Funeral Friday for Former Winona Bishop John Vlazny

Portland, OR (KROC-AM News) - A funeral Mass is scheduled to take place Friday in Portland, Oregon, for a former leader of the Catholic Church in southeastern Minnesota.

Archbishop Emeritus John G. Vlazny passed away at his home in the Portland suburb of Beaverton on May 23. He was 88 years old.

According to an obituary, the Chicago native was named Bishop of the Diocese of Winona in 1987. He served in that position for a decade before being appointed Archbishop of Portland. Vlazny retired in 2013.

The Portland Tribune described his tenure as Archbishop as a "tumultuous time in the Catholic Church in the wake of sexual abuse allegations." The newspaper reported that he settled a major clergy sexual abuse lawsuit in 2000 and led the Archdiocese of Portland through bankruptcy in 2004.

The Archdiocese of Portland will livestream the funeral Mass on its website beginning at 11 a.m. on Friday. A visitation and vigil service is scheduled to take place Thursday afternoon and evening.

Below is a video of Archbishop Vlazny talking about his his life and his calling.