Remembering Bishop Matthew Clark
Jan 24, 2023
It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of His Excellency, The Most Reverend Matthew H. Clark, Bishop Emeritus of the Diocese of Rochester, at the age of 85.
Bishop Clark was the 8th Bishop of the Rochester Diocese, a position he held for 33 years until his retirement in 2012. In addition to his long and effective leadership of the Diocese of Rochester, he was a great and faithful supporter of St. Bernard's School of Theology and Ministry, shepherding the School from its establishment as St. Bernard's Institute in 1981 (upon the closure of St. Bernard's Seminary) through to its current iteration in 2003.
Bishop Clark expressed his great love and hope for this School, describing St. Bernard's as "a precious resource" dedicated to "theological study and to the preparation of pastoral ministers" for the challenges that face our community and those we serve, something that we do to this very day. Reflecting upon the School's faithful service to the Church and the diocese since 1893, particularly in light of its then new expansion into the Diocese of Albany, Bishop Clark expressed his dream that "one day St. Bernard's might take the lead in the establishment of a theological institute serving all of upstate New York." It is importantly through his constant support that St. Bernard's is now privileged to be on the cusp of realizing both this dream and increasingly in becoming a theological resource to many dioceses across the United States.
We will greatly miss Bishop Clark and we ask that you remember him in your prayers, joining with the people of the Diocese of Rochester in our remembrance and appreciation of him.
Eternal rest grant unto Bishop Clark, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him. May he rest in peace. Amen.
