Bishop Paul O'Byrne retires.

As he retires after almost 30 years of leading the Diocese of Calgary, Bishop Paul O'Byrne says there are two people he'd like to see exit with him: Jean Chretien and United Church moderator Bill Phipps.

Speaking candidly on the day in mid-January when he learned who his successor would be, O'Byrne said he'd like to see his brother bishops raise the alarm among the faithful for what Chretien has done to Catholic schooling in Newfoundland and Quebec.

"The person who bothers me most is Chretien," he said. "He's going to have to get thrown out. We're going to have to stir up our Catholic people."

O'Byrne said he has little faith in promises from Ottawa that trampling of constitutional minority rights by dismantling of denominational schools will be confined to Newfoundland and Quebec. He said he's had discussions with Alberta Education Minister Gary Mar about protection of this province's separate school system, and believes Mar is willing to leave Catholic education alone.

But the bishop feels no such confidence in Premier Ralph Klein, who mused aloud in 1997 about melding some administrative functions of Catholic and public schools.

In one infamous statement, Klein asked pointedly `what's the difference between a Catholic and a non-Catholic paper clip?' but later insisted he meant nothing by the remark. O'Byrne remains unconvinced. "I trust Mar a lot further than I trust Ralph."

O'Byrne said he'd be less fretful if Chretien had protected minority education rights rather than rushing constitutional changes through Parliament to allow gutting of Catholic schools in two provinces. "He's selling us down the drain. With the Newfoundland situation, he's put us in serious trouble," O'Byrne said.

Ironically, the bishop's fears about government assaults on Catholic education arise just when it's being hailed as a vital alternative to the floundering public system, particularly in Calgary. Local Catholic schools are seen as a model for student academic achievement and non-academic comportment.

While the public system has been wracked by violence, including battles between weapon-wielding gangs, non-Catholic parents clamor to get their children into the Catholic system because of its reputation for discipline based on firm moral instruction.

Provincial testing has repeatedly placed Catholic students ahead of their public counterparts.

As well in Calgary, St. Mary's College is finally coming into its own after years of struggling to free itself from its stifling association with the swaggeringly secular University of Calgary.

The appointment of David Lawless as president of St. Mary's following his retirement from St. Francis Xavier ensures a bright future, O'Byrne said. He added a sound Catholic institution of further education is critically needed at a time when a Protestant leader like Bill Phipps sows confusion in the minds of young people.

Bill Phipps

O'Byrne was blistering in his assessment of fellow Calgarian Phipps, saying he's convinced the moderator will be turfed by United Church officials for his public denial of the divinity of Christ.

"As a Christian, you expect persecution, but you don't expect it from within. That's what this is," O'Byrne said. "This guy Phipps is telling the people in his church that they don't know what the hell they're doing. This is what he's been preaching at them. What I'm particularly concerned with is that in today's society, when people are so lost about God, he's willing to bring even more confusion into it."

O'Byrne said he doesn't believe the United Church can stand the embarrassment of having its leader humiliated by knowing less theology than the journalists to whom he first denied the foundations of Christian faith.

"The people at the Ottawa Citizen who interviewed him knew more about theology than he did. They ended up saying `we're not theologians, but we do know this man is a jackass.' The rough part is, he couldn't refute that. I really think they're going to have to fire him."

As for his own departure, O'Byrne said he's pleased to have "new blood" coming into the diocese, but stressed he'll stay on in the city where he was born, raised, and served Christ as a priest and bishop. He'll joyfully do everything he can to help his successor.

"Any time he says to me `would you mind helping out' I'll be happy to do it."

Peter Stockland writes for the Calgary Herald. His column appears here ever other issue.