Peter F. Christensen

Peter Forsyth Christensen (born December 24, 1952) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of Boise in Idaho since 2014. He previously served as bishop of the Diocese of Superior in Wisconsin from 2007 to 2014.

Christensen was ordained into the priesthood on May 25, 1985, by Archbishop John Roach. On November 4, 2014, Pope Francis named Christensen as the eighth bishop in the Diocese of Boise. He was installed as bishop by Archbishop Harry Flynn in Boise on December 17, 2014, at St. John's Cathedral.

Biography

Early life and education Peter Christensen was born on December 24, 1952, in Altadena, California. He was the fourth of eight children; his parents were Robert and Ann (née Forsyth) Christensen. The family later moved to Palos Verdes, California. Christensen attended Palos Verdes High School, with interests in becoming a potter.

After deciding to become a priest, Christensen in 1981 entered Saint Paul Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota. During his seminary education, he studied in Israel for a semester. He graduated with a Master of Divinity degree from Saint Paul Seminary. After his ordination, the archdiocese assigned Christensen as assistant pastor of St. Olaf Parish in Minneapolis. He left St. Olaf in 1989 to become spiritual director of St. John Vianney College Seminary in St. Paul. He was consecrated at the Cathedral of Saint Paul in St. Paul on September 14, 2007, by Archbishop Harry Flynn, with Bishops Raphael Fliss, and William Bullock serving as co-consecrators.

Bishop of Boise On November 4, 2014, Pope Francis named Christensen as the eighth bishop of the Diocese of Boise. He was installed on December 17, 2014, in the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist in Boise, Idaho.

In April 2020, Christensen issued a memo containing orders for diocese priests, including an order banning them from celebrating mass ad orientem (facing the altar).

Viewpoints

Euthanasia Christensen in 2012 joined the other Wisconsin bishops in warning against the use of Physician (or Provider) Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (POLST). The bishops wrote to “encourage all Catholics to avoid using all such documents, programs and materials.”

Education In January 2014, Christensen announced that the Diocese of Boise would not allow the use of the Common Core curriculum in its schools.