By Gretchen Keiser

Archbishop Eugene A. Marino, SSJ, is facing both physical and psychological stresses and doctors are estimating his progress to be less rapid than originally hoped for, said Father Edward Dillon, vicar general.

“The archbishop’s health is responding to a great deal of stress caused by responsibility here at home in the archdiocese and on the national level,” Father Dillon said in an interview June 1. He is being cared for by two physicians and a psychologist,” Father Dillon said.

The vicar general, who is responsible for the administration of the archdiocese during the archbishop’s illness, said he has been told by one of the medical doctors and the psychologist that the stresses may be related to cardiovascular functions that can have psychosomatic manifestations.

The archbishop has high blood pressure, which became dangerously high recently, according to the vicar general. While doctors have been able to stabilize his blood pressure, it is still higher than normal, Father Dillon said. The stresses that are upon the archbishop are very great and doctors are concerned, he said. “One of the doctors told me informally “This much stress is dangerous’ and hospitalization may be necessary.”

Father Dillon said that he could not provide any time frame for the archbishop’s recovery. “I’m sorry there isn’t,” he said. “The only thing the doctors have been able to give the archbishop or me is that he is not responding as rapidly as they had hoped and therefore it may be of prolonged duration.”

Asked whether the archbishop may be unable to resume his duties as archbishop of Atlanta, Father Dillon said, “That involves pure speculation and speculation can do nothing but hurt.”

“We recognize that the situation the archbishop is dealing with right now is serious and he needs our prayers and our support,” Father Dillon said. “But it is also important to realize that Archbishop Marino is very positive in trying to tackle the issues with his doctors.”

“At times he considers that task kind of daunting. But I think his spiritual and emotional reserves will enable him to deal with the situation,” Father Dillon said. “In the meantime, the programs and direction he has established in the archdiocese will be carried forward.”

The vicar general is talking to the archbishop frequently on the telephone.

Archbishop Marino’s staff in Atlanta receives 20 to 30 cards or notes daily from people who are concerned about his well being. The cards come from many people, including schoolchildren and Death Row inmates, civic leaders and other pastors and ministers, according to the secretaries. Virtually every parish in the archdiocese and Catholic bishops from around the country have expressed concern, they said. The messages have been passed on the archbishop. "He just means different things to different people,” said secretary Madeleine Cornell.

Several hundred letters of acknowledgement have been sent out by the staff to those who are writing. The message says, in part, that “the greatest gift we can give each other is prayer” and asks that the writers “continue to pray for the archbishop that the Holy Spirit will strengthen him on the road to recovery.”