Bishop Louis Kihneman III assumes leadership of Diocese of Biloxi

Newly installed Bishop Kihneman celebrates his first Mass at his Cathedral and greets his flock. 

G.M. Andrews for Gulf Pine Catholic
 

For those in the capacity crowd attending the installation of Msgr. Louis Kihneman as the new bishop for the Diocese of Biloxi, the general sentiment was he is well worth the wait. Bishop Kihneman, formerly the vicar general of the Diocese of Corpus Christi, was chosen late last year to replace Bishop Roger Morin, who had reached retirement age. Until Bishop Kihneman could take over his new post, Bishop Morin served as apostolic administrator. 

Originally scheduled for February, the ordination and installation Mass was postponed while then Bishop-elect Kihneman recovered from surgery for diverticulitis. Bishop Morin welcomed his successor near the beginning of the Mass, telling Bishop-elect Kihneman he hoped the memory of the special moment the installation represented, the prayers for his success from all who were on hand and the celebration to follow would “be a source of support for you in the years ahead.” 

Bishop-elect Kihneman’s brother, David Kihneman, proclaimed the first reading of the Mass, followed by Sister Dympna Clark with the second reading. Deacon Dick Henderson proclaimed the Gospel. 

Prior to his reading of the Apostolic Letter authenticating the selection of Bishop-elect Kihneman by Pope Francis, Apostolic Nuncio to the United States Archbishop Christophe Pierre said, “Bishop-elect Kihneman, through the intercession of St. Joseph the Worker and St. Martin de Porres, patron saints of the local church, may you be for the clergy and people being entrusted to your pastoral care and also for the community at large a father, a pastor and good shepherd, a brother who, in his faithful episcopal ministry, will continue to build up this portion of the Lord’s flock into a vibrant communion of charity.” 

Metropolitan Archbishop Thomas Rodi of Mobile, who served as second bishop of the Diocese of Biloxi, also welcomed Bishop-elect Kihneman with words of encouragement and support during his homily. In relating to the first reading of the installation Mass, which was from the First Book of Kings featuring Elijah on Mount Horeb and God’s exhorting Elijah to help turn his people’s hearts back to him, Archbishop Rodi gave Bishop-elect Kihneman a similar charge. “God sends you, my brother Louis. In this age where, as in the time of Elijah, many have turned from God, he sends you to renew the faith of the people,” Archbishop Rodi said. “Into an increasingly secular and disbelieving society, he sends you to shepherd his people as bishop of Biloxi. 

“There will be joyful times as you serve as a bishop,” Archbishop Rodi said. “There will be grace-filled successes and uplifting moments. May you know many of these moments and may you savor them. But there will also be times when you, as did Elijah, may want to flee from your ministry and tell God this is too much. You, like the apostles in the Gospel of Luke just proclaimed, may want to stop fishing because of disappointing results.” 

Archbishop Rodi continued, “In those times the message of God to you will be the same as the message to Elijah, ‘Go back!’ And the same as to the Apostles in today’s Gospel, ‘Put out into deep water and lower your nets again for a catch.’ Renew the faith of your people.” 

The homily was followed by the Promise of the Elect, in which Archbishop Rodi questioned Bishop-elect Kihneman in the presence of those in attendance about his resolve to uphold the faith and discharge his duties as head of the diocese. Archbishop Rodi then invited those assembled to stand and pray for the new bishop as he takes on the duty of providing for the needs of the church. 

Later, the ordination included the ancient gesture of the laying on of hands by Archbishop Rodi, Bishop Morin, Corpus Christi Bishop Michael Mulvey, Archbishop Pierre and other bishops present, which expressed the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the new bishop. The ritual was followed by the Prayer of Ordination, which featured the placement of the Book of Gospels over the bishop-elect’s head as a sign of the power of God’s word over us. This tradition dates back to the third century in the ordination of bishops. 

Following the presentation of the Book of Gospels, ring, miter and crozier, Archbishops Rodi and Pierre led Bishop Kihneman to the cathedra, marking his official installation as Biloxi’s fourth bishop. Following Communion and a procession through the cathedral which gave Bishop Kihneman an opportunity to bless those in attendance, he gave concluding remarks. He gave thanks for the support of his family, friends and to God for getting him to Biloxi—as well as to the doctors and nurses who aided him in his recovery. 

“It’s been quite a journey,” he said. 

He also expressed gratitude for the hundreds of get-well cards sent to him by children from the diocese while he was in recovery. In thanking his late parents, he remarked humorously that his father was surely looking down and taking note of the timing for the installation. 

“I express much love and honor to Pope Francis,” Bishop Kihneman said, for choosing him to lead the diocese. “This is a tremendous honor, but also breathtaking at the same time. I thank the people of the Diocese of Biloxi for praying for me, and I look forward to working with each of you. As I am called to be the bishop, the invitation for us is to take to heart the words of Jesus, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your might, and love your neighbor as yourself.’ We take that as our theme. We are in his image, we are the body of Christ. My brothers, and sisters, God loves you, I love you. As our Diocese of Corpus Christi paper said, ‘From Corpus Christi to Biloxi, with love’.”