Christopher J. Coyne

Christopher James Coyne (born June 17, 1958) is an American Catholic prelate who has served as Archbishop of Hartford since 2024. He was coadjutor archbishop from 2023 to 2024.

Coyne also served as administrator of the Diocese of Burlington from 2023 to 2024. Coyne previously served as Bishop of Burlington from 2015 to 2023 and as an auxiliary bishop in the Archdiocese of Indianapolis from 2011 to 2015.

Biography

Early life and education Christopher Coyne was born on June 17, 1958, in Woburn, Massachusetts, to Rita and Bill Coyne, a postal worker and a parish secretary. He had three older brothers and three younger sisters. To pay for college, he worked multiple jobs, including stints as a YMCA lifeguard, in retail at Sears, and bartending. For two years after graduation, Coyne worked as a bartender, After his ordination, the archdiocese assigned Coyne as parochial vicar for St. Mary of the Hills Parish in Milton, Massachusetts.

In September 2005, Law's successor in Boston, Archbishop Sean O'Malley, appointed Coyne as pastor of Our Lady Help of Christians Parish in Newton, Massachusetts. Some parishioners at Our Lady objected to O'Malley's removal of the previous pastor and continue to press for his reinstatement. Some parishioners opposed Coyne as pastor because of his previous work for Law. Coyne finally requested a transfer to another parish, which O'Malley granted in January 2006. He became pastor of Saint Margaret Mary Parish in Westwood, Massachusetts, in May 2006.

Auxiliary bishop of Indianapolis In January 2011, Pope Benedict XVI named Coyne as an auxiliary bishop of Indianapolis and titular bishop of Mopta. On March 2, 2011, he was consecrated in St. John the Evangelist Church in Indianapolis by Archbishop Daniel Buechlein, with Bishop Richard Lennon and Bishop Paul Dennis Etienne serving as co-consecrators.

In March 2011, Buechlein named Coyne as vicar general, a post he would hold through 2014. In November 2014, Coyne was elected chair of the Committee on Communication of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).

Bishop of Burlington On December 22, 2014, Pope Francis named Coyne as bishop of Burlington. His installation occurred on January 29, 2015.

In September 2016, Coyne waived the non-disclosure agreements signed by sexual abuse victims from St. Joseph's Orphanage in Burlington who previously settled lawsuits against the diocese. He said that he wanted them to tell their abuse stories without fear of being sued. In December 2020, Coyne apologized to the victims after the release of an investigative report by the State of Vermont that verified sexual abuse crimes at St. Joseph's:

Coadjutor archbishop of Hartford The coat of arms used by Archbishop Coyne as coadjutor archbishop of Hartford from June 2023 to May 2024. On June 26, 2023, Francis named Coyne as coadjutor archbishop of Hartford in Connecticut. He was to also serve as apostolic administrator of Burlington until the pope appointed a new bishop there. Coyne took up residence in Hartford with a mass of welcome In October 2023. In an interview released in November 2023, Coyne expressed hope that the Catholic Church would one day ordain "deaconesses". He also suggested that the Vatican relocated away from Rome due to the "inbred" nature of Roman bureaucracy.

Metropolitan archbishop of Hartford On May 1, 2024, Coyne succeeded Leonard Paul Blair as metropolitan archbishop of Hartford.