 An active Jesuit, he is currently a member of California's Jesuit province.Bennett was born on October 21, 1946 in Denver.He was educated at Mount St. Michael's in Spokane, Washington, Loyola High School in Los Angeles, then–Loyola University in Los Angeles (later Loyola Marymount University), the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkeley, California, Loyola Marymount University (for graduate studies after his undergraduate work at Loyola), and Fordham University in New York City for the Professional Diploma in Administration and Supervision.