Twenty-eighth in a series on the 75th anniversary of the Diocese of Madison
Bishop William H. Bullock accomplished much in his 10 years as Bishop of Madison.
Bishop Bullock had a three-fold agenda as Bishop of Madison: To encourage the spirituality of people and priests; to evaluate ways to efficiently use buildings, programs, and agencies; and to build a vision for the diocese together. Following are some ways he fulfilled that agenda.
Encouraging spirituality
In his weekly column in the Catholic Herald, Bishop Bullock often wrote about the importance of a strong faith life. The bishop also wrote special prayers for the diocese, including a prayer for the new millennium and for vocations.
He implemented the three-year RENEW 2000 program to help people in the diocese usher in the new millennium.
He wrote in his column in 1997, “I earnestly pray that the Holy Spirit will fill us with a burning zeal to carry Christ, the hope of humanity, to a world yearning for the love and peace which only God can give.”
Use of buildings, programs, and agencies
As discussed in previous articles, Bishop Bullock approved the closing of Holy Name Seminary in 1995 and undertook the renovation of the former seminary into a diocesan center.
In 1998, the Chancery housing the administrative offices of the diocese was sold to the City of Madison for $1.1 million.
The offices moved to the Bishop O’Connor Catholic Pastoral Center (BOCPC) along with diocesan offices from six other locations.
The diocesan Office for Justice and Peace was established, and full-time lay directors were appointed for that office as well as the Offices of Worship, Finance, and Tribunal.
In 1994, the bishop established the Office of Archives and appointed a lay director of Camp Gray. In 1995, he appointed a lay director of cemeteries and established a diocesan Natural Family Planning program and Project Rachel.
In 1999, the diocese hired John Miller as the human resources director, a position he still holds.
In August of 2001, Bishop Bullock announced plans to build the new Catholic Multicultural Center on Beld St. in Madison on the same site as the 55-year-old building which was home to St. Martin House and Centro Guadalupano. The two programs were combined to better serve the needs of the poor and immigrants. Construction began in October of 2001 and was completed in 2002.
Effective July 1, 2002, Bishop Bullock appointed J. Mark Brinkmoeller administrator of the Catholic Multicultural Center in addition to continuing to serve as director of the diocesan Office of Justice and Peace.
Building a vision
Bishop Bullock spearheaded the development of a 10-year strategic plan for the diocese.
Twenty-two planning groups met to develop plans on how each area of the diocese could handle the expected reduction of priests.
The planning process revealed the need for continued collaboration among parishes to meet longer-term challenges.
Among options for meeting those needs was the establishment of the position of Director of Parish Life.
He or she would be a qualified deacon, Religious, or layperson appointed by the bishop to assume the pastoral care of a parish under the supervision of a nonresident priest.
Bishop Bullock established a permanent diaconate formation program in 1999 under the direction of the Office of Pastoral Services headed by Mrs. Kate Wiskus.
Those accepted into the program began in the fall of 1999 what was anticipated to be four or five years of part-time study and preparation.
More on Bishop Bullock’s accomplishments will be included in the next article in this series.
Source: Archives of the Catholic Herald newspaper.
Mary C. Uhler served on the staff of the Catholic Herald-Diocese of Madison for almost 47 years, the last 34 years as editor. She retired in July of 2020.