to which all in the church are called. It consists of eight thorns (black for human sinfulness) tipped in red, the color of Christ’s redeeming blood. Here is a reference to the sorrows that pierced the heart of St. Francis de Sales, a saint with whom Bishop Christensen shares a deep spiritual kinship.

The Episcopal Cross Behind the Crest
Behind the coat of arms is the episcopal cross, with one transverse arm. The crozier on the cross represents St. Peter and the sword St. Paul. The ruby is reminiscent of the martyrdom each saint suffered in witness to Christ.

External Elements of the Crest
The external elements of the shield are composed of the green pilgrim’s hat with its six tassels on each side, in three rows. These are the heraldic insignia of a bishop. For his motto, Bishop Christensen selected a text from the Gospel of Matthew 16:16:

“Tu es Christus Filius Dei Vivi” – “You are the Christ, Son of the Living God.”

A New Look for the Catholic Herald

In September of 2009, Bishop introduced a newly-revised diocesan newspaper. In his letter to parishioners, he called the Catholic Herald “an essential foundation block in how we communicate the truth and beauty of our faith.” He said that both the printed version and web site are important tools by which we nourish our own faith as well as invite others to know Jesus and the Good News He proclaimed.

“Gus” Perspective

Bishop Christensen’s dog, Gus, became a feature writer for the Catholic Herald. Named after St. Augustine, the patron saint of the Diocese of Superior, Gus presented readers with an insightful perspective of life within the Diocese as he wrote about people and events he observed while traveling with the Bishop from parish to parish.

Support for Catholic Schools

From his first days as leader of the Catholic Church in Superior, Bishop Christensen stressed that Catholic schools are a vital part of the teaching mission of the Church. The emphasis of faith, knowledge and service in our schools shows that our schools are not just academic institutions, but rather places to nurture and grow Catholic families for the future of our Church. Because Catholic schools continue to be the most effective means available to the Church for the education of children and young people, Bishop challenged parishes to do all they could to make schools available, accessible and affordable to all. In 2009, Bishop Christensen began a diocesan-wide Catholic Schools Collection to provide immediate and direct funding assistance for the 15 Catholic schools in the Diocese of Superior. This annual collection, which gives parishes without schools an opportunity to share in this important stewardship of the greater Church, has since provided financial support for schools based on the number of students.

Diocesan Mission Statement

In early 2011, Bishop Christensen asked the Diocesan Pastoral Council to assist him in evaluating and revising the Diocesan Mission Statement. A new Diocesan Mission Statement was promulgated by the Bishop on November 8, 2011. It reads:

“The Catholic Diocese of Superior is a people of diverse ethnic and cultural traditions called in unity by the love of Christ to proclaim the Gospel, celebrate the sacraments, and give witness through joyful lives of prayer and service in Northern Wisconsin and throughout the world.”

Corporate Status of Parishes

With the advice and assistance of legal counsel, Bishop Christensen called together all parish trustees and pastors within the Diocese of Superior for an in-service to review and update the corporate status of each individual parish corporation.

School of Servant Leadership

In August of 2011, Bishop Christensen endorsed the inception of the Diocese of Superior School of Servant Leadership through the Office of Ecclesial Ministries and Diocesan Consultation. The School of Servant Leadership is an annually offered, nine-month cohort model of systematic, educational, formational and transformational learning, taught by quality professors from Viterbo University, La Crosse, Wisconsin, in conjunction with diocesan educators. It is a unique program in that it offers collaborative learning among priests, deacons and the laity, and has subsequently become an official prerequisite for men on the journey of discernment toward the vocation of the permanent diaconate. It is biblical, meaningful, ethical, and practical. It explores a way of life, through leading and following, that cultivates high levels of commitment to Gospel values and the common good, leading to active and engaged discipleship.

Parish Self-Assessment Process

In 2012, under Bishop Christensen’s guidance, the Diocese of Superior implemented a Parish Self-Assessment tool to help each parish determine its vitality by reviewing the life of the parish in five major areas: 1) Parish Values, Membership and Management; 2) Parish Liturgy and Sacraments; 3) Catholic Faith Formation; 4) Stewardship; and 5) Parish Finances and Facilities. The process was used to identify areas of strength to celebrate and areas that needed further attention while the parishes continue to live out their mission, vision and values.

Staff Reduction

Just as the early church experienced transition, restructuring and growing pains, so too the Church of today. By far the most difficult decision Bishop Christensen faced during his years in Superior was a need to reduce diocesan staff and other non-employment operating expenses by 25%. In March of 2012, Bishop informed the Chancery staff that, due to slow growth in diocesan investment income, increasing costs of medical care for retired priests and rising costs of educating seminarians, he found it necessary to eliminate eight positions. This resulted in seven employees losing their jobs and one vacant position not being filled. However, under his leadership and guidance, services provided throughout the Diocese remained strong.

Capital Campaign Feasibility Study

In March, 2012, the Diocese of Superior commissioned a Feasibility Study to determine the level of support and the financial potential for a diocesan-wide capital campaign to raise funds for the following needs:

• Restricted Endowment for the Care of Retired Priests
• Restricted Endowment for Educating Seminarians
• Catholic Schools Support
• Incorporation of the 2013 Diocesan Services Appeal
• Strengthening and Supporting Parishes

The study concluded that there was substantial financial potential for a $16,000,000 campaign. Moreover, if individual parishes were able to conduct campaigns to meet their own needs as well as diocesan needs, the potential existed to raise in excess of this amount.

Launching of the “Faith in Our Future” Capital Campaign

In order to strengthen the Diocese and ensure financial resources to provide for the programs, ministries and services essential to meet the needs of the Catholic faithful of the Diocese of Superior, Bishop Christensen launched a Capital Campaign in 2013. The Faith in Our Future – Our Legacy, Our Mission campaign set a goal of raising $16,000,000 over a period of four years to be used to: supplement medical needs for retired priests; support the education of seminarians; provide financial support for local parish needs; and support the 15 Catholic schools in the Diocese of Superior. In addition to helping the faithful understand the goals of the Faith in Our Future Capital Campaign, Bishop Christensen enjoyed the opportunity to meet and spend time with many of the diocesan faithful as he attended more than 80 individual parish campaign receptions throughout the launching process. In early 2014, Bishop announced that the Diocese had reached its goal.

Campaign Logo

The fleur de lis cross in the background of the logo, created for the Faith in Our Future campaign, was taken from the interior C-curve of Bishop Christensen’s crosier. The cross of lilies as titled by the French is the cross of Our Blessed Mother. The icon of Mary with Child is known as Mother of Compassion. The icon, written by Bishop Christensen, currently hangs in the lobby of St. John Vianney Seminary where diocesan college age seminarians attend their studies. The “four square” surrounding the icon, representats the four elements of creation: earth, wind, fire, and water – all repeated here with respect for our Native American Communities – an image that Bishop Christensen had originally printed on the cover of the program used for his installation as the tenth bishop of the Diocese of Superior in September 2007.

Other Milestones

Bishop Christensen introduced several innovative concepts in parish and diocesan leadership models during his time as Bishop of Superior. These included partnering with the Diocese of LaCrosse for permanent diaconate formation; inviting women to be part of the diocesan vocations and priestly formation team; and formalizing the role of deacons as Parish Life Coordinators in accordance with Canon 517.2.

In October of 2012, Bishop Christensen joined a delegation of pilgrims from the Diocese of Superior in Rome for the canonization of St. Kateri Tekakwitha, the first U.S. Native American to be canonized a saint.

During the seven years he served as Bishop of Superior, he ordained 10 men to the priesthood
and 22 men to the Permanent Diaconate. He also welcomed seven religious order priests and 13 priests from India to help minister in the Diocese of Superior.

A Favorite Quote

Reflection on a Life of Faith
by Edith Stein

Whatever did not fit in with my plan did lie within the plan of God. I have an ever deeper and firmer belief that nothing is merely an accident when seen in the light of God, that my whole life down to the smallest detail has been marked out for me in the plan of divine providence and has a completely coherent meaning in God’s all-seeing eyes. And so I am beginning to rejoice in the light of glory wherein this meaning will be unveiled to me.

During his time as Bishop of Superior, he served on the following committees of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB):

• Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth
• Committee on National Collections
• Committee on Catholic Education
• Subcommittee on Catholic Home Missions including a term as Committee Chair
• Subcommittee on Native American Catholics
• Priority Task Force on Faith Formation and Sacramental Practice

From 2009–2014, Bishop Christensen served as Episcopal Advisor to the USA Council of Serra International.

On Monday, October 27, 2014, Bishop Christensen received a telephone call from the Papal Nuncio, Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, informing him that His Holiness Pope Francis had chosen him to be the next Bishop of the Diocese of Boise, Idaho. The official announcement was made on November 4 in Boise and his installation took place on December 17, 2014.