Bishop Weigand celebrates 40 years as bishop

Diocese of Salt Lake City Archives

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Bishop William K. Weigand

The Most Rev. William K. Weigand, the seventh bishop of the Diocese of Salt Lake City and bishop emeritus of Sacramento, celebrated the 40th anniversary of his episcopal ordination on Nov. 17.

Bishop Weigand was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Boise, Idaho in 1963 by the Most Rev. Sylvester W. Treinen, D.D., Bishop of Boise. He served in several parishes and in the diocese’s administration for five years before being asked by Bishop Treinin to serve as a missionary and pastor of St. John the Baptist Parish in Cali, Colombia. He remained in Colombia for almost 10 years.

“It was a marvelous experience,” he said of his time in the South American country. “Working with the poor was a new experience but they were so open to everything, so appreciative. … They all wanted to go to the United States so they couldn’t believe anyone from the U.S. would want to come and live with them.”

With a parish of 60,000 members, the young priest and his associates had to organize the Church in Cali from the ground up, he said.

“I consider I learned to be a bishop there,” he said.

Toward the end of his time in Cali, Bishop Weigand began to experience ill health and requested to return to Idaho so he could rest. Back in Idaho, he served as pastor of a parish for almost three years before being named Bishop of Salt Lake City.

Although such appointments typically are kept confidential, Bishop Weigand said he had had some indications that he was being considered to replace Bishop Joseph L.  Federal, who was retiring. He believes his time in Colombia and his knowledge of Spanish were key factors in him being chosen for the position. At the time, Church authorities were anxious to reach the many Hispanic Catholics who were settling in Utah, he said.

“It was obvious we needed to launch a ministry to the Spanish-speaking [people], or we would lose them,” he said.

On Nov. 17, 1980, he was ordained Bishop of Salt Lake City by Archbishop John Quinn of San Francisco at the Salt Palace Convention Center.

 “Once I got to Utah and I was ordained, there was no fear factor; I was so well-received,” he said. “I felt at home and fell in love with Utah.”

During Bishop Weigand’s almost 14-year tenure here, he ensured that several priests learned Spanish and the number of Spanish Masses in parishes expanded significantly. He also established the Office of Hispanic Ministry to help build lay leadership among the Hispanic population.

After consulting with the ecclesial and lay Church authorities here, Bishop Weigand also made it a priority to reach out to the parishes around the state. In fact, he began his ministry here by first visiting the outlying parishes and missions.

He established the Diocesan Pastoral Council and the Diocesan Finance Council, along with the Catholic Foundation of Utah and expanded the annual Diocesan Development Drive. 

“We began to insist and monitor that every parish had a parish council, that the parish had consultants who were supposed to be consulted seriously,” he said. “That phrase of ‘shared responsibility’ is not just the responsibility of the pastor but of the people.”

He also established four new parishes and raised the public profile of the Church in Utah. He wrote a weekly column, “Feed my Lambs,” for this newspaper, and worked to make parishes and Catholic schools strong evangelizing communities. In 1990, he published a sexual abuse policy that made the Salt Lake diocese one of the first to have such strong mandates in place.

“This was not simply fear of publicity or lawsuits but the understanding that if and when this happens it’s a terrible sin,” Bishop Weigand said. “Sin has to be opposed and rooted out. We have to call it what it is, and sin among leaders of the Church is worse precisely because they are leaders and set the tone.”

Bishop Weigand also oversaw the $10 million restoration of the Cathedral of the Madeleine and the fundraising efforts to support it.

“It was a massive undertaking but very important and I think very successful,” he said.

Bishop Weigand was a humble leader and “modeled a simple lifestyle for clergy,” said Msgr. J. Terrence Fitzgerald, vicar general emeritus of the Diocese of Salt Lake City. “He lived in a house on the west side of the city, grew his own garden, prepared his own meals and drove himself in his VW throughout Utah to administer Confirmation and make pastoral visits.”

In his close to 14 years in Utah, Bishop Weigand “left us a significant legacy upon which we continue to build today,” Msgr. Fitzgerald said.

On Nov. 18, 1993 Bishop Weigand was appointed by Pope John Paul II as bishop of Sacramento, Calif. He was installed Jan. 27, 1994 at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament, Sacramento.

Leaving Utah was a sad occasion, Bishop Weigand said.

“My 13-plus years were wonderfully happy and I loved Utah, I loved the cathedral,” he said. “We had wonderful priests and lay people. It was a great time for me. Frankly, I was disappointed in being asked to go to Sacramento.”

“He had no intention of moving on and always said he ‘left his heart here’ as he departed,” Msgr. Fitzgerald said. 

Bishop Weigand led the Diocese of Sacramento until his retirement in November 2008. Among his accomplishments there was the convocation of the third diocesan Synod in “Journeying Together in Christ.”

Early in his tenure in Utah, Bishop Weigand was diagnosed with primary sclerosing cholangitis, an autoimmune liver disease, which was the source of his health issues. Although he was able to serve fully as the disease progressed, his liver eventually failed and in April 2005, at the age of 67, he received a liver transplant. He continued to serve as bishop of Sacramento for just over three more years, along with a coadjutor bishop, Bishop Jaime Sato.

After his transplant, Bishop Weigand’s health improved greatly. Since his retirement, he has stayed active. Prior to COVID-19, he helped Bishop Soto with his episcopal duties, conferring the Sacrament of Confirmation and helping out at the cathedral by celebrating Masses when needed. Since the pandemic, he has sheltered in place.

“My biggest ministry has been and increasingly is a ministry of prayer – prayer for the Church, prayer for the world,” he said.

Eventually, Bishop Weigand will return to Utah. He has arranged for his burial at Mount Calvary Cemetery in Salt Lake City, where his gravestone has already been put in place.