Henry was ordained to the priesthood on May 25, 1968. He holds an M.A. in Philosophy from the University of Notre Dame and a licentiate in theology from Gregorian University in Rome. From 1973-1986 he served as associate professor of Theology and Philosophy at St. Peter's Seminary. In 1986 he was appointed auxiliary bishop of London and titular bishop of Carinola, Italy. In 1995 he was installed as the fifth bishop of Thunder Bay, Ontario, and on March 19, 1998 he was installed as the seventh bishop of Calgary. He was granted early retirement as Bishop of Calgary by Pope Francis on January 4, 2017, due to health concerns. He served as the Apostolic Administrator of the diocese until the installation of his successor, William McGrattan, on February 27, 2017. Pastoral Assignments:
1968 - 1970 Associate Pastor, Christ the King Parish, Windsor, ON.
1970 - 1973 Post Graduate Studies: University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana - M.A. Philosophy.
June 24, 1986 Episcopal Ordination at St. Peter's Cathedral, London.
March 24, 1995 Named Bishop of Thunder Bay, ON. May 11, 1995 Installed as the fourth Bishop of Thunder Bay, ON.
January 16, 1998 Named Bishop of Calgary, AB.
March 19, 1998 Installed as the seventh Bishop of Calgary, AB.
Recent Appointments:
Former Chairman of Episcopal Commission on Christian Education of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops and member of the Management Committee for the National Office of Religious Education.
Canadian Delegate to 1990 Synod of Bishops - On the Formation of Priests in the Circumstances of the Present Day.
Former Liaison Bishop to the English-speaking Seminary Rectors.
Henry's staunch positions have made him a polarizing figure in the Calgary community. His support has come from devout Catholics who agree with his traditional faith based views on contemporary issues such as gay marriage. His behavior and command of the Calgary diocese has come with controversy. Two recent examples were the banning schools and students from using casinos to fund-raise and suggesting that school boards in the Calgary Catholic School District ban the distribution of the HPV vaccine. He is a noted critic of modern trends in government, whether these be the libertarian policies of the Alberta Progressive Conservatives, or the tendency of certain Canadian federal politicians to overlook their Catholic identities at election time.
Views
Same-sex marriage
On July 30, 2003, Henry commented on Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's support for the legalization of same-sex marriage: "I pray for the Prime Minister because I think his eternal salvation is in jeopardy. He is making a morally grave error and he's not being accountable to God... He doesn't understand what it means to be a good Catholic."
Abortion
After Joe Clark, former Tory leader and a Catholic, described himself as pro-choice, Henry described his comments as "scandalous".
HPV vaccine and promiscuity
Henry does not allow public health officials to vaccinate students in Catholic schools against human papillomavirus, or HPV. He believes that the HPV vaccine is a partial prophylaxis which is utilized instead of, rather than with, the development of self-discipline and virtue.
Quotes
"If one happens to be a Catholic, there cannot be a split between one's internal kind of views and thoughts... and what one says publicly. One has a duty, whether he likes it or not, to preach the word of God. This is part of the very mission of the Church, which is not confined to guys like myself who wear this funny Roman collar...."
