Former Calgary Bishop Fred Henry dies aged 81
CTV
An outspoken former Calgary bishop who was outspoken on several issues such as LGBTQ policy and school HPV vaccinations has died.
A former Calgary bishop who was outspoken on several issues such as LGBTQ policy and school HPV vaccinations has died.
Bishop Emeritus Fred Henry was 81.
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Calgary announced Henry's death Tuesday afternoon, saying he "passed away peacefully" at 12 noon at the Rockyview General Hospital, adding it will share funeral plans "in the coming days."
Henry, who served as the seventh bishop for the Calgary diocese for 19 years, resigned from his post in early 2017 for medical reasons.
He was a polarizing figure who at times clashed with government over policy.
He refused to endorse Alberta's plan in 2008 to offer HPV vaccinations to girls in Grade 5, for example, saying vaccinating them against a sexually transmitted disease confuses the church's message about chastity. The Calgary Catholic School Board, as a result, didn't offer them at first but later reversed their stance and did.
Henry in 2016 also called the then-Alberta NDP government's new LGBTQ guidelines, which called for acceptance, "totalitarianism' and 'pure secularism.'
