WASHINGTON—Pope Francis has named Msgr. Robert Coerver as bishop of
the Diocese of Lubbock, Texas, and accepted the resignation of Bishop Plácido
Rodríguez. Msgr. Coerver serves as a priest in the Diocese of Dallas.

The
appointment and resignation were publicized Tuesday, September 27, in
Washington by Msgr. Walter Erbì, Chargé d’
Affaires, at the Apostolic Nunciature to the United States.

A native of
Dallas, Robert Coerver, 62, was born June 6, 1954. He earned a bachelor’s
degree in philosophy from the University of Dallas, and pursued post-graduate
studies at the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum), in
Rome. Bishop-elect Coerver also holds a licentiate in spiritual theology from
the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome and a master’s degree in counseling
and guidance from Texas A & M University. He was ordained a priest in
the Diocese of Dallas in 1980.

Assignments
after ordination included: parochial vicar, St. Elizabeth of Hungary Parish,
Dallas, 1981-1982; parochial vicar, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, Plano,
1982-1985; director of Spiritual Formation, Holy Trinity Seminary, 1985-1996;
diocesan director, Spiritual Development of Priests, Dallas, 1996; diocesan
director, Committee for Ongoing Formation of Priests, Dallas 1996-2004; pastor,
Our Lady of the Lake Parish, Rockwall, 2005-2010; and pastor of St. Rita
Parish, Dallas, 2010 to present.

In 2004, Pope
John Paul II named him a prelate of honor with the title of monsignor.

Bishop-elect
Coerver also has served the Diocese of Dallas in other assigned appointments
including: vicar forane from 2007-2013, member, College of Consultors,
2007-present and member of the Presbyteral Council, Diocese of Dallas, 2008 to
present.

Bishop Rodríguez,
who has headed the Diocese of Lubbock since 1994, is 75. Bishop Rodríguez
was born in Guanajuato, Mexico in 1940. He was ordained a priest on May 23,
1968, and was appointed auxiliary bishop of Chicago in 1983. On April 5, 1994,
he was appointed bishop of Lubbock and was installed on June 1, 1994.

The Diocese of
Lubbock comprises 23,382 square miles in the state of Texas. It has a
population of 494,458 people of whom 136,894, or 28 percent, are
Catholic.
—
Keywords:
USCCB, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Holy See, Diocese of Lubbock,
Diocese of Dallas, Bishop Plácido Rodríguez, Bishop-elect Robert Coerver,
Apostolic Nunciature, Pope Francis
# # #
MEDIA CONTACT:
Judy Keane
O:
202-541-3206

Source:: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops