Cardinal Justin Rigali, Archbishop of Philadelphia, announced at a news conference at the Archdiocesan Office Center in Philadelphia this morning that Pope Benedict XVI has appointed Reverend Monsignor Timothy C. Senior as an Auxiliary Bishop of Philadelphia, assigning him the Titular See of Floriana.
Bishop-elect Senior, age 49, is a native of North Wales, Montgomery County. He is a graduate of Lansdale Catholic High School and Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood and was ordained a priest in 1985. Bishop-elect Senior serves as the Archdiocese of Philadelphia Vicar for Clergy.

Cardinal Rigali said, "Bishop-elect Senior brings to his new role notable administrative gifts and a tireless work ethic. At the same time, those who know him appreciate his priestly heart, his wise counsel, his keen intelligence and his prayerful serenity. "

Family members, brother priests, friends and colleagues attended the news conference to hear the announcement. In his remarks, Bishop-elect Senior said, "I love being a priest! As a priest, I have encountered the abiding and irresistible love of God drawing me ever more deeply into relationship with Him. In my life as a priest, I have been given opportunities to grow and to serve that I could not have imagined or planned for myself. The life of a priest is challenging and fulfilling in countless and surprising ways. I am confident that my future ministry as a bishop will be the same. I thank God today for the grace of perseverance and I pray for the ever deepening desire to do His will and to give my life completely in the service of His Church."

During his twenty-four years as a priest, Bishop-elect Senior has served the Church in a number of capacities. For three years he was parochial vicar at Assumption Blessed Virgin Mary Parish in Feasterville, Bucks County. For seven years he served as Secretary for Catholic Human Services, a vast, mission-based organization that has 4500 employees. Within CHS is Catholic Health Care Services and Catholic Social Services -- the largest private provider of social services in Pennsylvania. He is a classically trained pianist who holds a Master's Degree in Social Work and an MBA from Boston College.

In 2004, Monsignor Senior was appointed to his current position as Vicar for Clergy. He also serves as Chaplain for Divine Providence Village, a residential program for developmentally disabled women, and he celebrates Mass on weekends at St. John Chrysostom Parish in Wallingford, Delaware County.

At today's news conference Cardinal Rigali said, "For five years Bishop-elect Senior has demonstrated his constant pastoral concern for his brother priests and worked tirelessly to put into place programs for ongoing priestly spiritual formation as well as wellness programs for priests. Bishop-elect Senior has collaborated with me during my five years as Archbishop of Philadelphia and I have seen first-hand his devotion not only for his brother priests, but to the faithful of the entire Archdiocese. He is an exemplary priest with a great love for the Church. I know that the commitment that he has demonstrated for the faithful of the Philadelphia region will only grow as he assists me in ministering to the Archdiocese of Philadelphia."

Cardinal Rigali will ordain Bishop-elect Senior to the episcopacy on Friday, July 31, 2009 at 2:00 p.m. at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Philadelphia.

Biographical Information:

Timothy C. Senior was born on March 22, 1960 to the late James Harwood Senior and to Elise Rothwell Senior. He is the youngest of three children. He is a graduate of St. Rose of Lima Parish School in North Wales and is a 1977 graduate of Lansdale Catholic High School, for which he later authored the Lansdale Catholic alma mater. He graduated from Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania and was ordained a priest in 1985.

He earned a Masters of Divinity and Master of Arts in Theology from Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary, Wynnewood, PA in 1988, served as an assistant pastor at Assumption Blessed Mary Parish in Feasterville, Bucks County from 1985 to 1988. He taught religion at Archbishop Kennedy High School for one year before pursuing full-time graduate studies at Boston College. After earning his Masters in Social Work and Masters in Business Administration from Boston College in 1992, Monsignor Senior served as Deputy Secretary for Catholic Human Services from 1992 until 1997 when he was appointed Secretary. In that role, he had the responsibility for the governance and operation of the network of Catholic health care and social services ministries sponsored by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

In 1998, he was named Chaplain to His Holiness, Pope John Paul, II, with the title "Monsignor." In 2004, he was named Vicar for Clergy by Cardinal Justin Rigali, and in 2005, was named a Prelate of Honor by the late Pope John Paul II.

Bishop-elect Senior resides at Divine Providence Village in Springfield, Delaware County, PA, a residential program for developmentally disabled adult women, where he also serves as chaplain to the residents.

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