New archbishop takes helm of Canadian Catholic archdiocese

CNA Staff, Nov 27, 2020 / 12:00 pm

A new archbishop took the helm in the Canadian archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth Friday.

The Vatican announced Nov. 27 that Pope Francis had accepted the resignation by Archbishop Anthony Mancini on his 75th birthday. 

Mancini is succeeded by Archbishop Brian Dunn, who has served as coadjutor archbishop since April 2019.

Dunn was born in St. John's, Newfoundland, in 1955. After his ordination to the priesthood in 1980, he was assigned to parishes in the Diocese of Grand Falls. He moved to Ottawa in 1988 to complete his doctoral studies at Saint Paul University. 

In 1991, he was assigned to parish ministry, serving also as vice-chancellor and chancellor of Grand Falls diocese. He became a faculty member at St. Peter's Seminary in London, Ontario, in 2002 and dean of studies three years later. 

Pope Benedict XVI named Dunn auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Sault Sainte Marie in Ontario in July 2008.

Benedict XVI named him the bishop of Antigonish, Nova Scotia, a year later, replacing Raymond Lahey, who was charged with the importation of child pornography in 2009 and dismissed from the clerical state in 2012. Dunn was installed as bishop of Antigonish on Jan. 25 2010.

Dunn took part in the 2012 Synod of Bishops on the New Evangelization in Rome. 

He spoke at the synod of the need to evangelize victims of clerical abuse. He also called for "a deliberate and systematic involvement and leadership of women at all levels of Church life, e.g., permitting women to be instituted as lectors and acolytes and the institution of the ministry of catechist."

On April 13, 2019, Pope Francis appointed Dunn as the coadjutor archbishop of the Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth. He continued to serve as apostolic administrator of Antigonish diocese until a new bishop was appointed in Dec. 2019. 

Mancini was born in Mignano Monte Lungo, Italy, on Nov. 27, 1945, and emigrated to Canada with his family.

He was ordained to the priesthood in the Archdiocese of Montréal in 1970 and appointed as an auxiliary bishop of the archdiocese on Feb. 18, 1999.

Mancini was mentioned in a report published this week by Pepita G. Capriolo, a former Quebec Superior Court justice, on the Church's response to complaints against the clerical abuser Brian Boucher, who was sentenced to eight years in prison in March 2019.

Mancini was appointed to lead the archdiocese of Halifax and serve as apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Yarmouth on Oct. 18, 2007. The two dioceses were merged later to form the Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth.

Mancini also served as apostolic administrator of Antigonish diocese on Sept. 26-Nov. 21, 2009, after Lahey's resignation and before Dunn's appointment as ordinary of the diocese.

A Mass of thanksgiving for Mancini's ministry and Dunn's succession was due to take place Nov. 27 at St. Mary's Cathedral Basilica, Halifax, at 12:15pm local time. The archdiocese said that the Mass would be livestreamed for those unable to attend because of coronavirus restrictions.