Ordination and Installation of the Most Reverend James Ruggieri as the 13th Bishop of Portland set for May 7
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland will celebrate the Mass of Ordination and Installation of the Most Reverend James Thomas Ruggieri as the 13th Bishop of Portland on May 7, 2024, at 2:00 p.m. at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Portland. Nearly 1,000 will be attending the event including parishioners and guests from across the state and the region.
His Eminence Seán Patrick Cardinal O’Malley, OFM Cap, archbishop of Boston, will serve as the principal consecrator with His Excellency Most Reverend Robert Deeley, J.C.D. (Portland) and His Excellency Most Reverend Bishop Richard Henning, S.T.D. (Providence) serving as co-consecrators. Concelebrants of the Mass of Ordination and Installation will include Christophe Cardinal Pierre, the apostolic nuncio to the United States and ambassador to the Holy See (Vatican), visiting archbishops and bishops, Diocese of Portland priests, and visiting priests from Providence and beyond.
The Mass of Ordination & Installation will be live streamed and broadcast via CatholicTV starting around 1:45 p.m. There are multiple ways that viewers can access this broadcast, including:
- On the Diocese of Portland’s website at www.portlanddiocese.org
- On the CatholicTV website at https://www.catholictv.org/watch-live.html
- On Demand or live on CatholicTV (including via Smart TV apps): https://www.catholictv.org/ways-to-watch.html
Following the ordination Mass, a reception open to the public will be held at the Italian Heritage Center, 40 Westland Avenue in Portland. The reception will begin at approximately 4:30 p.m. and run until 6:30 p.m.
His Holiness Pope Francis named Most Rev. James Thomas Ruggieri, then-pastor of Saint Michael the Archangel Parish and Saint Patrick Parish in Providence, Rhode Island, as the 13th Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland on February 13, 2024.
On being informed of his appointment by the apostolic nuncio, Father Ruggieri said he did not hesitate in accepting the new responsibility in service of God and his Church.
“I am honored and humbled to have been chosen as the next bishop of the Diocese of Portland by the Holy Father," he said. "I am very much look forward to diving right into getting to know all who make up the diocese, especially the priests and parishioners. I am grateful that Bishop Deeley will retire in Maine and provide me with valuable support.”
Bishop Robert Deeley, who has led the Diocese of Portland with distinction for 10 years, will continue to reside in Maine as bishop emeritus.
Bishop-elect Ruggieri was the pastor of Saint Patrick Parish beginning in 2003 and Saint Michael the Archangel Parish beginning in 2020. In 2009, he, along with parishioners and supporters, founded Saint Patrick Academy, a Catholic college-preparatory high school in Providence. Prior to Saint Patrick Parish, Bishop-elect Ruggieri was an assistant pastor at Saint Matthew Church in Cranston, All Saints Parish in Woonsocket, and Holy Spirit Parish in Central Falls.
He received a Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies from Providence College and a Master of Divinity from St. Mary’s Seminary and University in Baltimore, MD. A native of Rhode Island, he was ordained a priest in 1995 for the Diocese of Providence at the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul.
About the Diocese of Portland
Established by Pope Pius IX on July 29, 1853, the Diocese of Portland of today includes the entire state of Maine and is part of the Province of Boston. The diocese has an area of 33,215 square miles and a population of more than 275,000 Catholics. It is organized in the form of a corporation sole, the title of which is "Roman Catholic Bishop of Portland." In addition to its 48 parishes, it has eight elementary schools, one private elementary school, one diocesan high school, and one private high school. It also includes one Catholic college, Saint Joseph's College of Maine in Standish.
