A New British Bishop with the “Smell of the Sheep” April 16, 2014 Pope Francis made major headlines when he chose not to live in the Vatican palace, but in smaller rooms at……, to carry his own luggage, and to drive a battered used car. This is fully in keeping with the Gospels and the practice of the early church – but in marked contrast to the ostentation and sumptuary of some of his predeccors, and some bishops. He has recommended similar simple lifestyles for his bishops, saying that he preferred them as shepherds of the faithful, to have on them “the smell of the sheep”. Not all bishops have yet taken on board this new corporate culture, but here’s one who very decidedly does – Bishop John Keenan, newly appointed to the see of Paisley, Scotland: New Catholic bishop chooses to live in deprived housing scheme http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home-news/new-catholic-bishop-chooses-to-live-in-deprived-housing-scheme.

http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home-news/new-catholic-bishop-chooses-to-live-in-deprived-housing-scheme.23937263

"As Scotland’s newest Roman Catholic bishop he could easily have opted for the opulent residence set aside for a man in his position...But Bishop John Keenan, who grew up in a high-rise in Maryhill, Glasgow, has shunned the more comfortable address to move into a parish house in a housing scheme in an area of multiple deprivation. Explaining his decision, Bishop Keenan said the Catholic church was going through a cultural shift and would have to “adapt and change in order to be close to the people of our times."