Walter Allison Hurley (born May 30, 1937) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

-born

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 served as bishop of the

Diocese of Grand Rapids The Diocese of Grand Rapids () is a Latin Church diocese of the Roman Catholic Church, Catholic Church in West Michigan, western Michigan in the United States. It comprises 80 parishes in 11 counties. It is a suffragan see to the Archdiocese of De ...

in Michigan from 2005 to 2018. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop for the

Archdiocese of Detroit The Archdiocese of Detroit () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or archdiocese, of the Catholic Church covering the south-east portion of Michigan in the United States. The archdiocese consists counties of Lapeer County, Michigan, Lap ...

in Michigan from 2003 to 2005. Hurley also served as apostolic administrator of the

Diocese of Gaylord The Diocese of Gaylord () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or diocese, of the Catholic Church in the northern region of the lower peninsula of Michigan in the United States. The diocese is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical pr ...

and the

Diocese of Saginaw The Diocese of Saginaw () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Michigan in the United States. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Detroit. The D ...

, both in Michigan.

Biography

Early life and education

Walter Hurley was born on May 30, 1937, in

Fredericton Fredericton (; ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of New Brunswick. The city is situated in the west-central portion of the province along the Saint John River (Bay of Fundy), Saint John River, ...

New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...

, to Charles and Anne (née Ball) Hurley. One of six children, he has four sisters, Elizabeth, Eileen, Charlene, and Annette; and one brother, Gerald. He attended St. Dunstan Grade School in

, and St. Anne High School in Church Point, Nova Scotia. In 1955, Hurley immigrated to the United States, settling in

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

. He earned a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree from Sacred Heart Seminary in Detroit in 1961, and a

Master of Divinity For graduate-level theological institutions, the Master of Divinity (MDiv, ''magister divinitatis'' in Latin) is the first professional degree of the pastoral profession in North America. It is the most common academic degree in seminaries and ...

degree from

St. John's Provincial Seminary St. John's Provincial Seminary was a Catholic major seminary in the Archdiocese of Detroit that operated between 1949 and 1988 in Plymouth, Michigan. Catholic Seminary St. John's was founded in 1949 for the province of the Archdiocese of Detroi ...

in Plymouth, Michigan, in 1965.

Priesthood

Hurley was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

to the priesthood of the Archdiocese of Detroit at the

Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament The Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament is a Neo-Gothic style Roman Catholic cathedral church in the United States. It is the seat of the archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit. The metropolitan archdiocese for the Roman Ca ...

in Detroit by Archbishop

John Dearden John Francis Dearden (October 15, 1907 – August 1, 1988) was an American Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Detroit from 1958 to 1980, and was created a cardinal in 1969. He previously served as Bishop of Pittsburgh from 1950 to 195 ...

on June 5, 1965. After his ordination, the archdiocese assigned Hurley to the following parish appointments: * Pastoral vicar at St. Dorothy in

Warren Warren most commonly refers to: * Warren (burrow), a network dug by rabbits * Warren (name), a given name and a surname, including lists of persons so named Warren may also refer to: Places Australia * Warren (biogeographic region) * War ...

(1965–1969) *

Vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English p ...

for the Warren-Centerline Vicariate (1969–1972) *

Pastor A pastor (abbreviated to "Ps","Pr", "Pstr.", "Ptr." or "Psa" (both singular), or "Ps" (plural)) is the leader of a Christianity, Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutherani ...

of St. Cyprian in Riverview (1972–1976) * Pastor of Sacred Heart in Roseville (1976–1979) * Pastor of St. Lucy in St. Clair Shores (1979–1982) Cardinal

Edmund Szoka Edmund Casimir Szoka (September 14, 1927 – August 20, 2014) was an American Catholic prelate who served as president of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State and president of the Governorate of Vatican City State from 1997 to 2006. H ...

then sent Hurley to further his studies at the

Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily a ...

in Washington, D.C., where he obtained a

Licentiate of Canon Law Licentiate of Canon Law (; JCL) is the title of an advanced graduate degree with canonical effects in the Roman Catholic Church offered by pontifical universities and ecclesiastical faculties of canon law. Licentiate is the title of a person who ...

in 1984. Upon returning to Detroit, Hurley served in three more appointments: *

Judicial vicar In the Roman Catholic Church, a judicial vicar or episcopal official () is an officer of the diocese who has ordinary power to judge cases in the diocesan ecclesiastical court. Although the diocesan bishop can reserve certain cases to himself, ...

of the metropolitan tribunal (1984–1989) * Diocesan

moderator of the curia Moderator of the curia is a top administrative position held by a Catholic priest in a diocese under the supervision of the bishop. The moderator coordinates the exercise of the administrative duties and oversees the office holders, or curia, in ...

(1986–1990) * Pastor of Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in

Farmington, Michigan Farmington is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. A northwestern suburb of Detroit, Farmington is located roughly from downtown Detroit, and is surrounded on most sides by the larger city of Farmington Hills. As of the 202 ...

(1990–2003) In 1994,

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

named Hurley an

honorary prelate A Prelate of Honour of His Holiness is a Catholic prelate to whom the Pope has granted this title of honour. They are addressed as Monsignor (typically abbreviated 'Mgr') and have certain privileges as regards clerical clothing.

, giving him the title of monsignor. That year, he also became a member of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. Hurley served as Cardinal

Adam Maida Adam Joseph Maida (born March 18, 1930) is an American Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Detroit from 1990 to 2009, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1994. He previously served as Bishop of Green Bay from 1984 to 1990. Biogr ...

's delegate for clergy misconduct from 1988 to 1995 and again from 2002 to 2005. Hurley also served as Maida's delegate and project manager for the construction of the Saint John Paul II National Shrine in Washington, D.C., from 1995 to 2001.

Auxiliary Bishop of Detroit

On July 7, 2003, Pope John Paul II appointed Hurley as the 22nd auxiliary bishop of Detroit and

titular bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

of ''Chunavia''. Maida performed Hurley's

episcopal consecration A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...

at the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Detroit on August 12, 2003, with Szoka and Bishop Walter Schoenherr serving as

co-consecrators A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churche ...

. At that time, Hurley selected ''"Serve With Gladness"'' (from

Psalm 100 Psalm 100 is the 100th psalm in the Book of Psalms in the Tanakh. In English, it is translated as "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands" in the King James Version (KJV), and as "O be joyful in the Lord, all ye lands" in the Book of C ...

:2) as his episcopal motto''.'' As an auxiliary bishop, he was responsible for the Northwest Region of the archdiocese, which encompasses

Oakland Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...

and Lapeer Counties.

Bishop of Grand Rapids

On June 21, 2005,

Pope Benedict XVI Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...

named Hurley as the 11th bishop of Grand Rapids. He was installed on August 4, 2005.

Resignation

As required, Hurley submitted his resignation to Pope Benedict XVI on his 75th birthday, May 30, 2012. However,

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 ...

only accepted the resignation on April 18, 2013, when he appointed Reverend

David Walkowiak The Most Reverend David John Walkowiak, J.C.D. (born June 18, 1953) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as the twelfth bishop of the Diocese of Grand Rapids in Michigan since 2013. Biography Early life ...

as the new bishop of Grand Rapids. During the period between his resignation and Walkowiak's installation, Hurley served as

apostolic administrator An apostolic administration in the Catholic Church is administrated by a prelate appointed by the pope to serve as the ordinary for a specific area. Either the area is not yet a diocese (a stable 'pre-diocesan', usually missionary apostolic admi ...

of the diocese.

Apostolic administrator and moderator

On October 17, 2018, following the sudden death of Bishop

Joseph Cistone Joseph Robert Cistone (May 18, 1949 – October 16, 2018) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the sixth bishop of the Diocese of Saginaw in Michigan from 2009 to until his death in 2018. Biography Early life ...

on October 16,

named Hurley as the apostolic administrator of the

. In February 2019, Hurley removed Reverend Edwin Dwyer as parochial administrator of Our Lady of Peace Parish in

Bay City, Michigan Bay City is a city in Bay County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The population was 32,661 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The city is located just upriver from the Saginaw Bay on the Saginaw River. It is the princip ...

, and as chaplain at

Saginaw Valley State University Saginaw Valley State University (SVSU) is a public university in University Center, Michigan, United States, in Saginaw County. It was founded in 1963 as Saginaw Valley College. It is located on in Saginaw County's Kochville Township, appr ...

University Center, Michigan University Center is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated community in the U.S. state of Michigan. The community encompasses two separate areas using the 48710 ZIP Code, including Delta College (Michigan), Delta College in Bay County, Michigan, ...

. Hurley said that Dwyer can caused controversy in the parish by introducing traditional worship elements in the masses such as

incense Incense is an aromatic biotic material that releases fragrant smoke when burnt. The term is used for either the material or the aroma. Incense is used for aesthetic reasons, religious worship, aromatherapy, meditation, and ceremonial reasons. It ...

and bells, a black

cassock The cassock, or soutane, is a Christian clerical clothing, clerical coat used by the clergy and Consecrated life, male religious of the Oriental Orthodox Churches, Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church, in addition to some clergy in ...

for the priest, white

surplices A surplice (; Late Latin ''superpelliceum'', from ''super'', "over" and ''pellicia'', "fur garment") is a liturgical vestment of Western Christianity. The surplice is in the form of a tunic of white linen or cotton fabric, reaching to the kne ...

for the altar servers, and Latin and

Gregorian chant Gregorian chant is the central tradition of Western plainsong, plainchant, a form of monophony, monophonic, unaccompanied sacred song in Latin (and occasionally Greek language, Greek) of the Roman Catholic Church. Gregorian chant developed main ...

s Hurley served in Saginaw until July 2019. On June 23, 2020, Francis chose Hurley as the apostolic administrator of the

. Hurley held this position until the consecration of Reverend Jeffrey Walsh as bishop on March 4, 2022. In October 2023, the Archdiocese of Detroit named Hurley as moderator of the Waters of Light Family of Parishes in the archdiocese.

References

External links

Roman Catholic Diocese of Grand Rapids Official Site

Episcopal succession

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hurley, Walter A. People from Fredericton 1937 births Living people Catholic University of America alumni Canadian emigrants to the United States Sacred Heart Major Seminary alumni Roman Catholic bishops of Grand Rapids 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Canadian people of Irish descent Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit