The Most Rev. John Bonnici was installed Thursday as the 10th bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Rochester.
Bonnici’s Solemn Mass of Installation was held at Sacred Heart Cathedral on Flower City Park. As he addressed the faithful who gathered for the ceremony, he vowed that he would lead the Diocese with “obedience, collaboration, and love.”
“I stand before you today inspired and humbled by the power of God’s love,” Bonnici began his sermon. “...I eagerly look forward to making new friends in Christ throughout the 12 counties of the Diocese. Each and every one of you is a precious gift.”
He also brought with him a playlist of music to define his move to Rochester. Among the tracks he selected to define his experience were “Let it Snow, Let it Snow,” “Winter Wonderland,” “Baby, It’s Cold Outside,” and “Cold as Ice.”
“Unfortunately, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t find anything in Bad Bunny’s musical library that even came close,” Bonnici said.
Bonnici is originally from New York City, and previously served as an auxiliary bishop for New York, a position he was appointed to by Pope Francis in 2022. Due to limited capacity, the Catholic Diocese did not allow media into the service.
Bonnici is taking over for the previous bishop, Salvatore Matano. He stepped down in early January after Pope Leo XIV accepted his resignation.
Matano didn't give a reason for his resignation, although at 79, he was four years past the age of eligibility for retirement.
Appointed in 2013 by then-Pope Francis, Matano led the Catholic Diocese of Rochester through its greatest scandal, in which 470 survivors of alleged sexual abuse by clergy and staff sued the Diocese.
That case was settled in September after six years of litigation, and the Diocese agreed top pay $270 million to the victims. It was among the largest settlements in New York state for victims of alleged abuse by members of the church. In August, insurers representing the Buffalo diocese agreed to pay $272.5 million to settle with more than 800 sex abuse victims. And in fall 2024, the Diocese of Rockville Center, which covers Long Island, settled with more than 530 victims for $323 million.
Matano will continue to serve the Diocese as a bishop emeritus. Bonnici offered his thanks to Matano, calling his friendship a “treasured gift” and his tenure as bishop “a hard act to follow.”
“Your ability to navigate through difficult times while remaining attentive to all of God’s people, especially the wounded and vulnerable, is a true inspiration,” Bonnici said.
Catholicism is by far the most popular faith in the Rochester area. According to the Association of Religion Data Archives, 209,584 people in Monroe County identified as Catholics in 2020. Evangelical Protestants were the next largest faith group with 46,140 adherents, followed by Islam at 18,648.
The number of Catholics in Monroe County rose by 9.7% between 2010 and 2020. That rebound followed a drop of 27.2% between 2000 and 2010, a year that saw the lowest number of Catholics in the past 40 years.
