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SPECIAL FEATURE
June 19, 2018 | The Valley Catholic
Founding Bishop Pierre DuMaine Celebrates 40th Anniversary as a Bishop
By Liz Sullivan
For three people in the Diocese of
San Jose, Bishop Pierre DuMaine has
been much more than the “Founding
Bishop” of our Diocese. He’s been a
boss, a fellow priest, a friend. He’s
been “that kind of person.”
On June 29, the Bishop celebrates
the 40 th anniversary of his ordination
as a Bishop, when he was ordained as
Auxiliary for the Archdiocese of San
Francisco.
Bishop Patrick J. McGrath, who suc-
ceeded Bishop DuMaine as the head
of the Catholic Church in Santa Clara
County in 1999, first met his prede-
cessor in the Fall of 1970. At the time
DuMaine was the Assistant Superin-
tendent of Schools for the Archdiocese
of San Francisco and Bishop McGrath
was a newly ordained priest in San
Francisco.
“Pierre is very shy,” said Bishop
McGrath. “Not a reclusive person, just
a private person. And very bright. He’s
erudite. What a wonderful speaker.
He’s truly a renaissance man. I have
the greatest respect for him.”
“Bishop Pierre planted the
seeds and I reaped the rewards.
He loves the Diocese and
wanted it to thrive. It was a very
smooth transition for me as
Bishop. I am incredibly grateful
for being able to work alongside
him. I will always be grateful for
his kindness and patience with
me above all else.”
-Bishop McGrath
After meeting, the two then each
forged different paths in the Church
in San Francisco: DuMaine in educa-
tion, Auxiliary Bishop and later as the
founding Bishop of San Jose in 1981.
McGrath served as associate pastor as
a Canon lawyer and Rector of Saint
Mary’s Cathedral. June 30, 1998, Bishop
McGrath was named Coadjutor of the
Diocese of San Jose, the successor to
Bishop DuMaine.
“Bishop Pierre planted the seeds
and I reaped the rewards,” said Bishop
McGrath. “He loves the Diocese and
wanted it to thrive. It was a very
smooth transition for me as Bishop. I
am incredibly grateful for being able
to work alongside him. I will always be
grateful for his kindness and patience
with me above all else.”
Bishop McGrath cited Bishop Du-
Maine’s commitment to the Second
Vatican Council, which took place from
1962 to 1965, as a major contributor to
the success of the Diocese of San Jose.
The Council addressed relations
between the Catholic Church and the
modern world. It called for the renewal
of consecrated (or religious) life with a
revised charism for each congregation
or religious order, ecumenism (closer
relationships and better understanding)
efforts towards dialogue with other reli-
gions and the universal call to holiness.
“His administration was looked
upon as cutting-edge,” said Bishop
McGrath. “He and the Diocese really
stood out as inspired by the Council.
Many priests and religious came south
with him at the formation of the new
Diocese. He set his sights on making the
Diocese responsive to the needs of the
people, and he kept moving forward.
Pierre surrounded himself with many
talented coworkers.”
Linda Tully, now Chancellor of the
Diocese of San Jose, first met Bishop
Pierre DuMaine in 1982 when she went
to work for the Hispanic Ministry Of-
fice. In 1985, Tully became the Bishop’s
Administrative Assistant. She worked
for DuMaine until 1990.
“The Bishop had a precise and exact-
ing style,” Tully recalled. “He operated
a certain way where he only told you
things once. He wanted his staff to be
very professional, to be the face of the
Diocese.”
Tully echoed Bishop McGrath’s com-
ments a