A Roman Catholic priest in Grenada has said that the appointment of Fr Hugh Logan to serve as the Delegate to the Apostolic Administrator for the Diocese of St George’s-in-Grenada should not be interpreted that he will automatically succeed the retired Bishop Clyde Harvey as the new Bishop.
“Don’t look at it that way–nobody knows,” said the long-serving priest for over 15 years, according to The New Today, July 4 article.
Fr Logan was given the role by Archbishop Gabriel Malzaire of Castries who was appointed by Rome to look after the affairs of the Diocese on the retirement of Bishop Harvey in keeping with Canon Law.
The priest said: “Basically it is all temporary right now, we are going through what is being referred to as the transition process until such time as Rome appoints a Bishop. “So right now the Church is in transition until such time as a new Bishop is appointed. We just have to keep praying that God in His wisdom will put somebody here who can lead the Church and Grenada forward…” he added. According to the priest, once Bishop Harvey’s resignation was accepted by the Pope, he was obligated under Canon Law to appoint a Delegate to look after the affairs of the Church in Grenada and the task was given to Archbishop Malzaire.
The priest pointed out that Archbishop Malzaire is still the Archbishop of Castries and will continue to oversee his own diocese and also the diocese in Grenada. He said that the Archbishop has now appointed Fr Logan to serve as “a Delegate here, who, in a sense, will be his person on the ground when he is absent and would keep him informed how the diocese is going in his absence.” He disclosed that Fr Carl Haynes, who was serving as Vicar General during the tenure of Bishop Harvey will cease to perform in that role. “The moment that the Pope accepted the Bishop’s resignation, the Vicar General ceases to exist. The Vicar General is appointed by the Bishop–he is not appointed by Rome … so once the Bishop steps down … therefore the Vicar General’s role ceases to exist until such time that a new Bishop is appointed.”
The priest explained that Rome could have adopted another approach other than an Apostolic Administrator in handling the Church in Grenada upon the retirement of Bishop Harvey. He made mention of a group of at least four senior priests who make up a body known as the Consultors who are empowered to appoint a Diocesan Administrator. He described the Consultors as a group appointed by a Bishop to consult or advise him and these persons are “normally senior persons of the Diocese” as well as persons who represent some of the religious organisations in the Church. According to the priest, this was the approach used by the Church upon the death of Bishop Vincent Darius OP on April 26, 2016. The priest who was then appointed in that process to serve as Diocesan Administrator was Jamaican, Fr Clifton Harris OP.
