Early life edit

Clarence Silva was born on August 6, 1949, in Honolulu, Hawaii, to Richard and Catherine Alves Silva at Saint Francis Hospital in Liliha. Clarence Silva is the great-grandson of Azorean immigrants to the United States.^[2]

Silva was baptized at Saint Anthony Church in Kailua, Hawaii; while he was still an infant, the Silva family moved to California. He attended Saint John the Baptist School in San Lorenzo, California, and Bishop O'Dowd High School in Oakland, California.^[2]

Convinced of a calling to the priesthood, Silva entered Saint Joseph College Seminary in Mountain View, California, obtaining a Bachelor of Arts degree. He then attended Saint Patrick Seminary in Menlo Park, California, where he obtained a Master of Divinity degree.^[2]

Priesthood edit

Silva was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Oakland on May 2, 1975, by Bishop Floyd Begin at the Cathedral of Saint Francis de Sales in Oakland.^[1] Silva spent the summer of 1975 studying Spanish in Cuernavaca, Mexico. After returning from Mexico, the diocese assigned Silva as associate pastor in the following California parishes:

• Saint Bernard in Oakland (1975 to 1978). During the summer of 1978, he returned to Cuernavaca for more instruction in Spanish.
• Our Lady of the Rosary in Union City (1978 to 1979). During this period, he also served as vocations director for the diocese.
• Saint Bede in Hayward (1983 to 1984)^[2]

Silva was named pastor of Saint Peter Martyr Parish in Pittsburg, California, in 1984. Two years later, he was transferred to Saint Anthony Parish in Oakland to serve as pastor there.^[2]During a three-month sabbatical leave in 1991, Silva studied at the Pontifical North American College in Rome. After returning to Oakland, Silva had more pastoral assignments:

• Saint John the Baptist in El Cerrito (1991 to 1994)
• Saint Andrew and Saint Joseph in Oakland (1994 to 1999)
• Saint Leonard and Saint Paula in Fremont (2000 to 2003)^[2]

In 2003, Bishop Allen Vigneron appointed Silva as his vicar general and moderator of the curia. Silva was instrumental in the planning for the construction of the Cathedral of Christ the Light. It replaced the Cathedral of Saint Francis de Sales, destroyed in the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989.^[2]

Bishop of Honolulu edit

Pope Benedict XVI appointed Silva on May 17, 2005, as bishop of Honolulu. Silva was consecrated on July 21, 2005 at the Neal S. Blaisdell Center in Honolulu by Archbishop William Levada. The co-consecrators were Vigneron and Bishop John Cummins.^[1] Silva's episcopal motto is "Witness to Jesus".^[2]

Silva was a principal promoter for the causes of sainthood for Father Damien and Sister Marianne Cope, both of whom cared for leprosy patients on the island of Molokai. Silva traveled to Kalaupapa on Molokai on May 19, 2005 to pay homage to Damien and Cope. Cope had been beatified by Benedict XVI earlier that week.^[3]

In April 2020, Silva announced during a Sunday mass that the diocese was paying millions to settle prior sex abuse cases. Silva also acknowledged that the diocese was still facing a large of number of sex abuse lawsuits.^[4]

• Order of the Holy Sepulchre in 2005 with the rank of grand officer.
• Sovereign Military Order of Malta in 2013 ceremony at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace in Honolulu
• Royal Order of Kamehameha I in 2013 with the rank of knight companion. The citation said that Silva had:

  "...gained the respect and admiration of the High Chiefs, Chief, Officers, Mamo Hawaii and Na Wahine Hui o Kamehameha I for his ecumenical spirit of aloha, kindness sensitivity to our island ways and for his love of the Hawaiian culture and all the cultures for people from around the world who call Hawaii home."^[5]

Silva's episcopal coat-of-arms was designed by Reverend Quang Dong and Thanh Dong. Silva means "forest" in Portuguese. for that reason the coat of arms contain three trees."

• the kukui tree (Aleurites mollucana) on the right symbolizes Hawaii. It yields an oil with healing properties that also provides light
• the oak trees (Quercus alba) on the left symbolize Oakland (Quercopolitana) where Silva grew up and served as a priest
• the cross in the center, known as the tree of life, has olive leaves symbolizing Malia O Ka Malu (Mary, Queen of Peace), patroness of the diocese.^[6]

• Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu Official Site
• Allen Henry Vigneron Statement of Silva Appointment on 17 May 2005
• United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Statement of Silva Appointment on 17 May 2005
• Vatican Statement of Silva Appointment on 17 May 2005
• Honolulu Advertiser Preview of the Ordination and Installation Ceremony on 25 May 2005
• Hawaii Catholic Herald, July 15, 2005 - Special Edition for the Installation and Ordination of Bishop Clarence Silva