Pope John Paul II accepted the resignation of Bishop Thomas V. Daily and appointed Bishop Nicholas A. DiMarzio of Camden, N.J., to succeed him as the seventh Bishop of the Diocese of Brooklyn on Aug. 1, 2003.
Embracing the theme, “Put out into the deep,” Bishop DiMarzio has gone out into the depths of the diocese over the last decade, serving the flock with vision, energy, wisdom and love. He has guided and challenged the local Church, developed new methods and reshaped goals and objectives to preserve diocesan parishes and schools while advancing the New Evangelization.
A timeline of Bishop DiMarzio’s ministry and contributions to the life of the Church in Brooklyn and Queens follows.
2003
Aug. 1 – Appointed seventh Bishop of Brooklyn.
Oct. 3 – Installed as Bishop of Brooklyn at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Basilica, Sunset Park, at right.
Oct. 4 – Speaks at Immigration Rally at Flushing Meadows Corona Park and conducts first parish visitation to St. Teresa Church, Woodside.
Oct. 16 – Attends The Tablet’s 95th Anniversary Dinner at the Brooklyn Marriott.
Oct. 18 – Writes first “Put Out Into the Deep” column for The Tablet, titled You Will Be Fishers of Men.
Oct. 18 – Participates for the first time in a pro-life vigil conducted by the Helpers of God’s Precious Infants at St. Michael’s Church, Sunset Park.
Nov. 1 – First Confirmation in the diocese‚ St. Rose of Lima, Rockaway Beach.
Nov. 6 – Celebrates the end of Ramadan with Islamic leaders in Sunset Park.
Nov. 13 – Elected Chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Domestic Policy.
Nov. 16 – Closes Sesquicentennial Year of the Diocese, Our Lady of Perpetual Help Basilica, Sunset Park.
Nov. 21 – Meets with Pope John Paul II in Rome while attending the meeting of the Pontifical Council for Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People.
2004
Feb. 28 – Issues statement on sexual abuse in the Church, offering an apology and setting aside days of prayer and penance for the sins of sexual abuse.
April 7 – Meets with Muslim leaders in Brooklyn.
April 19 – Addresses Knights of Columbus rally in Albany, N.Y., urging Catholics to speak up for their rights.
May 17-20 – Attends plenary session of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People in Rome.
June 12 – Announces new organizational chart for diocesan structures.
July 11 – Participates in the 117th annual Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Williamsburg, at right.
July 19 – Leads special hearing on immigration issues at St. Francis College, Brooklyn Heights.
Sept. 18 – Announces strategic plan to increase vocations to the priesthood and religious life.
Oct. 3 – Marks first anniversary as Bishop of Brooklyn with his first pastoral letter, “The New Evangelization in Brooklyn and Queens.”
Oct. 3 – Makes first ad limina visit to the Vatican as Bishop of Brooklyn.
Oct. 20 – First Rosary Rally for school children throughout the diocese.
Oct. 23 – Leads diocesan pilgrimage to the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington, D.C.
Nov. 6 – Closes celebration of the 150th anniversary of St. James Cathedral Basilica, Downtown Brooklyn.
Nov. 18 – Assumes position as chairman of the USCCB’s Domestic Policy Committee.
2005
Feb. 9 – Announces plans to consolidate 26 parish elementary schools.
Feb. 27-March 5 – Meeting of the Global Commission on International Migration in Cape Town, South Africa.
April 16 – Celebrates Mass for youth and young adults attending Diocesan Youth Day at St. John’s University, Jamaica.
June 13 – Dedicates the new St. Anthony of Padua Church, South Ozone Park.
July 6 – Meets Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican.
Aug. 20 – Attends World Youth Day in Cologne, Germany.
Oct. 11 – Presents four-day retreat on The Prayer Channel on the special Year of the Eucharist.
Oct. 15 – Issues second pastoral letter to the diocese, titled “The Family: the Hope of the New Evangelization.
Oct. 17-21 – Participates in a symposium on the Universal Call to Holiness for Priests for the priests of the Diocese of Brooklyn in Thornwood, N.Y.
2006
Feb. 14 – Leads Parents Rally in Albany for tuition tax relief.
April 15 – Prays with the youth of the Jornada Movement during their annual Holy Saturday Caminata.
May 6 – Honored by the Italian-American Museum in Manhattan.
May 15-17 – Meets Pope Benedict XVI while in Rome to attend a meeting of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Council of Migrants.
June 6 – Announces the appointment of new Auxiliary Bishops Frank Caggiano, Octavio Cisneros and Guy Sansaricq.
June 15 – Appears with Cardinal Roger Mahony of Los Angeles and Bishop Gerard Barnes of San Bernardino, Calif., at a press conference in Los Angeles urging immigration reform.
Aug. 22 – Ordains new Auxiliary Bishops Caggiano, Cisneros and Sansaricq at Our Lady of Angels Church, Bay Ridge.
Sept. 2 – Issues statement on “Immigration and Work.”
Dec. 12 – First Bishop’s Christmas Luncheon to benefit Bishop’s Scholarship Fund.
2007
May 19 – Ordains 36 permanent deacons for the diocese.
May 26 – Ordains 16 Spanish-speaking permanent deacons.
June 3 – Leads the rosary at the diocese’s first Family Rosary Rally in Our Lady of Hope Field, Middle Village.
July 5 – Catholic Relief Services-sponsored trip to Middle East. Visits Lebanon, Jordan and Syria and meets with Iraqi families in exile.
Oct. 18 – Issues third pastoral letter, titled “Do Not Be Afraid – A Pastoral Vision for the New Evangelization.”
Nov. 14 – Introduces “Form-ing Consciences for Faithful Citizenship: A Call to Political Responsibility from the Catholic Bishops of the United States” at general meeting of the U.S. Bishops in Baltimore.
2008
Jan. 6 – Participates in the Three Kings Parade in Williamsburg..
Feb. 20 – Holds joint press conference at the Chancery with Sen. Charles Schumer to address the mortgage and foreclosure crisis’ affect on the diocese.
April 11 – Participates in The Tablet’s 100th anniversary dinner at the Brooklyn Marriott.
April 18 – Welcomes Pope Benedict XVI to New York City at Kennedy Airport.
April 20 – Hosts departure ceremony for Pope Benedict at Kennedy Airport as he returns to Rome.
April 21-28 – Leads diocesan pilgrimage to Lourdes and Paris.
June 20-22 – Participates in diocesan pilgrimage to 49th International Eucharistic Congress, Quebec City, Canada.
July 15-20 – Attends World Youth Day in Sydney, Australia.
Oct. 25 – Diocesan pilgrimage to the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington, D.C.
2009
Jan. 17 – Announces “Preserving the Vision,” a five-year plan to reorganize Catholic schools.
Jan. 29 – Speaks to the annual dinner of The Cathedral Club of Brooklyn, urging laypeople to take a more active role in politics and community affairs.
Feb. 7 – Appears at joint press conference with Mayor Michael Bloomberg at City Hall to explore the possibility of converting some Catholic elementary school buildings into charter schools.
Feb. 28 – Announces plans for the Pope John Paul II Family Academy, a tuition-free elementary school in Bushwick.
April 6 – Participates in the diocese’s “Reconciliation Monday” in all parishes.
June 16 – Undergoes quadruple bypass open heart surgery on his 65th birthday.
Aug. 15 – Resumes weekly column in The Tablet following his surgery.
Sept. 7 – West Indian Festival Mass at St. Matthew’s Church, Crown Heights, first public liturgy since surgery.
Sept. 12 – Announces start of the Parish Support Program.
Nov. 9-12 – Attends World Congress on the Pastoral Care of migrants and Refugees, Rome; visits L’Aquila, Italy, site of earthquake in February, 2009.
2010
Jan. 13 – Asks parishes to respond to the earthquake victims in Haiti; sets up committee to organize diocesan response.
Feb. 12 – Celebrates one-month anniversary Mass for victims of Haitian earthquake.
March 1 – Issues Pastoral Letter, “Renewing the Vision: Christ Jesus Our Hope.”
May 30 – Celebrates 40th anniversary of ordination Mass of thanksgiving at St. James Cathedral-Basilica
June 24 – Sends documentation to Rome to open the inquiry for the cause of canonization for former Brooklyn pastor, Msgr. Bernard Quinn
July 26-19 – Visits earthquake victims in Haiti
Oct. 30 – Leads diocesan pilgrimage to National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington, D.C.
2011
Aug. 16-21 – Leads diocesan delegation to World Youth Day, Madrid, Spain.
Sept. 11 – Celebrates 10th anniversary Mass at St. James Cathedral-Basilica for families of victims and survivors of terrorists attack upon World Trade Center
Sept. 25 – Serves as Grand Marshal of the sixth annual Columbus Day Parade in Howard Beach
Nov. 1 – Suspends Mass obligation for All Saint’s day for those in evacuation path of Hurricane Irene
Nov. 10 – Announces plan to merge seminary system with Archdiocese of New York and the Diocese of Rockville Centre at press conference at the Immaculate Conception Seminary in Huntington, L.I.
Nov. 26 – Makes ad limina visit to the Vatican and meets with Pope Benedict XVI
2012
Feb. 5 – Writes a letter to the diocese criticizing the provisions of ObamaCare health plan that would violate the conscience rights of Catholics
March 26-29 – Participates in Pope Benedict XVI’s pastoral visit to Cuba.
April 7 – Baptizes 60 people of Chinese descent at Easter Vigil at St. John Vianney Church, Flushing
April 22 – Announces plans to petition the Vatican to name St. Joseph’s Church, Prospect Heights, as the Co-Cathedral of the diocese.
May 2 – Announces the appointment of two new auxiliary bishops – Raymond Chappetto and Paul Sanchez.
July 11 – Ordains Bishops Chappetto and Sanchez to the episcopacy.
Sept. 20 – Hosts conference “The Manhattan Declaration Crosses the River” on religious liberty at St. John’s University.
Nov. 4 – In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, celebrates Mass at St. Thomas More Church and visits Breezy Point and Belle Harbor.
Nov. 22 – Celebrates Thanksgiving Day Mass at St. Rose of Lima, Rockaway Beach, hard hit by Sandy.
Dec. 8 – Dedicates Regina Pacis Church, Bensonhurst, as a Basilica.
2013
March 3 – Announces that St. Joseph Church has been designated as the diocese’s Co-Cathedral.
Early April – Makes 10-day visit to China, meets with Cardinal John Tong Hon.
April 28 – Installs 22 priests to led new diocesan deanery structure.
May 22 – Meets Pope Francis for first time in Rome during the Plenary Meeting of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People.
July 23-28 – Attends World Youth in Rio de Janeiro.
July 31 – Congratulates Brooklyn Auxiliary Bishop Frank Caggiano on his appointment as Ordinary of the Diocese of Bridgeport, Conn.
Aug. 15-25 – Pastoral visit to Poland.
Sept. 12 – Celebrates Mass of Thanksgiving for Bishop Frank Caggiano.
Sept. 15 – Presides over Mass and Installation of Rector, St. Joseph Co-Cathedral, Prospect Heights.
Sept. 19 – Participates in Installation Mass for Bishop Frank Caggiano as Fifth Bishop of Bridgeport, Conn.
