Bishop Andrzej Siemieniewski, hitherto auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Wrocław, was appointed bishop of the diocese of Legnica. At the same time, the Holy Father Francis accepted the resignation of Bishop Zbigniew Kiernikowski from the post of Bishop of Legnica. The Pope’s decision was announced today at noon by the Holy See.
The new bishop of Legnica was born on August 8, 1957, in Wrocław. He passed his secondary school-leaving examination at Secondary School No. 2 in Wrocław. In 1976 he started studies at the Faculty of Fundamental Problems of Technology at the Wrocław University of Technology. He broke it in 1979 and entered the Metropolitan Higher Theological Seminary in Wrocław. He was ordained to the presbytery on June 1, 1985, in the Wrocław Cathedral by Cardinal Henryk Gulbinowicz, Metropolitan Archbishop of Wrocław. In the same year, he obtained a master’s degree in theology. In 1987–1991 he studied theology at the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas in Rome, which he completed with a doctorate in theology in the field of theology of spirituality. In 1998, on the basis of the dissertation ” Evangelical Spirituality of the New Birth and the Catholic Tradition” obtained a postdoctoral degree in theological sciences in the field of theology of spirituality at the Pontifical Faculty of Theology in Wrocław. In 2004 he was awarded the title of professor of theological sciences.
In the years 1985–1987, he worked as a vicar in the parish of St. Stanisław in Świdnica. After studying in Rome, he was also a pastor in Italy in the parish of Forli. In 1994, he became a church assistant for the “Hallelu Jah” community in Wrocław, belonging to the Renewal in the Holy Spirit Movement. In 2004 he took the office of episcopal vicar for the permanent formation of priests. He became a member of the priesthood council. In 2005 he was awarded the title of chaplain to His Holiness.
In the years 1991–1998, he was the clergyman of the Wrocław seminary. In 1991 he was employed at the Pontifical Faculty of Theology in Wrocław, initially as an assistant professor, in 2000 he became an associate professor, and in 2004 a full professor. In the years 1993–1995, he was the director of the local library, and in 1997 he became the head of the Department of Spiritual Theology. In the years 1998–2001, he held the office of the university vice-chancellor. He was the coordinator of the Wrocław Science Festival for the Pontifical Faculty of Theology.
On January 5, 2006, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Wrocław with the titular see of Theuzia. He was ordained bishop on February 11, 2006, in the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Wrocław. They were given by the Archbishop of Wrocław, Marian Gołębiewski, assisted by Cardinal Henryk Gulbinowicz, Archbishop Emeritus of Wrocław, and Ignacy Dec, Diocesan Bishop of Świdnica. He accepted the words ” Deus Caritas est ” ( God is Love ) as a bishop’s call. In the archdiocese, he was appointed vicar-general. In 2012, he became the provost of the Archdiocesan Chapter in Wrocław.
In the Polish Bishops’ Conference, he was a delegate for the Federation of Church Libraries “Fides” and a delegate for the Families of Nazareth Movement.
On June 28, 2021, the Holy Father Francis appointed Bishop Andrzej Siemieniewski the bishop of Legnica.
