Michael Francis Burbidge

Michael Francis Burbidge (born June 16, 1957) is an American prelate of the Catholic Church who has been the bishop of the Latin Church Diocese of Arlington in Virginia since 2016.

Michael Burbidge was born on June 16, 1957, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Francis and Shirley (Lilley) Burbidge.

He has a brother, Francis Burbidge.

Upon being confirmed, Michael Burbidge chose Francis as his confirmation name.

As a teenager, he worked at a Sears department store.

Burbidge graduated from Cardinal O'Hara High School in Springfield, Pennsylvania, in 1975.

Having decided to become a priest, he entered St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania.

He obtained a bachelor's degree in philosophy and a master's degree in theology from St. Charles.

He also holds a Master of Education in Educational Administration from Villanova University in Villanova, Pennsylvania, and a Doctor of Education from Immaculata University in East Whiteland Township, Pennsylvania.

Burbidge was ordained to the priesthood by Cardinal John Krol for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia on May 19, 1984.

After his ordination, the archdiocese assigned Burbidge as associate pastor at St. Bernard's Parish in Philadelphia until 1986.

He then served as a teacher at Cardinal O'Hara High School in Springfield, Pennsylvania, from 1986 to 1990.

From 1990 to 1991, Burbidge was assigned to the faculty of Archbishop Wood High School in Warminster, Pennsylvania.

He then became a teacher and dean of students at St. Charles Seminary in 1991.

Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua appointed Burbidge as his priest secretary in 1992, a position he held for the next seven years.

The Vatican raised Burbidge to the rank of Honorary Prelate in 1998.

In 1999, Bevilacqua named Burbidge as rector of St. Charles Seminary.

He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania from 2002 to 2006 and as bishop of the Diocese of Raleigh in North Carolina from 2006 to 2016.

He is the chairman of the Pro-Life Activities Committee of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

On June 21, 2002, Burbidge was appointed as an auxiliary bishop of Philadelphia and titular bishop of Cluain Iraird by Pope John Paul II.

He received his episcopal consecration on September 5, 2002, from Bevilacqua, with Bishops Edward Peter Cullen and Robert P. Maginnis serving as co-consecrators.

As auxiliary bishop, Burbidge worked in the archdiocesan Office Center to assist the archbishop with administrative duties.

These included overseeing the office of the vicar for clergy, the Office of Communications, and The Catholic Standard & Times. He also served as a regional bishop.

Burbidge was named bishop of Raleigh by Pope Benedict XVI on June 8, 2006.

Burbidge was installed on August 4, 2006, at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Raleigh.

In March 2007, a group of protesters, some alleged victims of clerical sexual abuse, stood outside the offices for the Diocese of Raleigh, claiming that Burbidge refused to meet with them.

Diocese spokesman Frank Morock denied those claims, stating that the diocese "has always been very open to any victim who has stepped forward."

In 2009, a 16 year-old boy reported to the diocese that he had been sexually abused by Reverend Edgar Sepulveda, a priest at the Santa Teresa del Niño Jesús Mission in Beulaville, North Carolina.

Burbidge put Sepulveda on administrative leave, prohibiting him from visiting any parish or Catholic school, and removed him from residence on church grounds.

The diocese reported the accusations immediately to police.

Sepulveda was arrested in 2010 and charged with second-degree sexual offense and sexual battery.

In 2011, Burbidge announced the construction of Cathedral of the Holy Name of Jesus in Raleigh.

After the tornado outbreak of April 2011, which killed 24 people in North Carolina and nearby states, Burbidge urged Catholics to include victims and survivors in their Holy Week prayers.

He directed the parish and mission churches to hold a special collection for the disaster survivors.

However, prosecutors dropped the charges in 2012, citing a lack of evidence.

Groundbreaking for the new cathedral occurred in 2015.

The victim sued the diocese and Burbidge in 2015.

On November 29, 2016, Burbidge celebrated his last public mass as bishop of Raleigh at St. Michael the Archangel Church in Cary, North Carolina.

Burbidge was appointed as the fourth bishop of Arlington by Pope Francis on October 4, 2016.

Burbidge was installed on December 6, 2016, at the Cathedral of St. Thomas More in Arlington, Virginia.