Bishop Bruce Lewandowski, C.Ss.R., was installed as the tenth Bishop of the Diocese of Providence in Rhode Island on May 20, 2025, six weeks after being appointed by the late Holy Father, Pope Francis, on April 8, 2025.
Born on June 8, 1967, in Toledo, Ohio, Bishop Bruce, as he would like to be called, is the second of four children and grew up on the family farm. The Lewandowskis’ home parish was served by the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (Redemptorists), which led Bishop Bruce to attend Redemptorist High School at St. Mary’s Seminary in North East, Pennsylvania. He continued his undergraduate and graduate studies, as well as his formation, with the Redemptorists, professing his first vows in 1988. In May 1994, Bishop Bruce was ordained a priest by Bishop William Curlin.
As a Redemptorist, he served the parishioners of St. Cecilia Parish in East Harlem, New York; Immaculate Conception Parish in the South Bronx, New York; Our Lady of the Visitation Parish in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish in Baltimore. He also served as a missionary to Assumption Parish in St. Lucy, West Indies; as Vicar for Cultural Ministries for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia; and as Vicar for Hispanic Catholics for the Diocese of Baltimore.
In June 2020, the late Holy Father Pope Francis appointed Father Lewandowski as auxiliary bishop of Baltimore and titular bishop of Croae. He was consecrated to the episcopate in August of that same year by Archbishop William Lori.
Bishop Bruce’s installation Mass was festive. A sense of hope and celebration radiated among the hundreds in attendance. After Pope Francis’s apostolic mandate was read aloud, Bishop John Paul Pedrero asked Bishop Bruce, “Are you willing to accept this see according to the tradition of the Church’s apostolic faith?” Bishop Bruce responded, “With faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and with the love of God in my heart, I accept the pastoral care of God’s people in the Diocese of Providence, and I intend to faithfully serve the spiritual needs of this local church.”
Bishop Bruce said in his first homily as bishop that our baptism calls us to “be those who knock on the doors of people’s hearts,” which means “stepping out of our comfort zones, being courageous, fearless, and bold… reaching out to others, engaging with others to share what Jesus has done for you in your life.” He continued, addressing the people of the diocese: “I will knock on your doors because I want to defend and protect life. I will knock on your doors because I want you to stand with me and our immigrant brothers and sisters.”
I knock on your doors to ask you to become priests, sisters, deacons, brothers, or lay ecclesiastical ministers, because Christ needs you. His Church needs you; our diocese needs you.
He also spoke about what heaven means to each of us. “To me, heaven is ice cream, and what makes it heavenly is that you can eat all you want and never get full,” he continued. “But for some, it’s white sand beaches with crystal-clear waters and palm trees swaying in the wind. For others, it’s a good nap. For still others, it’s winning a game against the Patriots… or the Orioles,” he joked to the Red Sox-loving congregation. Heaven is what makes us feel good, what makes us happiest, what fills us with contentment. We are at peace; we are our best selves. That’s heaven.
Bishop Bruce honored his Redemptorist roots by concluding this portion of his homily, where he reflected on how we might imagine heaven with a quote from the order’s founder, St. Alphonsus Liguori: “God’s heaven is your heart, and it is the place where God most longs to be.”
Joseph Gould,
Communications, Diocese of Providence
