Bishop baptized by Fulton Sheen reflects on his legacy ahead of beatification

As the Church prepares for the beatification of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen on Sept. 24 in St. Louis, the bishop of Rockville Centre, New York, is reflecting on the significance of the moment in a new pastoral letter, calling Catholics to rediscover Sheen’s witness to the missionary nature of the Church.

Bishop John O. Barres has a special connection to Sheen that goes back more than six decades: Sheen baptized Barres as an infant in 1960 at St. Augustine Church in Larchmont, New York — decades before Barres would become the bishop of the Long Island diocese.

In “ The Beatification of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen and the Mission of the Catholic Church in the 21st Century ,” Barres looks back at Sheen’s life, writings, pioneering use of radio and television, and reflects on how Sheen’s legacy still impacts the Church today.

Beginning with his personal connection to Sheen, Barres shares that his baptism — which took place on Oct. 2, 1960 — came during the time his father, Oliver Barres, was working for Sheen as a writer for the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, a Catholic organization dedicated to supporting the Church’s missionary work around the world. Sheen served as…