Rockville Centre Priest Appointed Bishop In Wilmington, Delaware

ROCKVILLE CENTRE, NY — Pope Francis has named Monsignor William Keonig, vicar for clergy for the Diocese of Rockville Centre, as the next bishop of Wilmington, Delaware.

William F. Malooly, 77, was two years past the mandatory age of retirement. President Joe Biden's bishop announced his resignation Friday. He led parishioners in Delaware and Maryland's eastern shore since 2008.

Keonig, a Queens native, was installed in Rockville Centre 38 years ago.

"I express my deep gratitude for the trust placed in me by His Holiness, Pope Francis in appointing me the tenth Bishop of Wilmington, Delaware," said Bishop-elect Koenig in a statement provided by the Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre. "I am thankful to Bishop Barres, Bishop Murphy and all the Bishops of the Diocese of Rockville Centre for their pastoral leadership and continual support and encouragement."

He was a familiar face throughout the decades in Rockville Centre, serving as rector of St. Agnes Cathedral. The bishop-designate was appointed vicar for the clergy last year.

"Bishop-elect Koenig is a seasoned and experienced pastor who is known for his pastoral charity, his humility and his sincerity," Most Reverend John Barres, bishop, Diocese of Rockville Centre, said in a statement. "He radiates an evangelizing spirit of joy and gentle interior peace that is the fruit of a deep prayer life and years of serving parishioners in a wide range of parishes, ministries and apostolates on Long Island."

He grew up in East Meadow, where he and his family were members of St. Raphael’s Church.

Koenig's first role as a priest was at St. Edward the Confessor in Syosset.

His installation in Wilmington is scheduled for July 13.