Pope Francis has named the Rev. Peter M. Muhich, a priest of the Diocese of Duluth who currently serves as rector of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Rosary and pastor of St. Mary Star of the Sea and Our Lady of Mercy in Duluth, to be the next bishop of the Diocese of Rapid City, South Dakota.
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| Bishop-elect Peter Muhich |
Bishop-elect Muhich was born on May 13, 1961, in Eveleth to Louis and Sally Muhich, the second of seven children. Raised in Eveleth, he graduated from Eveleth Public High School in 1979 and entered St. John Vianney College Seminary at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul. He graduated from St. Thomas with a bachelor’s degree in history in 1983 and continued his studies at the American College of The Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium completing a S.T.L. in sacred theology in 1989.
He was ordained a priest Sept. 29, 1989, for the Duluth Diocese and has served parishes in Brainerd, Grand Rapids, Bigfork, Effie, Aurora, Hoyt Lakes, Proctor, Saginaw, and Hibbing, in addition to Duluth.
Bishop-elect Muhich has also served on the Presbyteral Council, the Diocesan Personnel Board, and as a dean and consultor. He has worked with the permanent diaconate formation program, on the Stella Maris Catholic School Board, was spiritual director of the local chapter of the Catholic Medical Association, and was diocesan Finance Officer. In 2012, he led a Strategic Planning Process for the Diocese of Duluth.
In a statement announcing the news to the faithful of the Duluth Diocese, Father James B. Bissonette, diocesan administrator, said: “It is an honor for Father Muhich and for our Diocese that Pope Francis has named him to become the next bishop of Rapid City. I have known Bishop-elect Muhich since we began seminary together in 1979. Throughout college and graduate seminary and more than 30 years of priestly service, we have remained close friends. I know him to be a very good person, an exemplary priest, and a fine friend. He has many gifts that will help him as a bishop. He is kind and considerate, with a keen mind, leadership qualities, and a strong, steady faith. Above all, he has shown himself to be a caring pastor who leads by example, concerned for his people and the mission of the Church. I am happy for him and for the people of the Diocese of Rapid City. I have no doubt he will be a shepherd for them after the example of the Good Shepherd. My prayers and the prayers of all the faithful of the Duluth Diocese go with him as he takes up this new responsibility. May Mary, our Mother, watch over him as he journeys from our Cathedral of Our Lady of the Rosary to the Cathedral of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Rapid City and throughout the days ahead.”
Bishop-elect Muhich is only the third priest of the Duluth Diocese to be appointed a bishop. The others were Bishop Timothy Corbett and Bishop Laurence A. Glenn, the first and fourth bishops of the Diocese of Crookston.
The date of Bishop-elect Muhich’s episcopal ordination and installation as the ninth bishop of Rapid City has not yet been set. He succeeds Bishop Robert Gruss, who was appointed to the Diocese of Saginaw last May.
