The 60th anniversary edition of The Dialog, published Sept. 19, 2025, included a review of Catholic news from 1965-2025. This is the last of 10 parts.
2016
Bishop Malooly said the resident pastor model of leadership would be dominant for the next 10 years, but the “linkage model,” with one priest serving two or more church communities, would become more common.
Parish anniversaries included St. Joseph on the Brandywine, Greenville (175th); St. Teresa’s, Port Deposit, Md. (150th); and St. Matthew, Wilmington (75th).
Christ Our King Church in Wilmington was closed after 90 years due to a steep decline in membership and rising maintenance costs.
Bishop Malooly issued a call to prayer prior to the presidential election in November.
Chriss Zimmerman of Christ the Teacher Catholic School, was honored by the National Association of School Nurses as the national private and parochial nurse of the year.
2017
The diocese unveiled the logo for its sesquicentennial, which was to begin in March 2018.
Marydale Retirement Village completed a renovation that cost more than $8 million. The 108-apartment complex is managed by the diocesan Ministry to the Elderly.
Joe McNesby retired after 28 years as the sports coordinator for Catholic Youth Ministry.
The annual CYM golf benefit event is named in his honor.
Bishop Malooly issued a statement denouncing racism following violence in Charlottesville, Va.
Father Glenn Evers was named the director of the Office of Cultural Ministries, a new initiative in the Diocese of Wilmington.
Stephen Hyde and his family donated $1.5 million to Saint Mark’s High School, the largest in the school’s history.
Former Wilmington Bishop Robert E. Mulvee, who led the diocese from 1985-95, died in late December at 88.
2018
The diocesan sesquicentennial kicked off with Mass in March at St. Peter Cathedral.
A group of 133 people from the diocese embarked on a pilgrimage to France and Italy for the diocesan sesquicentennial. Bishop Malooly led the delegation.
Christ the Teacher Catholic School broke ground on a $4.3 million classroom and gymnasium building.
Joanna Wicks, a teacher at St. Thomas More Academy in Magnolia, was named Miss Delaware for 2018 and represented the state at the Miss America pageant.
Father William Graney, pastor of Resurrection Parish in Pike Creek, was attacked by a homeless man he was trying to assist.
Holocaust survivor Eva Moses Kor spoke at Padua Academy.
2019
Bishop Malooly submitted his resignation to Pope Francis after reaching his 75th birthday, as required by church law. The pope did not accept the letter, and the bishop remained in office.
The diocese concluded its 150th anniversary celebration with Mass at St. Elizabeth Church in Wilmington.
The former longtime archivist of the diocese, Donn Devine, died at age 90.
The Redemptorist Priests withdrew from Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Seaford after nearly 50 years of service.
Brother Michael Rosenello, 92, who had been instrumental in the construction of Padua Academy and ministered at the school for more than 50 years, died in September.
About two dozen Felician Sisters returned to Newark for the dedication of Our Lady of Grace Village, a 60-unit affordable housing complex. The site was once the home of the sisters’ orphanage and kindergarten.
Bishop Malooly traveled to the Vatican to meet with Pope Francis during his ad limina visit. It was his third such trip, with three different popes.
2020
The Franciscan Friars of the Holy Name Province announced that they would be leaving two Wilmington parishes, St. Paul’s and St. Joseph’s.
Coronavirus affected every aspect of life in the Diocese of Wilmington. Bishop Malooly issued a dispensation for Sunday Mass attendance, and Catholic schools were closed in the middle of March, expected to last two weeks.
The Dialog ceased print publication, which lasted until August, and the closure of schools was extended until mid-May at the earliest. Parish carnivals were canceled, and schools adjusted graduation ceremonies because of the pandemic.
After 22 years, St. Thomas More Academy in Magnolia closed following graduation. All Saints Catholic School in Elsmere also closed at the end of the academic year.
Schools reopened for in-class or hybrid instruction in the fall, with masks, masking tape and hand sanitizer among the dominant features.
Abessinio Stadium opened on the former site of Baynard Stadium. The stadium is the home of Salesianum and St. Elizabeth football.
Joe Biden, the former U.S. senator and vice president, and a member of St. Joseph on the Brandywine Parish in Greenville, was elected the 46th president of the United States.
2021
Winter sports began at high schools around the diocese with requirements that participants wear masks, and attendance was limited because of the coronavirus pandemic. The March for Life was held virtually.
Restrictions on attendance at Mass are gradually eased.
Msgr. William Koenig was named the 10th bishop of Wilmington in May. He was ordained a bishop and installed as the diocese’s ordinary in July at St. Elizabeth Church.
SS. Peter and Paul opened its new high school on the same campus as the new church.
Fifteen men were ordained permanent deacons, the diocese’s first class since 2017.
SS. Peter and Paul High School graduate Tyler Christianson swam in the Summer Olympics in Tokyo while representing Panama.
Msgr. Joseph Rebman, a longtime pastor and administrator in the Diocese of Wilmington, died at 85.
2022
In February, the diocese announced that it would return to pre-pandemic practices at Mass after restrictions were eased in Delaware and Maryland. Masks became optional at Maryland schools in February; Delaware students were required to keep wearing them.
The annual youth cross pilgrimage returned on the Saturday before Palm Sunday for the first time since 2019. It was the first one led by Bishop Koenig.
Sister Clare Rohe, a Sister of St. Francis of Philadelphia, died in May at 104. The oldest member of the congregation, she spent 27 years ministering in the Diocese of Wilmington.
Bishop Koenig presided at a Mass that concluded Holy Rosary Parish’s 100th anniversary celebration.
Catholic Youth Ministry introduced boys volleyball as a fall sport.
Local Catholics celebrated the Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade but acknowledged that state abortion laws in Delaware and Maryland would prevent an immediate impact in those states.
The diocese kicked off the three-year Eucharistic Revival with a procession through Wilmington. Hundreds of local Catholics joined Bishop Koenig for the event.
The Archmere Academy football team, which won a state title in 2021, met with Archmere graduate President Joe Biden at the White House.
Saint Francis Hospital announced plans to create a “Healthy Village,” combining clinical services with social services on its Wilmington campus.
Bishop Koenig met with Pope Francis at the Vatican during a session for about 170 new bishops.
Saint Mark’s announced an $8 million capital campaign, the results of which would affect nearly every aspect of life at the school.
2023
Bishop Koenig presides at a concelebrated memorial Mass for Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI at the Cathedral of Saint Peter.
Msgr. J. Thomas Cini, retired pastor of St. Ann Parish in Wilmington and longtime Diocese of Wilmington administrator, died at the age of 80. “Monsignor Cini had the heart of a pastor and was a gifted preacher and although he held prominent positions, he never sought the limelight,” Msgr. Steven P. Hurley, vicar general and moderator of the curia, said in the homily at Msgr. Cini’s funeral Mass.
The 50th annual March for Life was held in Washington, D.C., the first gathering occurring following the reversal of Roe v. Wade in June 2022. According to the March for Life website, the event continues because “the necessary work to build a culture of life in the United States of America is not finished.”
About 200 Catholics who contributed to 2022 record-setting Faith and Charity Catholic Appeal joined Bishop Koenig for a prayer service and reception at St. Ann’s Parish in Wilmington.
The Knights in Delaware and the nine counties of the Eastern Shore of Maryland were recognized for their good works in the Diocese of Wilmington when councils from both states received the Msgr. Thomas J. Reese Award at Catholic Charities Annual Tribute Dinner in Wilmington.
Father Edward M. Aigner Jr., a priest of the Diocese of Wilmington since 1972, died at 78.
The retired priest had been in residence at St. Francis de Sales Parish in Salisbury, Md.
The St. Pius X Columbiettes of the city of Wilmington organized a two-day stop at St. Elizabeth Church of five strands of hair from Blessed Carlo Acutis, the Italian boy who is remembered most for creating a website that chronicles Eucharistic miracles. He was diagnosed with leukemia in October 2005 and died a year later.
The Silver Rose, a prayer pilgrimage program of the Knights of Columbus honoring Our Lady of Guadalupe, returned to Delaware in October. The rose made stops at parishes in the state.
People concerned about gun violence in their communities joined together for an ecumenical candle-lighting service at St. Elizabeth Church in Wilmington to remember local victims as part of Peace Week Delaware.
The Latin American Community Center posthumously honored Franciscan Father Chris Posch at its annual grand ball in October. Brother Chris, as he was known, was named the LACC’s Community Champion in recognition of his commitment and service on behalf of the Latino community in the Diocese of Wilmington.
2024
Msgr. Daniel J. McGlynn, a priest of the Diocese of Wilmington since 1982, died at 84. A retired priest, he most recently lived at Holy Cross Parish in Dover. Among his assignments during active priesthood in the diocese was pastor at Holy Cross.
Filipino priest Efren Esmilla, the newly appointed auxiliary bishop in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, for the last year has been celebrating a monthly bilingual Mass at St. Elizabeth Church in Wilmington. The Mass is celebrated in Tagalog and English, serving both those who use the Austronesian language and others not as familiar with it, the bishop-designate said.
The Christopher Council of the Delaware Knights of Columbus, which serves Holy Rosary Parish in Claymont and St. Helena Parish in Bellefonte, celebrated its 75th anniversary with a Mass at Holy Rosary, followed by a banquet at the Claymont Ballroom. Bishop Koenig presided at the Mass, where he was joined by the pastors of the two parishes, Father John Gayton and Msgr. Stanley Russell and others.
Fritz Jones, the recently retired executive director of Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Wilmington, was presented with a resolution from the Maryland state Senate recognizing his more than 40 years of service.
The Knights of Columbus hold a prayer vigil outside Planned Parenthood in Wilmington on the first Saturday of each month, but on Feb. 3 they were at a new clinic that opened near Elsmere. A group of Knights and others gathered outside AllGyn, which is on Kirkwood Highway just north of the ramp to Route 141.
Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Wilmington recognized Xavier DeCaire with the Msgr. Thomas J. Reese Award for exceptional dedication and unwavering support of local communities throughout his life at the Annual Tribute Dinner at Chase Center on the Riverfront in Wilmington.
Bishop Koenig presided at a Mass recognizing Black History Month at St. Elizabeth Church in Wilmington. Deacon Ken Pulliam was the homilist. Members of the Catholic Women’s Association processed into church with the Book of Gospels.
Many of the pro-life supporters who attended the 45th annual Maryland March for Life in Annapolis know they are in for a difficult fight come November. That’s when Maryland voters will decide whether to amend the state Constitution to enshrine the right to abortion through all nine months of pregnancy for any reason.
After an impassioned debate of more than an hour, Delaware senators turned back HB140 that would have legalized physician-assisted suicide in the state. They would later change their minds.
Father Timothy Nolan, pastor of St. Peter the Apostle Parish in New Castle, announced the parish school will not reopen due to dwindling enrollment.
More than six decades after his ordination for the Diocese of Wilmington, Msgr. Stanley Russell retired from active priesthood.
Delaware Gov. John Carney vetoed House Bill 140, turning back legislative efforts to make legal physician-assisted suicide in the state.
As the daylong Diocese of Wilmington Eucharistic Congress is brought to a close, Bishop William Koenig and dozens of priests concelebrate the concluding Mass at Roland Powell Convention Center. More than 2,000 people joined the event in Ocean City, Md.
More than 250 participants took to the road Nov. 23 for the annual Bishop’s 5K Run/Walk at Saint Mark’s High School on a brilliant, chilly morning in Pike Creek. The event raised more than $20,000 for Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Wilmington
