Catholic News Service
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Retired Bishop James M. Moynihan of Syracuse, N.Y., a champion for St. Marianne Cope’s cause for sainthood, died March 6. He was 84.
He served as the ninth bishop of the Diocese of Syracuse from 1995 to 2009.
Mother Marianne, a Franciscan Sister of Syracuse, lived in and ministered throughout central New York before moving to Hawaii in 1883 to care for patients with Hansen’s disease, also known as leprosy. She died in Kalaupapa, Molokai, in 1918. Her remains were moved to Syracuse in 2005 as her cause for canonization unfolded. She was canonized in 2012.
The saint’s remains were later returned to Hawaii where they are enshrined in the Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of Peace.
“Bishop Moynihan’s support to Mother Marianne’s cause is integral to her being [elevated] to the status of Blessed Marianne today,” the late Franciscan Sister Mary Laurence Hanley, advocate for the cause, told The Catholic Sun, Syracuse diocesan newspaper, in 2009.
“He took the cause to head and heart from the beginning, advocated it personally both to Pope John Paul II and to our current Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI,” she said. “We are indebted to him for recognizing Mother’s heroic virtue and placing thought into action. His enthusiasm, drive and personal devotion have helped make work involved not only easier but a joyful experience.”
A native of Rochester, Bishop Moynihan was ordained and installed as the bishop of Syracuse May 29, 1995. He retired April 21, 2009.
A statement from the Diocese of Rochester called Bishop Moynihan “a true shepherd and an example of Christian discipleship for us all.”
“He faithfully served the people of God as a priest, pastor and in many leadership roles. We thank God for his service to the church,” it said.
Bishop Moynihan’s 14 years as Syracuse’s bishop included shining moments and dark days, from spearheading some of the most successful fundraising campaigns in the diocese’s history to implementing parish reconfigurations and addressing the clergy sexual abuse crisis.
