Greensburg Bishop Malesic bids farewell to diocese

In more normal times, more than 800 parishioners would have been expected to pack the church for Malesic’s goodbye, according to church officials.

Parishioners, while happy for Malesic, said they were sorry to see him leave after such a short time as head of the Greensburg diocese.

“I’m feeling sad for us and happy for him. I think five years is too short,” said Henna Bautista of Hempfield.

Hollie Uccellini of Indiana, a member of the diocese’s Catholic Charities, said she has worked closely with Malesic and cried when she heard the news last month of the bishop’s promotion and transfer.

“We’ve only had him for five years. Above everything else, he’s just a pastor,” Uccellini said.

Malesic’s tenure as head of the Greensburg diocese included a series of challenges. His arrival from Central Pennsylvania in 2015 came as Western Pennsylvania was gripped in the horrors of an opioid epidemic that continues to ravage the community through addictions and loss of life.

Then came the state grand jury report in 2018 that in great detail exposed the church’s decadeslong history of ignoring allegations of sexual abuse among clergy, including nearly two dozen in the Greensburg diocese. Just last week, Malesic added another priest to the list of alleged sexual predators associated with the church.

In the past two years, numerous lawsuits have been filed against the diocese alleging sexual abuse at the hands of priests while $5.91 million was paid from a compensation fund to settle sex abuse claims with 72 people.

Then came the coronavirus pandemic in March, which for a time closed churches to live worshipping and continues to limit diocesan operations.

“In each and every case of difficulty, we would not let evil have a final say, we did not give up and we were not defeated. We educated one another and prayed for one another and reached out to those who were affected by opioid addiction,” Malesic said. “We reached out to victims of clergy sexual abuse, and we made sure that today’s church did not fall into the mistakes of the church of decades ago.”

Malesic is the first bishop since the Greensburg diocese was founded in 1951 to leave for another post, according to church spokesman Jerry Zufelt.

Until a replacement is named by Pope Francis, the diocese will be operated by an administrator selected by a special committee formed no more than eight days after Malesic is installed as head of the Cleveland church.

In his final address Sunday, Malesic struck an optimistic tone for the diocese’s future.

“But really, folks, I know that the next bishop of Greensburg, whoever it is I have no idea, will receive the same warm welcome that I did from you. And when he is appointed, I will be able to say to him, you’re so blessed to be the bishop of Greensburg, and I mean that from the bottom of my heart,” Malesic said.