Richard G. Henning is an

American Catholic The Catholic Church in the United States is part of the worldwide Catholic Church in communion with the pope, who as of 2025 is Chicago, Illinois-born Leo XIV. With 23 percent of the United States' population , the Catholic Church is the cou ...

prelate who has served as Archbishop of Boston since 2024. He previously served as Bishop of Providence from 2023 to 2024 and before that was an auxiliary bishop for the Diocese of Rockville Centre from 2018 to 2022.

Biography

Early life

Richard Henning was born in

Rockville Centre, New York Rockville Centre, commonly abbreviated as RVC, is an incorporated Village (New York), village located in the Hempstead, New York, Town of Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, Nassau County, on the South Shore (Long Island), South Shore of Long ...

, growing up at Holy Name of Mary Parish and grade school. His father was a firefighter and his mother was a nurse. Henning credits their examples of service with inspiring his own vocation. He graduated from Chaminade High School in Mineola, New York in 1982. Henning was awarded a Bachelor of Arts degree in history in 1986 and a Master of Arts degree in history from St. John's University in New York City in 1988. After graduation, he entered the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception in Lloyd Harbor, New York, for priestly formation.

Priesthood

On May 30, 1992, Henning was ordained to the priesthood for the Diocese of Rockville Centre by Bishop John R. McGann at St. Agnes Cathedral in Rockville Centre. After his 1992 ordination, the diocese assigned Henning as an assistant pastor at served in a parish in

Port Washington, New York Port Washington is a Hamlet (New York), hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) on the Cow Neck Peninsula in the North Hempstead, New York, Town of North Hempstead, in Nassau County, New York, Nassau County, on the North Shore (Long Island), No ...

. In 1997, the diocese sent Henning to the Catholic University of America School of Theology in Washington, D.C., where he earned his

Licentiate of Sacred Theology Licentiate in Sacred Theology (; abbreviated LTh or STL) is the second of three ecclesiastical degrees in theology (the first being the Baccalaureate in Sacred Theology and the third being the Doctorate in Sacred Theology) which are conferred ...

in biblical theology in 2000. He then spent the next two years in Rome working towards a

Doctor of Theology Doctor of Theology (, abbreviated DTh, ThD, DTheol, or Dr. theol.) is a terminal degree in the academic discipline of theology. The ThD, like the ecclesiastical Doctor of Sacred Theology, is an advanced research degree equivalent to the Doctor o ...

degree in biblical theology at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas, which he completed in 2007. In 2002, Henning was appointed a professor of sacred scripture at the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception. Henning in 2008 co-authored the book, ''Christ Our Hope: Benedict XVI’s Apostolic Journey to the United States and Visit to the United Nations''. In 2012, Henning was named rector of Immaculate Conception. He oversaw the transition of Immaculate Conception from a seminary to hosting retreats and a formation program for the laity. He also served as the inaugural director of the Sacred Heart Institute for the Ongoing Formation of Clergy, located in the Immaculate Conception facility. Bishop John O. Barres appointed Henning as vicar for pastoral planning in 2018 and vicar for clergy in Rockville Centre in 2021.

Auxiliary bishop of Rockville Centre

Pope Francis Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...

appointed Henning as auxiliary bishop of Rockville Centre on June 8, 2018. He was consecrated by Barres at St. Agnes Cathedral on July 24, 2018, with Bishops William Murphy and Robert J. Brennan serving as co-consecrators.

Coadjutor bishop and bishop of Providence

On November 23, 2022, Francis appointed Henning as

coadjutor bishop A coadjutor bishop (or bishop coadjutor) ("co-assister" in Latin) is a bishop in the Latin Catholic, Anglican and (historically) Eastern Orthodox churches whose main role is to assist the diocesan bishop in administering the diocese. The coa ...

of Providence to assist Bishop Thomas J. Tobin. He was installed on January 26, 2023. Henning succeeded as bishop of Providence on May 1, 2023, when Tobin retired.

Archbishop of Boston

On August 5, 2024, Francis named Henning to succeed

Seán Patrick O'Malley Seán Patrick O'Malley (born June 29, 1944) is an American Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Boston from 2003 to 2024. He has served as president of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors since 2014. He is also a f ...

as archbishop of Boston. When asked in August 2024 about the sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Church, Henning replied;

“If there are Catholics who are scandalized, I understand why they’re scandalized. It’s scandalous and certainly painful for me over the course of my life. But it has not made me lose my faith in God or my faith in the possibility of reconciliation and new life, even in the midst of what may feel devastating. So I would say to them that if I have failed you, if a leader in their Church has failed you, I’m so sorry, but God has not failed you."

Henning was installed as archbishop in Boston on October 31, 2024. He is fluent in Spanish and Italian and literate in French, Greek, and Hebrew.

References

External links

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston Official Site

Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence Official Site

Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre Official Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Henning, Richard 1964 births Living people People from Rockville Centre, New York Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas alumni Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre 21st-century American Roman Catholic titular bishops Bishops appointed by Pope Francis