Alumnus Appointed Bishop of Rochester Diocese

On January 7, Pope Leo XIV appointed Most Reverend John S. Bonnici ’87SJC as the 10th Bishop of the Diocese of Rochester, NY. 

Bishop Bonnici currently serves as Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of New York and was ordained to the episcopacy at St. Patrick’s Cathedral by His Eminence Timothy Cardinal Dolan, Ph.D. ’10HON on March 1, 2022.

Bishop Bonnici joins Most Rev. Robert J. Brennan ’84SJC, ’24HON, Bishop of the Diocese of Brooklyn, NY, and Most Reverend Richard G. Henning ’86SJC, ’88G, Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Boston, MA, as  alumni that attended St. John’s during the mid-eighties  now  shepherding a diocese or archdiocese. He earned his bachelor’s degree in biology and philosophy from St. John’s in 1987. Another local prelate, Most Reverend Kevin J. Sweeney ’92SJC, Bishop of the Diocese of Paterson, NJ, graduated in 1992.

During his years at St. John’s, Bishop Bonnici began to seriously discern a priestly vocation and applied to be a seminarian for the Archdiocese of New York. He was ordained to the priesthood at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Manhattan on June 22, 1991, by the late John Cardinal O’Connor for the Archdiocese of New York.

The son of European immigrants, Bishop Bonnici called his late parents the “co-pastors of my domestic Church. They introduced me to Jesus and Mary.” 

As Bishop, he promised to listen, learn, and love, and work together with faith and civic leaders seeking positive and constructive change that respects the dignity of every human being. “We seek to live together with Jesus and Mary,” he said. “These guideposts offer direction for a variety of tasks, easy and difficult.”

In addition to his responsibilities in the Archdiocese of New York, Bishop Bonnici serves as a member of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on the Protection of Children and Young People and the Subcommittee on the Catechism.

Bishop Bonnici will be installed as Bishop of Rochester on March 19, the Solemnity of St. Joseph.