Edward J. Burns
Edward James Burns (born October 7, 1957) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has served as bishop of the Diocese of Dallas in Texas since 2017. He previously served as bishop of the Diocese of Juneau in Alaska from 2009 to 2017. Before becoming a bishop, Burns spent nine years working for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). As bishop, he has served as chairman of the Committee on the Protection of Children and Young People and as a member of its Subcommittee on Catholic Home Missions. He speaks Spanish as  well as English. Biography. Early life and education. Edward Burns was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Donald and Geraldine (née Little) Burns; he has a brother, Robert. He attended Lincoln High School in Ellwood City, Pennsylvania. He attended Saint Paul Seminary at Duquesne University, where he obtained a bachelor degree in philosophy and sociology. Burns also earned a Master of Divinity degree and a Master of Theology degree from Mount St. Mary's Seminary at Mount St. Mary's University in Emmitsburg, Maryland. Ordination and ministry. Burns was ordained to the priesthood for the Diocese of Pittsburgh by Bishop Vincent  Leonard on June 25, 1983. After his ordination, Burns, and then served as parochial vicar at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania and Immaculate Conception Parish in Washington, Pennsylvania. In 1991, Burns was named as vocations director and vice-rector of St. Paul Seminary, becoming rector in 1996. Burns also served as executive director of the Secretariat for Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations in the USCCB for nine years beginning in 1999. His office produced an award-winning DVD "Fishers of Men" on the lives of priests. Burns published a booklet, "We Were There", that described the experiences  of priests who served at the sites of destruction on 9/11. In 2002, Burns was named as co-chairman of a Vatican-ordered congress on vocations in North America and from 2005 to 2006 he provided support for a Vatican review of all Catholic seminaries in the U.S. He received the title of monsignor in 2006. In 2008, he returned to his posts as rector of St. Paul Seminary and vocations director for the Diocese of Pittsburgh. Bishop of Juneau. On January 19, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Burns as the fifth bishop of the Diocese of Juneau. a diocese  with a Catholic population of 6,100 in southeastern Alaska. He received his episcopal consecration on March 3, 2009, at the St. Paul Cathedral in Pittsburgh from Bishop David Zubik, with Archbishop Roger Schweitz and Cardinal Donald Wuerl serving as co-consecrators; this was separate from his installation ceremony for the convenience of friends in the 48 contiguous United States, because of the distance to Alaska. He chose as his episcopal motto "Pray with Confidence". He was installed in Juneau on April 2, 2009. Bishop of Dallas. On December 13, 2016, Pope Francis appointed Burns as the eighth bishop of the  Diocese of Dallas, to succeed then bishop Kevin Farrell. His installation was on February 9, 2017, at the Cathedral Shrine of the Virgin of Guadalupe in Dallas. On August 18, 2018, Burns informed parishioners at St. Cecilia Parish in Dallas that their pastor, Edmundo Paredes, had been removed from ministry in 2017 because of verified allegations of child sexual abuse and theft of parish funds. The diocese had immediately reported Paredes to law enforcement, but he fled the country before he could be arrested. See also.