“It is with an extremely heavy heart that I must inform you of the tragic news concerning our Bishop,” said Father James B. Bissonette, a priest who served as vicar general of the diocese. until the death of Bishop Paul Sirba, said the above. His position as vicar general ended after the death of the diocesan bishop.
“No words adequately express our sadness at the sudden loss of our Pastor,” said Father Bissonette.
Father Bissonette's statement was made available to clergy throughout the diocese and read after Mass on Sunday.
Bishop Sirba suffered a heart attack on Sunday, December 1 at St. Rose in Proctor, Minnesota. He was immediately taken to the hospital, but attempts to revive him were unsuccessful. He received final rites from Father John Petrich, a hospital and prison chaplain in the diocese, and was pronounced dead shortly after 9 a.m. Sunday.
According to a diocesan report, Bishop Sirba was preparing to celebrate Mass at 7:30 a.m. on Sunday when the accident occurred.
“We very much hope and believe in the resurrection of Bishop Sirba to a new life, and strongly believe that he will hear these words of our Lord, 'Very well! O talented and faithful servant! Come in and enjoy your master's joy!' (Mt 25:21)”
Details of his funeral have yet to be announced. Bishop Sirba has an elderly mother, and three siblings. His younger brother, Father Joseph Sirba, is a priest of the Diocese of Duluth.
Bishop Sirba, a native of the Twin Cities, was ordained a priest in 1986 at the age of 25 and was appointed a bishop by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009. He was ordained a Bishop on the 14th. December 2009. Thus, there are only 13 days left until the 10th anniversary of his ordination as a Bishop.
Before becoming the ninth bishop of Duluth, he was a priest of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. From 2006 to 2009, he was director of spiritual formation at the archdiocese's St. Paul Seminary.
Catholics in Minnesota and beyond have expressed surprise and grief at the sudden death of the Bishop.
The Archdiocese of St Paul and Minneapolis also expressed its sadness to the Diocese of Duluth at this sudden development.
Archbishop Samuel Aquila of Denver told CNA news agency Sunday morning that Bishop Sirba's death was a tragedy, noting that Bishop Sirba was a gifted and holy bishop.
Father Scott Jablonski, a priest of the Diocese of Madison who has known Sirba since he was in seminary, said his death was heartbreaking news.
The Minnesota Catholic Bishops' Conference released a statement mourning Bishop Sirba as a holy shepherd who shone with the serenity of faith and the joy of knowing Jesus in all he did.
"We will miss him greatly," the statement read.