WASHINGTON—Pope Francis has named the auxiliary bishop of Austin, the Most Reverend Daniel E. Garcia, as the new Bishop of Monterey.

The appointment was publicized in Washington on Tuesday, November 27, 2018, by Archbishop Christophe Pierre, Apostolic Nuncio to the United States.

Bishop Garcia was born August 30, 1960 in Cameron, Texas. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Saint Mary’s Seminary at the University of St. Thomas in 1984. He completed his Master of Divinity studies at Saint Mary’s in 1988. In 2007, he earned a Master of Arts in Liturgical Studies from the Saint John’s School of Theology.

He was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Austin on May 28, 1988. Since then, he has served at the parishes of St. Catherine of Siena, Cristo Rey, St. Louis, and St. Vincent de Paul, all in Austin. He also served three years in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston at St. Mary Magdalene Parish in Humble, Texas. In the Diocese of Austin, he has served as a dean and as a member of the Priests’ Personnel Board, the College of Consultors, and the Diocesan Liturgical Commission, as well as a member and chairman of the Presbyteral Council.

On January 21, 2015, Pope Francis appointed him as Auxiliary Bishop of the Diocese of Austin, the first auxiliary bishop in the history of the diocese, as well as Titular Bishop of Capsus. He was ordained a bishop on March 3, 2015.

Bishop Garcia currently serves as Chairman of the USCCB Subcommittee on Worship in Spanish. He is a member of the USCCB Committee on Divine Worship and the USCCB Committee on Communications, as well as a consultant to the USCCB Subcommittee on Hispanic Affairs.

Bishop Daniel Garcia has been named bishop following the death of Bishop Richard Garcia of Monterey on July 11, 2018, due to complications of Alzheimer’s disease. He was diagnosed with the disease in April 2018.

The Diocese of Monterey is comprised of 21,916 square miles in California with a total population of 1,048,237 of which 209,650 or 20 percent, are Catholic.

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Keywords: Pope Francis, Christophe Pierre, Apostolic Nuncio, Bishop Daniel D. Garcia, Bishop Richard J. Garcia, Diocese of Monterey

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Media Contact:

Judy Keane

202-541-3200

Source:: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops