William Draper Byrne
William Draper Byrne
William Draper Byrne is an American Catholic prelate who has served as Bishop of Springfield in Massachusetts since 2020. He is known for taking over the diocese after the revelation of widespread clergy child sex abuse and the subsequent cover-ups.
"Im a firm believer in giving people a message to take away that they can that they can work on for that day — that if youre trying to overload the message then youre going to lose people. I believe in precision — shooting one arrow, not 50."
"If we understand the Faith, then we can explain the Faith. And after nearly half a century of failed catechesis, our people are unable to do that, and they dont even remember what some of the answers are, or even that the Church has the answers. So the secret is not just preaching the Word, but preaching the Word to those who claim to be Catholics, and giving them adequate formation to share the Faith."
"We are trying to preach an experience and relationship with Jesus above all else. Many people dont know Jesus or about the Church he founded. A good homily feeds the hunger they have to know Him, and prompts them to go and learn more. Whatever the priest says should flow from his relationship with Jesus."
