Bishop Zubik to have surgery on back

Pittsburgh Bishop David Zubik is scheduled to undergo his second back surgery in nine months this morning at UPMC Mercy hospital.

Zubik, 61, said Wednesday that pain in his right leg and foot has been increasing in recent weeks, making it difficult for him to walk on stairs. The ordeal has made it easier for him to empathize with people facing much bigger problems than his.

"I'm just letting this opportunity help me, I hope, to become a better shepherd," Zubik said at the offices of the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, Downtown.

During the four-hour surgery, Father Ronald Lengwin, interim general secretary since July 1, will head the diocese. Zubik has cleared his schedule for the rest of January but said he expects to run the diocese from his bed while he recuperates.

Zubik first underwent back surgery in April. The initial surgery was a success, he said, and the current problems are due to a similar but separate problem. He described today's surgery as a laminectomy to shave off part of the bone near the fourth and fifth lumbar vertebrae in his lower back.

Dr. Daniel Bursick, who performed the first surgery, will lead the surgical team again. A spokeswoman for UPMC Mercy, Uptown, declined to comment and referred all questions to the diocese.

The bishop said he had lost some weight to prepare for the surgery and to "get ready for a healthier life." He has grown a beard, and the cuffs of a blue-and-red plaid shirt with cufflinks were visible beneath the sleeves of his official black top during a meeting with the media yesterday.

Zubik said his father also struggled with a bad back, which doctors ascribed to years of heavy labor. Zubik said he spent two summers in the late 1960s at a steel mill but could not blame his pain on that.

After the surgery, Zubik plans to stay in his two-room apartment at St. Paul Seminary in Crafton. He said he hopes to be back on his feet in time for the Manifesting the Kingdom Awards at St. Paul Cathedral on Jan. 30.

Zubik asked reporters to tell parishioners to "please pray for me -- but also pray for lots of other people."