Diocese of Fall River mourns Bishop Emeritus George Coleman, dead at age 85

FALL RIVER — The Diocese of Fall River has announced the death of the Most Reverend George W. Coleman, who served as the seventh Bishop of Fall River from July 2003 to September 2014.

Bishop Emeritus Coleman died May 24, at Charlton Memorial Hospital in Fall River, where earlier last week he had undergone surgery. He was 85 years old and had been in declining health.

In announcing his death, Bishop Edgar M. da Cunha, who succeeded Coleman, said, “While we mourn his passing and will miss him dearly, we are also consoled by the promise of the resurrection, and the certainty that he, a good and faithful servant of the Church, will be rewarded for all the good he has done in this life, and will be our new intercessor in heaven.”

Da Cunha is asking that all join him in prayer for the eternal repose of his “beautiful soul and for the consolation of his family, friends, clergy and faithful of the Diocese of Fall River.”

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Nearly six decades of service to the Catholic church

In December of this year, Coleman would have observed the 60th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood. He was recognized for this significant milestone at the diocesan Chrism Mass in St. Mary’s Cathedral in Fall River this year during Holy Week.

It was in that same cathedral where he was ordained a bishop and installed as the leader of the Diocese of Fall River on July 22, 2003. His appointment came as he was serving as administrator of the Diocese of Fall River following the transfer of then-Bishop Sean P. O’Malley to the Diocese of Palm Beach in Florida in the fall of 2002. It began an 11-year tenure of dedicated faithful, humble, and competent ministry as he worked to fulfill the many responsibilities of being bishop.

"He’s probably one of the most quiet, kind, and reverent priests I’ve ever met in my life. A very, very holy man," said local businessman Carl Sawejko, who is active in the Catholic community and assisted with Coleman's ordination to the position of bishop. "An example of a great priest."

Sawejko knew Coleman from his years as a parish priest at St. Patrick's in Fall River, a kind and gentle man liked by parishioners. Sawejko said when O'Malley was transferred, Sawejko's partner Sue Dore told Coleman confidently, "You're going to be the next bishop."

With a mild expression, Sawejko said, Coleman asked, "Do you know something I don't know yet?"

Weeks later, after his installation as bishop, Sawejko said, Coleman sought out Dore and asked for a photo with "the person who knew I was going to be bishop before I knew."

"He was probably one of the most approachable bishops we’ve had in decades," Sawejko said. "He was so Christ-like. He accepted everyone. He really didn’t let things bother him – if he did, he never showed it. Always even-tempered."

Coleman's history as a spiritual leader

Coleman oversaw a diocese in transition, as the Church itself went through significant upheaval. Locally, declining attendance and a shortage of priests led to the closure of churches. Internationally, the death of Pope John Paul II, who guided the church for over a quarter-century, was followed by the election of a more conservative Pope Benedict XVI. Benedict took the rare step of resigning in 2013; its next spiritual leader would be the much more liberal Pope Francis.

Even as the Church faced challenges, it carried on. The Rev. David Deston, who was ordained by Coleman in 2009, remembered the bishop as a kind man.

"Of course, death comes for everybody, but somehow it’s still a surprise when it happens. With your brother priests, it’s one thing. But when it’s the bishop, it feels different," Deston said, noting their status as "successors to the Apostles."

A native of the diocese, Coleman was born in Fall River on Feb. 1, 1939, the son of the late George W. and Beatrice K. (Shea) Coleman, and raised in Somerset, along with one sister, Eileen.

He graduated from the former Msgr. James Coyle High School in Taunton in 1957 and attended Holy Cross College in Worcester. He prepared for the priesthood at St. John’s Seminary in Brighton and at the North American College in Rome, where he also earned a graduate degree in sacred theology from the Gregorian University. He was ordained a priest in St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City on December 16, 1964.

Coleman's first assignment was as curate or associate pastor at St. Kilian’s Parish, New Bedford, where he served from 1965 to 1967. He was then assigned to minister in the same capacity at the former St. Louis Parish, Fall River, until 1972, and from there to Our Lady of Victory Parish, Centerville, until 1977.

He was then appointed to direct the Diocesan Department of Education, a post he held for eight years, overseeing Catholic schools, parish religious education and campus ministry programs in the diocese. In 1982, he also became pastor of St. Patrick’s Parish in Fall River.

He left both posts in 1985 to become pastor of Corpus Christi Parish in Sandwich, where he served until 1994. From 1990 to 1994 he was dean of the Cape and Islands Deanery.

"He was there for a long time, and [parishioners] really, really liked him," said Deston of Corpus Christi Parish. "I was assigned there as a seminarian for a summer. He had been gone for ages, but they still talked about him. They liked him a lot."

In August 1994, O’Malley reorganized the administration of the Fall River Diocese and appointed Coleman to the position of vicar general and first moderator of the Curia.

Later that same year, he was named by Pope John Paul II to the rank of Prelate of Honor with the title of reverend monsignor.

On October 22, 2002, he was elected to serve as administrator of the diocese by his peers on the College of Consultors following O’Malley’s transfer.

Sawejko said as a bishop, Coleman "always tried to keep everything stable and riding on rails. He never wanted to upset the apple-cart. … His administration was one of peace and kindness."

From The Pulpit: Give thanks to outgoing Bishop Coleman

Coleman's career after retirement

He retired at the age 75, as required, and was succeeded by da Cunha on Sept. 24, 2014. In retirement, while able, Coleman continued to serve the diocese, often assisting with parish Masses.

For a time, Coleman lived in retirement on Cape Cod. While leading a retreat on the Cape, Deston said, on a whim he phoned up the bishop emeritus and asked if he wanted to assist with a penance service, hearing confessions.

"Not usually the sort of thing that the bishop often does, because that’s more of a parish priest job," Deston said. "He said, 'Absolutely.'"

When Deston picked him up to drive him to the service, the older, much more experienced bishop emeritus and the young priest bonded over their Fall River roots.

"He asked, 'Do they still publish L’Independant?'" Deston said, referring to a former French-language newspaper once published in Fall River. "I stopped there in the middle of the street. It was January on Cape Cod, so you could do that. And I said, 'Are you telling me that there was a French version of O Jornal?' I said, 'Excellency, I don’t think that’s been published since I’ve been alive!'"

After the service, Deston and other members of the retreat invited Coleman out for dinner -- but said Coleman, quiet and modest, said, "It’s almost past my bedtime. Besides, you’re all so young, and I’m old."

Deston said he cherished that time he spent working with Coleman side-by-side, as two servants of God.

"He’s the bishop. ... He’s the boss. He’s in charge of your life. So there’s a little bit of a distance there," Deston said. But on this occasion, he said, "There wasn't that bishop-and-priest dynamic. It was more collegial."

Serving Christ was, for Coleman, not just his mission but his love. At a Mass of Thanksgiving celebrated in August 2014, a few weeks before his retirement, Coleman recalled in his homily that shortly after becoming bishop, he received a letter from a third-grader who expressed his hope that the new job would be “fun.” Coleman said, “It has been fun, only surpassed by the ever-deepening joy of being Christ’s instrument” in the Diocese of Fall River.

A wake for Coleman will take place on Thursday, May 30, from 3 to 8 p.m., with a Vigil Service at 7 p.m., at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption, 327 Second St., Fall River. A Mass of Christian Burial will follow on Friday, May 31, at 11 a.m., also at St. Mary’s Cathedral.

This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Diocese of Fall River mourns death of Bishop Emeritus George Coleman