15 years as bishop! How reading a book about Abraham Lincoln book may have been the reason Bishop Paprocki landed in Springfield

Q. Take us to the scene and the phone call of how you were notified about your appointment to Springfield.

A. I have to back up even before the phone call. I was a priest of the Archdiocese of Chicago, and I was chancellor under Cardinal Joseph Bernardin and then Cardinal Francis George, and then auxiliary bishop of Chicago under Cardinal George. When I was the chancellor, and I was working for Cardinal George, I was flying to Rome with him for a meeting, and we were sitting next to each other on the plane. I was reading a book, and he was very intellectually curious, and so he leaned over and said to me, "What are you reading?" And I said, "I'm reading a book about Abraham Lincoln." And he says, "Oh, you like Lincoln?" I said, "Yes, I do." So, I think that stuck in his head that I like Lincoln.

So, years later when the Diocese of Springfield opened up, I suspect that maybe he thought "Oh, Paprocki likes Lincoln. I'll put his name in for Springfield." So, I think that might have had something to do with it.

Now, the phone call. Bishops always remember the phone call they get about being appointed a bishop. In my case, it's rather unique. Most bishops will tell you the phone call came from the apostolic nuncio who is the pope's ambassador delegate to a country. In my case, I had two phone calls. First, when I was appointed auxiliary bishop of Chicago and then was appointed to Springfield. In both cases, that phone call came from Cardinal Francis George. I suspect he may have requested that personally. I was pastor of a parish in Chicago when he called to tell me I was being named auxiliary bishop.

In 2010, I was actually on my way to Rome for Holy Week. I was auxiliary bishop. There's not a whole lot for auxiliary bishops to do during Holy Week because the cardinal would do all the Masses. I could concelebrate, but the pastors would be doing the services in their own parishes. I was invited to go to Rome.

So, I'm leaving for O'Hare Airport in Chicago on the Monday morning of Holy Week, and the cardinal knew that. So, I got a message that he needed to talk to me before I got on the plane. I didn't want to call him back in the car as I was with another priest. So, I got to the airport, and I got Cardinal George on the phone. He said, "Oh good. Glad I got you before you left." He said, "Can you talk?" And I said, "I'm in the terminal at O'Hare. What's going on?" He was always very straight and right to the point. He said, "You've been appointed as bishop of Springfield in Illinois."

Of course, the news is always a little bit jarring. I knew I was going to see the Holy Father (Pope Benedict XVI) on Wednesday because I was planning to go to the general audience that the pope does in St Peter's Square. Typically, at the general audience, bishops are invited up to the platform or stage area with the pope. When he's done talking, bishops come up and then greet him one by one. So, I was up there, and because it was Holy Week, there were only four bishops up there. I was low in seniority, so I was the last one in line. So, I greeted the Holy Father, and I said, "I understand you've just appointed me bishop of Springfield in Illinois." And he smiled, "Oh yes, very good." I assured him I would try to be a good bishop. He's just kind of smiling and nodding, and I'm wondering to myself, “I wonder if he knows where Springfield, Ill., is?” That's kind of how the story came about.

Q. When you got the news it was Springfield, what went through your mind? 

A. I was actually very excited, and I was happy to be coming to Springfield in part because of my love of Lincoln. I was happy to be appointed to a diocese in Illinois. In addition to being a priest and a bishop, I am a licensed attorney. I'm licensed to practice in Illinois. So, I didn't have to go to another state and take another bar exam.

When I told my mother that I was being appointed to Springfield, her first reaction was, "Oh, you're going to be farther away."  At the time, Spokane, Washington was open as well and I said, "Mom, Springfield is only a three-hour drive. I might have been in Spokane, Wash. This is much better." So, she was happy, and I was happy about that too.

I was familiar with Springfield. My first time in Springfield was when I was in eighth grade when we came by bus, and then when I was a senior in high school, our field trip was Springfield. So, I had some familiarity with Springfield and Lincoln. Then over the years, even as bishop, we had some of our meetings of the bishops of Illinois in Springfield. In fact, I was here in 2003 for the sesquicentennial of the diocese when they had the big Mass at the state fairgrounds, and I concelebrated that Mass.

Q. What are some fond memories you have had over the past 15 years?

A. I'd say the highlight in many ways was the diocesan synod we had in 2017. I came in 2010, but it took me that long to get a feel for the diocese. A synod comes from a Greek word which simply means “meeting,” but a synod is not just a regular meeting. These don't happen very often. In fact, it was only the fourth synod since the founding of our diocese in 1853. The last one previous to that was in 1964. So, the idea of a synod sets the direction and the tone for the diocese. It was a year-long process. We had representatives from each of our 129 parishes that came, and we had a number of meetings and side consultations with different groups like the priests, the deacons, religious sisters, and just got a lot of input into the question of discipleship and stewardship.

What came was a new mission statement that basically says that our mission is to be disciples and stewards of our Lord's creation. Ever since then, that has been our marching orders. When I go to parishes for parish visits, that's what we talk about. We talk about the four pillars of discipleship and stewardship namely hospitality, prayer, formation, and service, and that makes for a whole conversation. I ask them, “What are you doing in your parish about those four pillars?”

Another highlight was our Diocesan Eucharistic Congress (2023) and then we had the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage (2024) that came through our diocese. At the Diocesan Eucharistic Congress, we had 5,000 people at the convention center in Springfield, and it was just a very uplifting experience that day.

What are you most proud of over the last 15 years?

I'm most proud of the number of priests that have been ordained for our diocese. I've ordained 40 in 15 years. For the size of our diocese, that's a high number relatively speaking. Then, also looking at the demographics, we have a fairly young Presbyterate compared to other dioceses too. I think people should take hope in that.

Is there a regret or a do-over you think about?

I guess in some ways it's maybe premature to say it's a regret because it may still come about, but I would like to see more fruits from our synod. I'd like to see our number of seminarians go up. I would also like to see the other fruit of being disciples and stewards of God's creation. In the Diocese of Wichita, because of their tithing model, they are able to provide Catholic education without charging tuition to parents. I'd love to be able to do that here. If we could even work toward that by lowering tuition and giving more scholarships to get it to the point that we could provide Catholic education without charging tuition.

Under the tithing model, the whole parish contributes — the same way we support public schools. It's not just parents of school children that pay taxes for public schools. Everybody, the whole community gets taxed. We have to get that mindset that the whole community is responsible for handing on the faith to the next generation, and if we can do that in our words and our actions, that would be helpful.

Q. What are some touching moments or stories when you think back over your 15 years that come to mind?

A. The most memorable moments for me are all the priesthood ordinations that I've done. That’s the happiest thing I do as a priest.

Q. When you arrived, did you expect to be here 15 years?

A. Frankly, no, because I had a number of people telling me that wouldn’t be the case. This includes a now deceased priest who was retired at the time. He said to me at one point, "Bishop, you're going to be here for five years, and then you're going to be sent somewhere else." I thought, "Does he know what he's saying or was that prophetic or what?" So, I think there were a lot of people that thought that, and as it turned out, thankfully, I've stayed here. I'm actually happy that I've been able to stay here because by not being transferred to another diocese, I've been able to follow through on things like our synod.

When people say, "Don't you want to be an a  archbishop of a big archdiocese?" No, because a bigger diocese means bigger headaches, and I know that because I was chancellor in Chicago.

Q. Do your daily prayers always include the people of our diocese?

A. Yes, they do. Then once a week, I offer a Mass for the people. I usually pray that in my chapel. When I'm running, I have a whole litany of people that I pray for. So, as I'm praying, I'm praying for the priests and the people of our diocese.

Q. You have visited all our 129 parishes several times over the past 15 years. What are some of the most beautiful churches to you?

A. The most beautiful I think is our cathedral. I think we have a fantastic cathedral. I think we have one of the best cathedrals in the country, and I say that not just because it's our cathedral, but I've seen a lot of cathedrals and ours is beautiful. The vaulted ceiling, for example, is modeled after St. Mary Major in Rome, and the beautiful renovation that was done in 2009 just before I came. I'm very proud of our cathedral. I love the windows in the cathedral. Each window tells a great story.

Another one that's kind of a hidden gem that is in Springfield is St. Francis of Assisi Church. It is now the location where the Norbertine Fathers have their priory. They are offering public Mass there, so that's open.

Other churches include Blessed Sacrament Church in Springfield, St. Francis Solanus in Quincy, and St. Francis of Assisi in Teutopolis. Even some of our smaller churches. I think one of our most beautiful small churches is St. Mary's in Brussels. That was a church that burned to the ground. It was my second Christmas here, and it burned down on Christmas Eve. They were able to save the walls but basically it had to be rebuilt, and I was able to rededicate it a couple years later, and it's a beautiful little church.

Q. What's your message to our priests in our diocese?

A. I would say to priests that our ministry is not our own. It really belongs to Jesus Christ. It's important for all of us to have a strong prayer life and to stay connected to the Lord. So, for us to keep that very much in the forefront of our minds: Lord, am I doing what you want me to do? Am I being another Christ to the people of this diocese?

Q. What's your message to the lay faithful?

A. We're all called into a relationship with Jesus Christ. He wants us to spend eternity with Him in His Kingdom. So, I think just as a priest needs to foster his relationship with regular prayer so that he makes sure that he's representing Christ properly in his ministry, our goal is to be with Christ forever in heaven. So, it should color our daily activities, our prayers, going to church every Sunday and holy day, receiving the Eucharist frequently, and Eucharistic adoration. Those are ways to stay close to our Lord.

Q. What's something that has surprised you over the last 15 years? 

A. I've been very impressed with the people I've met. I think also the depth of the faith amongst lay people as well as priests in our diocese. I've been impressed with the Sisters of St. Francis of the Martyr St. George (based in Alton). They continue to get vocations, and that's very uplifting too.

Q. You're turning 75 in two years, which is when you must submit your mandatory resignation letter to the Holy Father.  What are your goals over the next couple years?

A. I am looking forward to some celebrations that we're going to have in 2028. I'll turn 75 in 2027. That's when I officially have to turn my resignation letter in. It depends on what the Holy Father does, but I would hope that maybe he would give me another year so I could stay for those big events. In 2028, we'll have the 100th anniversary of the dedication of our cathedral in Springfield. It'll be the 175th anniversary of our diocese, and then I have a couple personal anniversaries. It'll be my 50th anniversary of my ordination as a priest and my 25th anniversary of my ordination as a bishop.

We're already starting to talk about having some big celebrations for those events. We had the Eucharistic Congress in 2023 with 5,000 people at the convention center. We've already begun some conversations of what do we want that to look like in 2028? We have to do something obviously in the cathedral to celebrate the centennial of the cathedral but also recognizing that there's limited seating there. So, I want to do something that will be able to have more people of the diocese attend. It could be like what we did in 2023 (at the Eucharistic Congress), maybe some kind of an event at the convention center.

Answers taken and edited from Hansen’s conversation with Bishop Paprocki on the diocesan podcast Dive Deep. Watch on dio.org/youtube or search “Dive Deep” on all the major podcast platforms.