‘RESPONDING VERY WELL’ Bishop Richard F. Stika is recuperating in a Fort Lauderdale, Fla., hospital and looking forward to his return to Knoxville in late August.Photo by Deacon Patrick Murphy-Racey

Upon hearing that his obituary had been published in theNew York Journal, Mark Twain is supposed to have quipped,“The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated.”

Bishop Richard F. Stika will be able to say more or less the same thing when he’s released from Holy Cross Hospital in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., later this month.

On Sunday, Aug. 16, the bishop suffered a mild heart attack brought on by diabetic shock, which is believed to have been caused by vomiting and dehydration due to a probable case of the flu. The bishop was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes as a young man.

The good news, said Deacon Sean Smith, diocesan chancellor, is that Bishop Stika is“stable and responding very well to treatment, and all his attending physicians are optimistic of a full recovery.”

Deacon Smith had“a wonderful long conversation” with the bishop on Aug. 18. Although Bishop Stika is tired, he said,“his sense of humor is back, and he wanted to express his deep appreciation for all the prayers and support he’s had.”

“He wanted everybody to know that he’s praying for them as well, and he can’t wait to get strong enough to come back home to be with his Christian faithful.”

The story flying around East Tennessee on Sunday had the bishop at death’s door, with kidney failure and a massive heart attack.

“It was a very mild heart attack. His heart was thoroughly examined and found to be in great shape,” said Deacon Smith,“and his kidneys are working normally.”

Bishop Stika had bypass surgery five years ago, in summer 2004. His cardiologist in Florida has examined his bypasses, the deacon said,“and the bishop is as strong as an ox in that regard.”

Before the trouble arose, Bishop Stika had been participating in a two-week Spanish-language immersion program offered by the Mexican American Cultural Center in San Antonio, along with several other Catholic clergy. Among them were the bishop’s friends Archbishop Timothy Dolan of New York and Father Jim Swift of St. Louis.

Late last week another friend, Archbishop Francis Mansour Zayek, called Bishop Stika with a with a heart-wrenching message.

“Archbishop Zayek is very ill, and he called Bishop Stika to say he was going to Lebanon and didn’t expect to return to the United States,” said Deacon Smith. The archbishop is retired from the Maronite Eparchy of St. Maron of Brooklyn.

“Bishop Stika said,‘I need to see you before you leave.’ He said,‘Well, you’d better come pretty soon.’”

The evening of Friday, Aug. 14, Bishop Stika flew to South Florida to see Archbishop Zayek. But on Saturday morning, the bishop became violently sick with what appeared to be the flu, said Deacon Smith. His symptoms indicate that he did not have swine flu.

“He became dehydrated, and his blood sugar spiked. He went down to the hotel lobby and collapsed, and they got him to the hospital.” The diabetic crisis brought on a mild heart attack, he explained.

An additional complication was that diocesan officials Deacon Smith and Father David Boettner, moderator of the curia, and the Smith family were vacationing in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, when the emergency struck.

Chancery staffers have been unable to reach Deacon Smith and Father Boettner via cell phone or Internet, so the two men have been calling the

Chancery every hour or so to pass on updates received from the bishop’s bedside.

It was impossible for them to get an immediate flight out, said Deacon Smith, despite their desire to join the bishop.

Father Boettner flew to Fort Lauderdale on Tuesday afternoon to be with the bishop, and Deacon Smith was set to arrive Wednesday.

Cardinal Justin Rigali of Philadelphia, the bishop’s dear friend, arrived at the hospital Tuesday morning to pay a visit. Cardinal Rigali was to have been the keynote speaker for Diocesan Day and main celebrant for the Mass on Aug. 22. The event has been postponed, and those who registered will receive refunds.

A silver lining to the crisis was the coincidental proximity of Bishop Stika’s good friend and former parishioner Tim Trout. Mr. Trout and his family were on vacation in Palm Beach, Fla., when they received word that the bishop had been hospitalized.

“Tim has been with him ever since and has been my liaison with the doctors all this time,” said Deacon Smith.“He returned his rental car, checked him out of his hotel room, and paid the bill. He’s been a godsend.”