Robert Joseph Cunningham

Robert Joseph Cunningham (born June 18, 1943) was the tenth bishop of Syracuse from 2009 to 2019.

Early life and education

Robert Cunningham was born in Buffalo, New York to Cecil and Grace Cunningham; he has a brother, Patrick, and a sister, Eileen. He attended St. John the Baptist Parish School and the Diocesan Preparatory Seminary before entering St. John Vianney Seminary (currently Christ the King Seminary) in East Aurora, from where he obtained his Bachelor of Arts and Master of Divinity degrees.

Ordination and ministry

Cunningham was ordained to the priesthood by bishop Bernard McLaughlin on May 24, 1969, in St. Joseph Cathedral, and then served as associate pastor at Blessed Sacrament Church in Kenmore. In 1972, he was named assistant pastor at his home parish of St. John the Baptist, also in Kenmore.

He became private secretary to bishop Edward Head and assistant chancellor of Buffalo in 1974. Cunningham, after earning his licentiate in canon law from the Catholic University of America School of Canon Law in 1978, was made a judge of the marriage tribunal and vice-chancellor of the diocese. He was raised to the rank of Monsignor in 1984, and then full chancellor (1985) and vicar general (1986) of Buffalo. Niagara University awarded him an honorary doctorate in humane letters in 1991.

In January 2002, Cunningham was named pastor of St. Louis Church in Buffalo. He was administrator of the diocesan College of Consultors from 2003 to 2004, as well as sitting on the boards of Christ the King Seminary, Catholic Charities, Baker Victory Services, the Cantalician Center, and the former Wadhams Hall Seminary College. A charter member of the Kenmore Mercy Hospital Foundation Board, he was given the Sister Mary Mechtilde Memorial Award by the Foundation Board in 2004.

Bishop of Ogdensburg

On March 9, 2004, Cunningham was appointed the thirteenth bishop of Ogdensburg by Pope John Paul II. He received his episcopal consecration on the following May 18 from Cardinal Edward Egan, with archbishop Henry J. Mansell and bishop Gerald Michael Barbarito serving as co-consecrators, at St. Mary's Cathedral.

In 2007, he was awarded another honorary doctorate in humane letters from St. John's University in Staten Island.

Bishop of Syracuse

On April 21, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI named Cunningham the tenth bishop of the Diocese of Syracuse. He was installed on May 26, 2009. On June 18, 2018, Cunningham submitted his resignation upon reaching the age of 75. Pope Francis accepted his resignation on June 4, 2019. Cunningham served as apostolic administrator of the diocese until Lucia was consecrated a bishop and installed on August 8, 2019.

In a 2011 deposition, Cunningham made statements about the victims of sex abuse by priests in the Syracuse Diocese, implying that the victims were "culpable" and "accomplices".

In 2015, when those statements became public, Cunningham said he wished he phrased his response differently. "It is obvious that my choice of words should have been better. Bottom line is, I cannot go back and change my words but I can assure you that I did not believe the individual involved in the case was at fault." He also repeatedly reiterated that he doesn't believe children are responsible for being abused.