The new Roman Catholic bishop of Vermont says he wants to move the church from maintenance of the status quo in the state to make it more missionary in nature.
The Most Rev. Christopher James Coyne was appointed Monday and will be formally installed as pastor of Vermont's 118,000 Catholics on Jan. 29.
At a news conference at diocesan headquarters, the bishop said he wants to do more to reach out to non-Catholics and those who have stopped attending Mass in hopes of getting them to join or rejoin the church.
A native of the Boston suburb of Woburn. Massachusetts, Coyne is known as a leader in the Catholic Church's "digital revolution," keeping a dedicated daily presence on both Facebook and Twitter and producing a regular podcast.
Copyright AP - Associated Press
