By Gretchen Keiser and Erika Anderson, Staff Writers

ATLANTA—Eleven priests received an honor signifying “the affection of the Church” for them May 10, as people who’ve known them in ministry and in friendship responded with applause and warmth.

The priests were invested as monsignors, with the title “prelate of honor,” at a Vespers service at the Cathedral of Christ the King. Family members, parishioners and friends stood in the aisles after the seats were filled to capacity and eagerly added their “amen” to the decision to recognize the priests’ service. Some even said “about time.”

Archbishop John F. Donoghue, who presided, said the title “monsignor” is one of the few ways the church allows “to honor priests who have attained a distinction of loyal obedience and service.”

It is, he said, “a mantle worn more for reasons of affection than for heroic accomplishment” since every priest

and Religious true to their vows makes heroic sacrifices for the Gospel and the church, sacrifices often known only to God.

The title of monsignor “comes from the affection of the Church, from the warmth of feeling that people cannot help but want to express for certain of their priests,” he said. It is a recognition that is suggested by those on the local level, but that is permitted and conferred only by the pope’s authority.

“It is given, not because any of these men have donned and worn and publicized robes of personal virtue, or personal humility, or personal excellence, but because they have donned and worn the humility and virtue of Jesus Christ, and because they have lived their lives according to the excellence of Jesus Christ,” he continued. “ . . . These men have produced, by rising to the will of their Lord, great gifts, great riches for the Church, and for the children of God . . .”

The priests honored are: Msgr. Patrick Bishop; Msgr. Stephen Churchwell; Msgr. James Fennessy; Msgr. Paul Fogarty; Msgr. Frank Giusta; Msgr. Leo Herbert; Msgr. William Hoffman; Msgr. Richard Lopez; Msgr. Hugh Marren; Msgr. Paul Reynolds; and Msgr. David Talley.

Vested in magenta, the honored priests entered the church, to the ringing of handbells, at the end of a procession of nearly 40 priests. Evening prayer was chanted to bells and organ music and, following the homily, Msgr. R. Donald Kiernan, vicar general for pastoral ministries, read the official letter from Rome. The people in the church gave the priests a standing ovation.

The archbishop then helped each of the new monsignors put on a white surplice as they knelt before him one by one. At the end of the service, as the group left the Cathedral in procession, there was spontaneous and joyful applause.

“Now isn’t this a special Mother’s Day present,” said Anne Lopez, the mother of Msgr. Lopez, religion teacher and spiritual father to generations of teenagers attending St. Pius X High School, Atlanta.

Her son is “just a little bit embarrassed” by the honor, Mrs. Lopez said, “but I’m proud, I’m not embarrassed.”

The Vespers service took place about two weeks after the 28th anniversary of ordination for Msgr. Lopez and as he completes 19 years at St. Pius where he began teaching in 1981. He also lives and serves as chaplain at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Home in Atlanta.

“I can’t put it in words, I am so high right now,” Mrs. Lopez said, as she sat in a front pew before the service began. “But I know it is long overdue. My son has given his all . . . He looks for nothing, he expects nothing . . . He has always put himself last.”

Msgr. Lopez’ stepbrother, John Mangin, who also came from Florida, said, “It’s a great honor for Richard and a great choice for the church . . . He is certainly a devoted servant of Christ and a humble man.”

Mangin’s wife, Grace, said they sent Msgr. Lopez to her homeland, the Dominican Republic, as a gift for his silver jubilee of priesthood in 1998 and the people there embraced him immediately. “They are praying for him today,” she said. “They are all with him in spirit.”

The pews filled with family members of Msgr. Fogarty included two of his sisters, Josephine and Kathleen, who are Sisters of Mercy in Ireland. Their brother, the pastor of Holy Cross Church, Atlanta, who celebrates 34 years of priesthood this June, is the youngest in a family of eight, they said. After founding St. Pius X Church, Conyers, he next served as pastor of Holy Family Church, Marietta, before his assignment began at Holy Cross.

Sister Josephine, a Religious for 47 years, and Sister Kathleen, a Religious for 42 years, called the honor “wonderful” and said “it’s an honor for the parishioners too.”

Margie Schaetzly has served as the parish secretary at St. Pius X Church in Conyers since it was founded in 1974. She said that Msgr. Fogarty has remained a close friend of her and her family.

“I couldn’t not be there,” she said. “It was important to me to be there. He’s so well-deserving and he was delighted with the honor.”

Schaetzly said that Msgr. Fogarty cut his annual summer trip to Ireland short in 1988 to celebrate the funeral Mass when her husband died.

“He is a man of deep compassion and a great love of the Eucharist, which he is able to show to others,” she said. “He is there for people when they need him.”

Schaetzly said that when Msgr. Fogarty left the parish in 1983, he left a solid foundation.

“He left us with the feeling that we were one big family, and I think he felt that way too,” she said. “It was very hard for him to leave this parish.”

Frances Kummer, director of Christian initiation at St. John Neumann Church, Lilburn, where Msgr. Fennessy is pastor, said that she knows and has worked with several of the honored priests, as well as her pastor.

“There are so many who have been so faithful to this archdiocese,” she said. “It’s a blessing to see them blessed.”

“I think it’s great that the archbishop has recognized so many of his priests for all the work they’ve done, their service to the mission of the church.”

Her own pastor, she said, is a model of humility.

“He is one who doesn’t need the title and that in itself makes him worthy of the title,” Kummer said.

Katy Dwyer, parish receptionist, said, “He is just a very warm, loving, honorable person, he really is. He does deserve the honor.”

Msgr. Fennessy’s brother, David, came from Ireland for the service, and the parish gave the pastor a party following a Mass of Thanksgiving. Active in Marriage Encounter, he has also been pastor of St. Thomas Aquinas Church, Alpharetta, St. John Vianney Church, Lithia Springs, and St. Bernadette Church, Cedartown.

David Fennessy said he “was delighted more than surprised” by the honor for his brother. Although the priest is self-effacing, he said, “I think deep down, yes, he is very pleased.”

Msgr. Talley, chancellor of the archdiocese and director of vocations, began his priesthood at the Church of St. Jude the Apostle, Atlanta.

Two religious educators who knew him at that point in his priesthood, Martha Gaynoe and Rosanne Bowen, expressed their respect for his spirituality and ministry at the parish and with youth.

“David really tries to be a priest of prayer . . . He tries to key his prayer life to his work,” Gaynoe said.

Now in ministry in a Florida parish, she recalled his work with a group of youth and young adults on a mission trip to Trinidad she planned.

“He was wonderful with young people. He spent time (with them) and really entered into their world . . . He was a wonderful confessor. He spent time drawing the kids into the Mass in a wonderful way.”

Bowen, who was director of religious education at St. Jude and now is on the staff of Holy Redeemer School, Alpharetta, said, “Msgr. Tally is a holy priest.” She affirmed his gift working with young people and said “he is the kind of priest I like around young people” because “he loves the church” and he is a man of prayer “and you can tell.”

Msgr. Arturo Bañuelas, who works with Msgr. Talley and Msgr. Giusta in a cross-cultural immersion program for Atlanta seminarians in El Paso, Texas, came from El Paso to give his personal support to both his priest-friends.

“I think they deserve this recognition because they have a very inspiring spirit of priesthood and a vision of where the church needs to go, especially with regards to the growing multicultural reality of the church,” Msgr. Bañuelas said.

“It is very evident to me, as a friend, that they are very dedicated to the local church and they are willing to do whatever it takes, whatever sacrifices it takes, to respond to the growing needs of this archdiocese.”

Msgr. Talley, a convert to Catholicism, was ordained 12 years ago in June and has served in the Tribunal and in vocations and administrative work. Following his work at St. Jude, he earned his doctorate in canon law in Rome, Italy. He also founded Nazareth House, a residence for seminarians in formation, and assists the ministry for persons with disabilities established at St. Jude by the late Toni Miralles.

Msgr. Giusta, a native of Italy, who has been a priest for 37 years, has managed the El Paso Project on behalf of the archdiocese since 1999, while also serving as pastor of an El Paso parish. Each summer he receives a group of archdiocesan seminarians for immersion in the Spanish language and in the cross-cultural reality of the Catholic Church at the Mexican-Texas border. Seminarians spend time in parish work and in poor communities on both sides of the border. Msgr. Giusta is also former pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Atlanta, St. Philip Benizi Church, Jonesboro, and St. Mark Church, Clarkesville.

The spiritual companionship of Msgr. Hoffman, pastor of St. Joseph Church, Dalton, is more like a hike on the trail than a walk in the park, according to his former parishioners and family members.

A priest for almost 30 years, who spent a sabbatical year in 1993 walking the 2,150-mile Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine, Msgr. Hoffman combines spiritual inspiration with physical activity, friends said.

“He walks with you through whatever it is you’re going through in your spiritual life, in your family life,” said Pat England, a parishioner at St. Jude when he was pastor there. “His quiet help and strength makes you realize you can see these things through and be happy even in the struggle.”

In addition to working together in Marriage Encounter, she and her husband, John, and their children have hiked with him and gone to concerts and the Georgia Mountain Fair together.

“He is willing to see a family through crisis,” said Pat Harney of St. Michael’s Church, Gainesville, where he was also pastor. “He always evaluates everything before he gives counsel. He is the biggest supporter of the family, of family worship, of family fun. He is really willing to get in there with you.”

His cousin, Ann Carroll from Greenville, S.C., said she has run the Peachtree Road Race with the priest five times and hikes with him.

“Bill is very spiritual,” she said. “One thing that strikes me about him is his extreme patience. He is very non-judgmental and a great listener.”

His brother, Irv, a Smyrna resident, said it is a family practice to take part annually in the Bike Ride Across Georgia, a 450-mile trek that raises funds for a cure for multiple sclerosis. Msgr. Hoffman joins the family for the ride and they camp out along the way. “We have a lot of fun. He’s humbled a little bit.” He may be a monsignor, but he has never beaten his brother at tennis.

In addition to his pastorates in the archdiocese, Msgr. Hoffman spent 10 years in Peru as a member of the Missionary Society of St. James. Fluent in Spanish and trained in American Sign Language, he has served the archdiocese in the past as a director of the permanent diaconate and as a confessor to those who are deaf and hearing-impaired.

Fifty-five parishioners from Transfiguration Church in Marietta rode a bus to the Cathedral to support their pastor, Msgr. Bishop.

Marilyn MacInnis has served as parish operations administrator for 15 years. She said that there was “overwhelming joy and emotion” from the staff when they learned of the pastor’s honor.

“The office was just fantastic. Everyone was so excited, we just let out a holler,” she said.

MacInnis said that Msgr. Bishop is respected as a priest and a boss.

“He is just a very spirited leader; he is a very pastoral person,” she said. “He is a fantastic administrator. This parish has grown from 750 families when he first arrived to over 4,300.”

“He really encourages the staff to be their best, but at the same time he accepts people where they are,” she continued. “His sense of humor is fantastic and he shares that in the Masses. Though his words are serious he doesn’t take himself too seriously.”

Bill Garrity, director of Christian initiation at the parish for over a decade, said that Msgr. Bishop has a “tremendous sense of outreach” and many non-Catholics respond to him and have joined the church because of him.

“I think the fact that non-Catholics respond to the point that they want to check out the religion is pretty powerful,” he said.

Garrity said Msgr. Bishop has the ability to make each parishioner feel at home.

“They all feel like he is talking to them in his homilies. It’s almost like having a personal spiritual director and people respond to that,” he said. “I don’t know how he does it, but he really does reach everyone.”

Friends and family of Msgr. Herbert, pastor of St. George Church, Newnan, were also on hand to show their support for the priest of nearly 34 years.

Deirdre Paul, the eldest of the six Herbert children, resides in Marietta and said she was excited about the service.

“It’s an honor to be here, and it’s an honor being bestowed on my little brother,” she said.

Msgr. Herbert previously served as the founding pastor of St. Catherine of Siena Church, Kennesaw, overseeing the building of the first church, and as pastor of the parishes of St. Bernadette, Cedartown, and Corpus Christi, Stone Mountain.

His sister, Mary, came from Ireland for the service.

“I thought somebody should be here from Ireland to represent the family,” she said. “And he’s the only monsignor we’re likely to have in the family.”

As far as her brother’s role as a priest, Herbert spoke as only a true sister could.

“He’s a grand lad. This is a wonderful achievement. I think it’s what he deserves. He’s good at his job, despite his short fuse,” she joked.

From 1981-99, Ruth Bischof served as the parish secretary at St. John Neumann Church in Lilburn, where Msgr. Reynolds, vicar general in curia of the archdiocese, was pastor for 11 years. He was a “great administrator,” she said.

“He was an absolutely wonderful person with the people and the staff,” she said. “He is a very caring, very loving person.”

Her husband, Al, said that Msgr. Reynolds had his work cut out for him at St. John Neumann where he was the founding pastor in 1977. The parish also was selected as the site for a regional Catholic school.

“He had a tough job,” he said. “He had to start building the church and then St. John Neumann School.”

Mrs. Bischof said that Msgr. Reynolds was loved by everyone at the parish.

“He is very charismatic. He just got along well with everyone,” she said. “People wanted to be around him.”

From St. John Neumann, Msgr. Reynolds, a priest for 37 years, became pastor of St. Andrew Church, Roswell, where he served for 12 years until his appointment as vicar general in 2000.

Trish Irving has served as a parish secretary at St. Andrew’s for the past five years. She said she was “elated” to hear that her former pastor had been named a monsignor.

“He is such a holy person and such a dedicated priest,” she said. “I can’t think of anyone else who deserves this more. That’s mostly because it doesn’t mean anything to him—he’s just such a humble man.”

Irving said that he was a committed pastor.

“He was the easiest person to work for,” she said. “He was always positive, always cheerful. He always said nice things about everyone and he absolutely loves the church.”

Msgr. Churchwell’s supporters from Sacred Heart Church, Atlanta, where he is the pastor, included Mary Alice Hearn, who has served as the parish secretary for 19 years.

“He couldn’t be a greater boss,” she said. “I wanted to be here tonight to let him know how proud I am of him.”

She said when she found out that the pastor was named a monsignor, she was “thrilled to death,” and that it was important to her to come to the Vespers service.

“I am very proud to be here and very proud to be working for him,” she said.

She said that Msgr. Churchwell’s willingness to serve has endeared him to parishioners.

“He is considerate and kind to everyone,” she said. “He really listens to what you have to say and that makes him a wonderful priest.”

A convert to Catholicism, Msgr. Churchwell has been a priest for 25 years, celebrating his silver jubilee in early May. He was affiliated with the Metropolitan Tribunal from 1978-2000 and has served as vice officialis and as officialis. He has been pastor of Sacred Heart since 1994.

Msgr. Marren’s supporters came from as far as Milledgeville where he served his first pastorate at Sacred Heart Church from 1985-91. Sal D’Ambrosio, a parishioner of Sacred Heart, said that Msgr. Marren is humble.

“I love him. He’s just a very spiritual, down to earth person,” he said. “You can go up to him and talk to him and you won’t get pushed away.”

D’Ambrosio’s wife, Vita, agreed.

“He doesn’t make himself special,” she said. “He’s just a part of the church and he is there to serve you.”

Mrs. D’Ambrosio said that Msgr. Marren inspired the people of Sacred Heart to take ownership of the parish.

“He did so much for us. Before he came, we had no funds, no school, nothing,” she said. “I remember him saying, ‘This is your house and it’s what you make of it.’ Within a year, we had a tremendous Sunday school program . . . He just spurred everyone on.”

Solomon Brannan, head football coach at Morris Brown College in Atlanta and a parishioner of St. Anthony of Padua Church in the West End, where Msgr. Marren served as pastor from 1994-99, said that Msgr. Marren, “brought to that church a stabilization that hadn’t been there before.”

“All the parishioners that stayed at St. Anthony’s knew that God brought him (Msgr. Marren) there to bring the church back to where it was supposed to be,” he said. “When he was pastor, it was the first time there was a real feeling of ownership. That’s why our church can still survive, because he left such a solid presence.”

A priest of 25 years in the archdiocese, who will celebrate his silver jubilee in June, Msgr. Marren has also served as pastor of St. Theresa Church, Douglasville, and is currently pastor of St. Benedict Church, Duluth. He is also state chaplain of the Knights of Columbus and chaplain of the Atlanta branch of the Ancient Order of Hibernians.