PROVIDENCE — On November 1, the Solemnity of All Saints, the College of Consultors of the Diocese of Providence elected Reverend Monsignor Albert A. Kenney as diocesan administrator.
On October 31, Most Reverend Richard G. Henning, the 9th Bishop of Providence, was installed as Archbishop of Boston which left the office of diocesan bishop vacant in Providence. The Catholic Church’s Code of Canon Law requires that when there is such a vacancy the diocesan College of Consultors—a body of priests which assists in the governance of the diocese—elect a priest as diocesan administrator to govern until such time as a new bishop takes office.
Upon accepting his election Monsignor Kenney made the profession of faith and the oath of fidelity before the College and notified both the Metropolitan Archbishop, Most Rev. Christopher Coyne, and the Apostolic Nuncio, Cardinal Christophe Pierre, of his election.
Monsignor Albert A. Kenney, a priest of the Diocese of Providence for more than 30 years, was serving as Moderator of the Curia and served as Vicar General from 2011 through Archbishop Henning’s appointment to Boston in August 2024.
Monsignor Kenney is an alumnus of Providence College (B.S.) and the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas–Angelicum (Baccalaureate and Licentiate in Sacred Theology). He has served in a wide variety of roles and assignments including as an assistant pastor, vocations director, spiritual formator, seminary rector, high school chaplain, police chaplain, and on many boards and committees. Pope Benedict XVI granted him the title “Monsignor” in 2011. He resides at Holy Apostles Church, Cranston.
As a temporary role, the administrator’s primary focus is to ensure the continued good operation of the diocese, its ministries, and institutions until a new bishop arrives. The diocesan administrator governs with many of the same powers as a diocesan bishop, but with limitations on innovations or making substantial changes or decisions with long range impacts such as those dealing with extraordinary finances, governance structures, parish mergers, and certain appointments. For example, the diocesan administrator can appoint parish administrators as needed, but not pastors, in the first year of a vacant see. In general, the work of the diocese continues.
Current diocesan policies, procedures, and most appointments remain in place. The diocesan administrator’s temporary office ceases automatically when a new bishop takes canonical possession of the diocese at a Mass of Installation, which typically occurs within two to four months after the Holy Father appoints and announces a new bishop.
