I was there on July 7th, 2026 when two Bishops of Washington, D.C. were ordained!

Ordination to the order of Bishop

We are part of the larger contexts of the body of Christ!

I looked forward to this day.

 July 7^th, 2026 was the day two Bishops of Washington, D.C. were ordained. 

I walked up the marble steps leading into the oak doors leading into the ornate Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception Washington, District of Columbia and walked all the way to the left side chamber.

 I was able to see what was going on the raised sanctuary area. Not so many people had arrived most pews were empty and those that were reserved were quickly filling up.

I used the time as people walked in to take their seats, to contemplate about so many things.

For instance, the design of the Basilica still amazes every time I walk in to pray, tour or simply to sit and take in the quiet expanse within its confines.

 I looked up at the highest beams holding the roof.

I was able to see the different depictions of art.

The different depictions showed the saints, angels and events such as the angel Gabriel appearing before Mary.  The moment stirs emotions of joy, fear, presence, agency and most of all humility.

I asked myself what I would do in such an instance.

Something snapped me out of a trance. I immediately realized that every time I am before this particular image, I was witnessing the moment when Mary and the angel Gabriel were in dialogue. 

I am part of those eligible to listen in. I am not an outsider and I am welcome to be part of the story.  We are part of the larger contexts of the body of Christ!

This thought and realization became the defining moment from there on. Today is yet another strand of the witness continuum. I am part of the congregants witnessing the ordination of two Bishops in Washington, D.C.

The church filled up and preparations were made to welcome the Most Reverend Gary R. Studniewski and the Most Reverend Robert P. Boxie III.

Both were ordained to serve as auxiliary Bishops of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington.  The Bishops serve under His Eminence Robert Cardinal McElroy, the Archbishop of Washington who was the Principal ordaining Bishop. Two Co-Consecrating Bishops were: His Eminence Wilton Cardinal Gregory, Archbishop Emeritus of Washington and His Excellency Most Reverend Mark E. Brennan, Bishop Emeritus of Wheeling-Charleston. His Excellency Most Reverend Gabriele G. Caccia, Apostolic Nuncio to the United States of America was the concelebrant and conveyed His Holiness Pope Leo XIV’s message.

The physical journeys we take are the nurturing opportunities for God to choose shepherds.

Bishop Gary R. Studniewski was born in Toledo, Ohio in 1957. He joined the ROTC program and later received an Army commission in 1979. He completed a Bachelor of Education in Biology, served in the 82^nd Airborne Division Artillery from 1980 to 1981. He joined the 3^rd Infantry Division Artillery, United States Army Europe from 1983 to 1986. In 1987 to 1989, he served in the Army’s Personnel Command in Alexandria, Virginia, while living in Upper Marlboro, Maryland.  In 1989, Bishop Studniewski left active duty. He joined Catholic priesthood and went to study at the Pontifical North American College in Rome from 1990 to 1995. He was ordained a priest in Washington in 1995 and served as a Parochial Vicar at Saint John’s Church in Hollywood, Maryland.  He also worked with the Youth Ministry and in 1997, received the Monsignor William Awalt Award for Youth Ministry in the Archdiocese of Washington. In 1998, Bishop Studniewski re-entered active Army service as a chaplain. In 2012, Bishop Studniewski was assigned as the Command Chaplain for the United States Army North (5^th Army) AT Fort Sam Houston, Texas.  He later served as the Command Chaplain, Joint Forces Headquarters-National Capitol Region/Military District of Washington from 2014 to 2016.  He retired from the Army at the rank of Colonel in July 2016. He was assigned as the Temporary Administrator at Saint Xavier Church, Newtowne, Maryland before assuming Pastoral responsibilities as Administrator of Saint Peter’s Catholic Church on Capitol Hill in January 2017.  He was named Pastor of Saint Peter’s in 2018 and assumed the most recent position as Pastor of the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament in July 2022.

Bishop Robert P. Boxie III was born in 1980 in Lake Charles, Louisiana. He graduated from Vanderbilt University with a degree in Chemical Engineering and a second major in Music.  He worked in France where he taught English as a High School Language Assistant for a year.  He returned to the United States and joined Harvard Law School where he graduated with a Juris Doctor degree in 2007. He served as an attorney and law clerk at the federal court in Greenbelt, Maryland and later as an associate at a law firm in Washington, D.C. He made the decision to join seminary fir the Archdiocese of Washington. He studied at the Theological College at the Catholic University of America as well as at the Pontifical North American College and Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.  He earned a Bachelor if Sacred Theology degree in 2015 and Licentiate if Sacred Theology degree in 2017.  He was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of Washington on June 25, 2016 by Cardinal Donald Wuerl. He served as Parochial Vicar at Saint Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in Derwood, Maryland in the summer of 2016. Later, he served as the Parochial Vicar at Saint Joseph Catholic Church in Largo, Maryland from 2017 to 2020. He was transferred to the Sister Thea Bowman Catholic Student Center at Howard University in Washington, D.C. He served as an Assistant Director of Priest Vocations since and a Professor in the permanent diaconate program since 2018.

The ministers of the liturgy were drawn from different places. His Eminence Robert Cardinal McElroy, Archbishop of Washington was the Principal ordaining Bishop and Homilist. His Eminence Wilton Cardinal Gregory, Archbishop Emeritus of Washington and His Excellency Most Reverend Mark E. Brennan, Bishop Emeritus of Wheeling-Charleston were Co-Consecrating Bishops. The Principal Concelebrant was His Excellency Most Reverend Gabriele G. Caccia, Apostolic Nuncio to the United States of America. Attending Cardinals, Bishops, Priests and invited Priests were concelebrants.

The triumphal entrance by the soon-to-be ordained Bishops up to the beginning of Mass filled me with uplifting emotions.

The radiance, the palpable joy in the faces of the people who were gathered, the dazzling robes of the presiding priests as they sat in rows upon rows next to the sanctuary and the choir somewhere in the hidden chambers on an upper level all created a memorable and uplifting feeling.  

The second reading was taken from Ephesians 4: 1-7, 11-13. The part where it read “…for building up the Body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood to  the extent of full stature of Christ,” reminded me of my own Public Health work. 

We are parts of a larger body and each part has roles and responsibilities.  The service was both enjoyable and a teachable moment.  I was awestruck by the elaborate presentation of the elect, promise of the elect, laying of hands, anointing of heads, handing on of the book of Gospels and Insignia and the concluding rites.

I left the occasion knowing that I had come of age as a New American of African descent. I had attended open air ordination events in Africa. This was my first time attending an event in-door and witnessed the composure and containment. The music and shouts of joy were at the same time our shared commitment to lead lives that continue to build the body of Christ and God’s kingdom every minute, every hour and every day. 

We are part of the larger contexts of the body of Christ!