Pope Leo XIV has appointed auxiliary Bishop Mark O’Connell of Boston as bishop of Albany, New York, according to an Oct. 20 Vatican Press Office statement.
Bishop O’Connell has served as an auxiliary bishop of Boston since 2016. He studied philosophy at Boston College and was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Boston in 1990, according to the statement. He taught as a professor of canon law at Saint John Seminary in Brighton, Massachusetts, from 2006 to 2016.
“I am delighted and deeply grateful to God and the Holy Father, Pope Leo, for calling me to serve as the 11th Bishop of Albany,” Bishop O’Connell said in a diocesan statement. “I am truly honored to be your bishop and embrace this role with great joy. Wherever this journey leads, I will walk with you, guided by the hope and peace of the Risen Lord. I ask for your prayers and goodwill, and I pledge the same to you.”
He succeeds Bishop Edward Scharfenberger, 77. Bishops are required to submit their resignation to the Pope at age 75, though the Pontiff may ask them to stay in active ministry longer, according to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. The Oct. 20 Vatican Press Office release also stated that Pope Leo has accepted Bishop Scharfenberger’s resignation from the diocese’s pastoral care.
Bishop Scharfenberger welcomed the new bishop in a letter to the diocese.
“Bishop O’Connell is a man with great depth and breadth of pastoral, canonical, and communications skills and experience,” he wrote. “We welcome him with open hearts and pray for many years of good health and joyful presence among us.”
Archbishop Richard Henning of Boston, who has served as archbishop there since 2024, said that working with Bishop O’Connell for the past year has been a blessing.
“He is a remarkably capable man and very humble,” the archbishop said in an Oct. 20 statement. “He loves people and he loves the priests of our Archdiocese. He has served Boston joyfully and effectively for decades.”
“While we are sorry to lose him here in Boston,” Archbishop Henning added, “we rejoice with the clergy, religious, and lay faithful of the Diocese of Albany. We are sending you our best and wishing you and your new bishop every blessing!”
According to the Diocese of Albany, Bishop O’Connell’s installation Mass will be Dec. 5.
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