Bishop Etienne experiences joy in episcopal ministry in Wyoming

Bishop Paul D. Etienne of Cheyenne, Wyo., center, acknowledges the applause of the congregation during the archdiocesan chrism Mass celebrated on March 30 at SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis. Joining in the applause are deacons Emilio Ferrer-Soto, left, and David Henn. Bishop Etienne was a priest of the archdiocese for 17 years before Pope Benedict XVI appointed him the eighth bishop of Cheyenne last October. (Photo by Sean Gallagher)

By Sean Gallagher

Less than 12 hours after the end of the March 30 archdiocesan chrism Mass over which he presided, Bishop Paul D. Etienne sat in an airport in Denver waiting for a connecting flight to his new home in Cheyenne, Wyo.

During that time, he spoke with The Criterion by cell phone about how he is adjusting to being a bishop nearly four months after his episcopal ordination.

“I’m still in that time of adjustment, to say the least,” Bishop Etienne said.

Bishop Etienne was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis in 1992. He was the pastor of St. Paul Parish in Tell City, his hometown, when Pope Benedict XVI appointed him as the eighth bishop of Cheyenne, Wyo., last October. (Related: Bishop Paul Etienne returns to archdiocese for chrism Mass)

The bishop said he is still learning about the people of the Cheyenne Diocese that he is leading, and said the faithful there are quite interested in learning about and spending time with him.

“I’m amazed at the press of the people,” Bishop Etienne said. “That’s the line from the Gospel that just keeps coming back to me. ‘The people pressed in upon Jesus’ [Mk 5:25, Mt 13:1-2].

“And I feel that everywhere I go. It just takes a lot of energy to be present [to the people]. They don’t see the bishop nearly as often [as their parish priest]. And when the bishop is present, there’s a sense of urgency to their desire to be there.”

Nevertheless, Bishop Etienne said one of his main joys of his new ministry is meeting the people of his diocese. Another relates to changes in his life of prayer.

“In this new role, I’m finding that as I pray and as I read Scripture, there’s just a whole new perspective from the vantage point of the bishop, in terms of just knowing my role as a teacher and to give a vision, to give guidance, to give leadership,” he said. “I feel that at a deeper level and with a greater urgency than I did as a pastor. And there’s a joy in that.”

Bishop Etienne also talked about how, as a bishop, he has a responsibility for the entire universal Church, not just his own diocese, and that he now has a special relationship with Pope Benedict XVI, whom he said was one of his prayer intentions at the chrism Mass.

“Archbishop [Pietro] Sambi told me on the day that I was ordained that, ‘In the [letter of appointment], the Holy Father refers to you as a son,’ ” Bishop Etienne said. “ ‘But every other time now that you see him, he will call you his brother.’ That’s the level of universal care that I now carry for the Church, not just the Church in Cheyenne. There’s an apostolic caring for it there.”

He said there have been many times over the past few months where he is taken aback by the joy in being a bishop.

“I’ve been doing that a lot in the past three months where I just kind of pinch myself and say, ‘How did I get here? Who did this to me? What am I doing here?’ ” Bishop Etienne said.

An outdoorsman at heart, Bishop Etienne also finds joy in the natural beauties of Wyoming, through which he has traveled a good deal in the past few months.

“I’ve been in just about half of the parishes,” he said. “I still need to get to a lot of the mission churches. That will take up some time. But I’ve pretty much been to all four corners and points in between.

“Anytime that you’re in the mountains, you’re going to see things that just take your breath away. And the mountains are different just about every hour of the day. … I’m seeing elk and buffalo and mule deer and turkey and pheasant and eagles—all kinds of creation. It’s gorgeous.”

But on March 30, Bishop Etienne was glad to be back in Indiana. He was happy worshipping at the cathedral with Archbishop Daniel M. Buechlein and the priests, deacons, religious and lay faithful of the archdiocese.

“I was about halfway down the aisle processing in, and I just got a real lump in my throat because of seeing all of these people there and the joy and the enthusiasm in their faces,” Bishop Etienne said. “It just brought to mind how many parishes I’ve been in, how many people I’ve gotten to know in the archdiocese in the last 17 years, and just their hope and joy for me.” †