Beloved archbishop played a key role in Detroit's Synod 16, led Guam through turbulent period with grace and dignity
DETROIT — Archbishop Michael J. Byrnes, a home-grown disciple whose love for Jesus Christ spread the Gospel both in the Archdiocese of Detroit and across the world in Agaña, Guam, died May 30 at the age of 66.
A former Detroit auxiliary bishop, Archbishop Byrnes led the Catholic Church in the U.S. overseas territory of Guam for six years, starting in 2016. In 2022, he returned to the Detroit area to be nearer to friends and family as his health worsened amidst a battle with Alzheimer's disease. Pope Francis accepted his resignation in March 2023.
Archbishop Byrnes died peacefully, surrounded by friends and medical staff while receiving hospice care.
Archbishop Byrnes will lie in state Sunday, June 8, at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit from 1 to 8 p.m., with a Scripture service at 7 p.m. A funeral Mass will be celebrated at 2 p.m. Monday, June 9, at the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament, preceded by visitation from noon to 1:45 p.m.
“Archbishop Byrnes's history as a priest and bishop in the Archdiocese of Detroit was exemplary in every way," Detroit Archbishop Edward J. Weisenburger said. "I was not surprised the Holy See tasked him with the challenging assignment of leading the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Agaña in Guam. He was exceptionally intelligent, very hardworking, and possessed tremendous pastoral sensitivity."
Archbishop Byrnes is fondly remembered for his time as an auxiliary bishop in the Archdiocese of Detroit, when he was tasked with overseeing the archdiocese’s Northeast Region, and before that as vice rector of Detroit's Sacred Heart Major Seminary.
"He is especially remembered for his work at Sacred Heart Major Seminary, where he contributed to the formation of a host of our priests," Archbishop Weisenburger continued. "I got to know him personally through U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops meetings and felt that his insights into issues were astute and thoughtful. While I mourn his death, I rejoice in the bright promise that I pray even now is his.”
During the buildup to Synod 16, Archbishop Byrnes was commissioned by former Detroit Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron to lead the preparations for the synod as the archdiocese prayed and discerned what it needed to do to become a more outward-looking, evangelistic Church.
Just weeks before the synod began, Pope Francis tapped then-Bishop Byrnes to become coadjutor archbishop of Agaña, Guam, on Oct. 31, 2016. He was installed just 10 days after the synod’s conclusion.
At the time, Archbishop Vigneron described Archbishop Byrnes as a man who "possesses not only the talents, but above all the deep faith in Jesus Christ that make him suitable for this apostolic work. He goes with our love and prayers."
For his part, Archbishop Byrnes said his work on the synod — and his time in Detroit more broadly — was a gift from God he prayed would bear fruit in the life of the Church.
"That’s why the Church exists," Archbishop Byrnes said in a 2015 interview with The Michigan Catholic about the synod, which was focused on evangelization. "The Church exists purely to extend the message of Jesus both by her witness and by her words to bring the Gospel 'to every creature.' Everyone is expected to hear the Gospel, and we’re the only way they’re going to hear it."
Despite the call to leave his hometown of Detroit for a mission halfway around the world, Archbishop Byrnes accepted his new mission with joy and humility, despite challenges in his new assignment.
Succeeding former Guam Archbishop Anthony S. Apuron, who was relieved of his pastoral and administrative authority in 2016 following allegations of sexual abuse of minors, Archbishop Byrnes set about the task of restoring the reputation and dignity of the Church in the predominantly Catholic country.
Following Archbishop Apuron's sentencing by the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in 2019, Archbishop Byrnes offered a public apology for the "betrayal and severe anguish" experienced by victims, calling the crimes "a deep and sorrowful shame" and vowing that Guam's archdiocese would "ensure that the horrible harm inflicted to the innocent is never repeated.”
In January 2019, the Agaña archdiocese filed for bankruptcy in the wake of numerous sexual abuse allegations. In April that year, Archbishop Byrnes formally succeeded Archbishop Apuron — who until then had remained canonically as Guam's archbishop.
"My predecessor as the shepherd of the Catholic faithful in Guam will always be remembered for the tremendous faith, dedication, and perseverance he showed as he led the archdiocese during some of the most difficult years in the history of our Church on Guam," said Archbishop Ryan P. Jimenez, the island's current archbishop, shortly after learning of Archbishop Byrnes' passing. "He demonstrated great courage, faith and obedience on Oct. 31, 2016, when he answered the call from Pope Francis to travel many miles away to shepherd our people in a place he knew little about."
"Michael Jude Byrnes has a cherished place in the history of our Church on Guam as well in the hearts of our people," Archbishop Jimenez continued. "We grieve his death but also give thanks to our merciful God for the gift of this devout servant, leader, and friend whom he bestowed to us."
Michael Jude Byrnes was born in Detroit on Aug. 23, 1958, one of two sons of Patrick and Marie (McAndrew) Byrnes.
Archbishop Byrnes attended public and parochial school, graduating from Detroit Catholic Central High School in 1976 before enrolling at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor to study microbiology, with the intention of studying medicine.
After graduation, Archbishop Byrnes worked as a biochemistry lab technician while getting involved with a charismatic community on campus.
He then began working full time in campus ministry for University Christian Outreach at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti while becoming a member of a lay religious brotherhood, the Servants of the Word.
Discerning a call to the priesthood and inspired by Fr. Remy McCoy, his first cousin, twice removed, a missionary priest who served in Ghana, Archbishop Byrnes entered Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, where he studied under then-Fr. Allen Vigneron, the seminary's rector.
"I first met Archbishop Byrnes about 40 years ago, when, to enhance his service to the mission of evangelization, he became a student at Sacred Heart Major Seminary," Archbishop Vigneron recalled. "Over the years that commitment to share the Good News of Jesus led Archbishop Byrnes to become a priest, to serve as a parish pastor and professor, and then to accept the ministry of bishop. Through all these years I have admired his unfailing trust in the light of the Holy Spirit guiding his steps and making his service fruitful, no matter the challenge."
Archbishop Byrnes was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Detroit by Cardinal Adam J. Maida on May 25, 1996, at the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament.
His first assignment was to be the associate pastor of St. Joan of Arc Parish in St. Clair Shores, where he served until 1999.
"In the early years of his priesthood, we at St. Joan of Arc were blessed to have him among us," the parish posted on Facebook. "His time here as a young priest was marked by his pastoral care, gentle leadership, and deep love for the Eucharist and the people he served. Many of our longtime parishioners remember him with great affection and gratitude for his presence in our parish family."
An avid runner and an athlete since his high school days, Archbishop Byrnes' fitness regimen inspired those around him. The archbishop qualified and competed in more than a dozen marathons and triathlons, including Boston, Chicago, Berlin, Rome, and Venice, Italy, as well as Detroit's own.
Since the 1990s, students at St. Joan of Arc have run an annual “Fr. Mike Mission Marathon,” inspired by his athleticism and generous service, the parish said.
After earning his Doctorate in Sacred Theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, Archbishop Byrnes was named vice rector of Sacred Heart Major Seminary in 2003, serving under Bishop Jeffrey M. Monforton, who was rector at the time. Archbishop Byrnes concurrently served as pastor of Presentation/Our Lady of Victory Parish in Detroit.
On March 22, 2011, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Archbishop Byrnes as an auxiliary bishop of Detroit and titular Bishop of Eguga. He was ordained a bishop by Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron on May 5, 2011, along with current Detroit Auxiliary Bishop Arturo Cepeda and retired Auxiliary Bishop Donald F. Hanchon.
Archbishop Byrnes is predeceased by his parents, Patrick and Marie; and his step-mother, Roberta (Wise) Byrnes. He is survived by his brother, Patrick Byrnes.
Archbishop Byrnes' courage and faith in facing whatever mission the Holy Spirit entrusted to him was part of his charism even until his final days, Archbishop Vigneron said.
"With that same unshakable faith the Archbishop has lived through his final illness and, at the end, commended his spirit to the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of life," Archbishop Vigneron said. "Entrusting Archbishop Byrnes into the hands of our Heavenly Father, I make my own this prayer from the funeral of a bishop: 'May he know the eternal company of Christ, in whom he hoped and whom he preached.'”
