I was chatting with the members of the Station 15 podcast crew tonight, and we got onto the topic of bishops in the US. We were talking in particular about the recent Department of Health and Human Services decision that no change will be made to the health care law that requires employers and institutions that provide health insurance to employees and students to pay for contraception and for sterilisation services, even if they — as in the case of Catholic organisations — object to contraception and sterilisation. I posted about this topic a few days ago.

One of my friends was curious to know if Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz of Lincoln, Nebraska, was one of the prelates to have spoken out against that decision. I wasn’t sure, and others wondered who the heck he was. “The best bishop in America,” this friend said.

Now, I’ve heard a fair bit about Bishop Bruskewitz over the past few years, mostly about his dogged defence of Catholic orthodoxy — a good thing to be known for, as far as I’m concerned. As fate would have it, I read an article a few days ago on this episcopacy: the highs and the lows, his supporters and opponents, his successes and his feuds.

Now long past the retirement age of 75, Bishop Bruskewitz is just waiting for the Pope to accept his resignation and appoint a successor. In the meantime, though, he’s continuing his mission and continuing to wage battles where he feels they need to be waged.

Here’s the story from the Omaha World-Herald, the main newspaper in the neighbouring diocese. He’s certainly ruffled some feathers and sailed into the wind a few times, but he’s a man of conviction. His style may well be replicated by many of the bishops who have been appointed in recent years and in the years to come. Sounds good, I reckon. But “best bishop in America” might be a hard thing to judge.