On Jan. 25, 2017, the Most Rev. Robert J. Fisher was ordained as bishop to Archbishop Allen Vigneron. Bishop Fisher had previously served as rector of the National Shrine of the Little Flower Basilica in Royal Oak, one of many posts he held since his ordination as a priest in 1992.
Bishop Fisher attended archdiocesan Catholic schools until graduating from Univeristy of Detroit Jesuit High School in 1977. He went on to study at the Unviersity of Detroit, earning a Bachelor of Science in Management Science and later worked for the Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) at their summer camps.
Bishop Fisher was ordained a priest in 1992 and in 1995 was assigned Director of Priestly Vocations for the Archdiocese. He has served at many parishes as well as serving on the Catholic Schools Council and Board of Directors of the Catholic Youth Organization.
Bishop Fisher currently serves as episcopal vicar and regional moderator for the Northeast Region of the Archdiocese.
Born: September 24, 1959 Ordained Priest: June 27, 1992 Appointed Aux. Bishop of Detroit: November 23, 2016 Ordained Auxiliary Bishop of Detroit: January 25, 2017
The oldest of the four children of Robert and Trudy (Torzewski) Fisher, Robert Joseph Fisher was born September 24, 1959 and attended Epiphany and St. Bede Elementary schools before graduating from the University of Detroit Jesuit High School in 1977.
He went on to the University of Detroit, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Management Science. During his summers, he worked for the Catholic Youth Organization at their summer camps near Port Sanilac, Michigan. After graduating, he worked full time for the CYO overseeing the Camping Services Department.
While working for the CYO he began his discernment of the diocesan priesthood and entered formation at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in the fall of 1986, earning a Master of Divinity degree. After being ordained a priest by Adam Cardinal Maida in 1992, he was sent as associate pastor to Our Lady Star of the Sea Parish in Grosse Pointe Woods. In 1995, Cardinal Maida assigned him as the Director of Priestly Vocations for the Archdiocese.
In 2000, he was named pastor of St. Angela in Roseville, in 2003, St. Lawrence in Utica and since March of 2014 has served as rector of the National Shrine of the Little Flower Basilica in Royal Oak. During his pastorates, he has been a seminarian mentor at Sacred Heart Major Seminary, and served on the Program Review Committee and the Presbyteral Council. Currently he is a member of the Catholic Schools Council and the Board of Directors of the Catholic Youth Organization.
His father and mother live in Troy. He has two sisters, one brother, two nieces and two nephews.
The Episcopal Coat of Arms of The Most Rev. Robert Joseph Fisher, B.S., M.Div., D.D. Titular Bishop of Forum Pompilii The 30th Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Detroit
BLAZON At chief point: Rampart Gules eac port. At honor point: Sed of Pin Or on field Gules, eac sprick naed of Pin Vert. At base point: Fisch triqueta Or on bendlets five Azur.
NARRATIVE Honoring heraldic tradition, the above description of the Bishop Fisher’s personal coat of arms is first expressed in middle English by way of its French roots. In modern day English it reads: At the top (chief point) there is a brown rampart wall with an open gate. At the middle (or honor point) there is a pine cone in gold with a sprig of green pine needles, both on a field of red. At the bottom (base point) there are three fish in gold entwined in a circle, displayed on five waves of blue.
The chief point of the shield is derived from the Coat of Arms of the City of Poznań, Poland. It depicts a part of that city’s defense wall and gate. Poznań’s Coat of Arms dates back to 1253, when that municipality was granted city status. The wall signifies the strength and importance of that place. "Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; Your walls are continually before Me.” (Isaiah 49:16)
The use of the wall and gate image is included to honor the Bishop’s Polish heritage. Bishop Fisher’s maternal great grandfather and great grandmother were both born in villages close to Poznań. Bishop Fisher’s paternal grandfather’s parents were born in Galicia in southeastern Poland. His paternal grandmother was born in the village of Targowiska, also in southeastern Poland.
[Bishop Fisher’s maternal great grandmother was the maternal aunt and godmother of Bishop Joseph Plagens, a former Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Detroit, former Ordinary of the Dioceses of Sault Sainte Marie/Marquette and Grand Rapids, Michigan. Bishop Fisher’s great uncle was Fr. Joseph Torzewski, the founding pastor of Christ the Good Shepherd Parish in the Archdiocese of Detroit.
The center, or honor point, of Bishop Fisher’s Coat of Arms references his Baptismal patron, Saint Robert Bellarmine (1542 -1621) who was an Italian, Jesuit Cardinal and one of the most important figures of the Counter-Reformation. The pine cone is found on the Bellarmine Family’s Coat of Arms as well as on the Coat of Arms of the Roman College (Gregorian) of which he was the once the rector. In Christian symbolism, the pine cone is seen as the crown of the Tree of Life and humanity. For ancient Romans, the evergreen pine tree symbolized long-suffering, steadfast friendship, and an enduring good reputation. In this context, the pinecone can also reference the White Pine tree of the State of Michigan, of which Bishop Fisher is a native.
The base point, or bottom part, of Bishop Fisher’s Coat of Arms features an area of wavy lines meant to express water, in particular the glacial waters that carved out the Great Lake Huron where he has a residence. Bishop Fisher also served as Director of Camping Services for the Catholic Youth Organization which maintains summer camps for youth on Lake Huron.
In the base point there is what is known in heraldry as a “cant” or visual pun. Three fishes alert the viewer to the Bishop’s last name. When the Bishop’s great grandfather immigrated to the United States, his first job was in the coal mines of West Virginia. There the Englishman he worked for had trouble pronouncing “Wojtowicz,” so he took his nickname, “Fish,” and said “from now on you will be known as ‘Fisher.’” Since that time, the family has used the appellation “Fisher.”
The fishes in this base point are represented as a “triquetra,” a tripartite symbol marking the intersection of three circles. When used in this manner, the fish symbol (which is generally used as an icon of Christ) is used to represent the Holy Trinity. The pattern also generates an image of “the fisherman’s net.” Bishop Fisher was Director of the Vocations Office of the Archdiocese of Detroit for five years. “Now as Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon who was called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. And He said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men." Immediately they left their nets and followed Him.” Matthew 4:18-21
Covering the top of the shield, is the “galero”. It is also known as a “pilgrim’s hat” because of its wide brim protecting the traveler from the elements. In this context, the galero indicates a bishop’s willingness to journey to distant places for the faith – while at the same time expecting the protection of the shadow of God as noted in Psalm 84:12: “For a sun and shield is the Lord God, bestowing all grace and glory. The Lord withholds no good thing from those who walk without reproach.”
The galero has a cord attached to it. It is flanked by two sets of six tassels, or “fiocchi”. Originally this cord and tassels were simply the way of securing the hat to the traveler’s head. Tradition dictates that a bishop’s galero and cord are depicted in the color green, with six tassels arranged in three rows on either side, indicating the rank of bishop. Above and behind the shield, there appears a processional cross in a shape called “vair.” The four sections roughly resemble that of a bell “The Holy Spirit, through whom the living voice of the Gospel rings out in the Church and through her in the world, leads believers to the full truth, and makes the word of Christ dwell in them in all its richness.” Vatican II Dei Verbum 2.7.
MOTTO It is customary for a bishop to select a written motto to complete his Coat of Arms. This serves as a motif for his ministry. This motto is placed on a ribbon or scroll at the base of the processional cross. At his ordination to the priesthood in 1992, Bishop Fisher chose a text from Paul’s letter to the Galatians, chapter 5, verse 13, and he reiterated it on the occasion of his ordination to the episcopacy: “Per Caritatem Servite Invicem.” In translation: “Out of love, place yourselves at one another’s service.”
“We must not forget that true power, at whatever level, is service, which has its luminous summit on the Cross.... For God, authority is always synonymous with service, humility, love. It means to enter into Jesus’ logic, who bends down to wash the feet of the Apostles.” Pope Francis Angelus on May 8, 2013.
Prepared and executed for the Most Reverend Robert J. Fisher in January of 2017 by the Rev. Timothy Pelc of the Archdiocese of Detroit, with the assistance of Stephenie Ruttinger and Michael Heckman