JANUARY 28, 2025 • ARCHGH.ORG/TCH
texas catholic herald 1
IT’S CATHOLIC SCHOOLS WEEK
ADVOCACY
Orders on migration, death penalty called ‘deeply troubling’ ▪ SEE PAGE 2
Celebration honors legacy, future of Catholic schools ▪ SEE PAGES 11 - 12
Celebrating 60 years of Catholic news in Texas JANUARY 28, 2025
Proclaiming the Good News to the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston since 1964
VOL. 61, NO. 15
A WELCOME RETURN TO GALVESTON-HOUSTON
Cardinal DiNardo welcomes successor
PHOTO BY JONAH DYCUS/HERALD
Archbishop-Designate Joe S. Vásquez, center, celebrated a Mass at the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in downtown Houston on Jan. 20 with Daniel Cardinal DiNardo and Auxiliary Bishop Italo Dell’Oro, CRS, following the announcement of his appointment as Galveston-Houston’s new Archbishop. Archbishop-Designate Vásquez will be installed as Archbishop of Galveston-Houston at a Mass on March 25.
Bishop Joe S. Vásquez named Archbishop of Galveston-Houston Archbishop-Designate Vásquez served as Auxiliary Bishop in Galveston-Houston from 2002 to 2010 HOUSTON — Pope Francis accepted the resignation of Daniel Cardinal DiNardo of Galveston-Houston and named as his successor Bishop Joe S. Vásquez of Austin. In 2007, just a year after becoming archbishop, Pope Benedict XVI elevated then-Archbishop DiNardo to the College of Cardinals. On May 23, 2024, he turned
75, the age at which canon law requires bishops to submit their resignation to the pope.The cardinal is a former president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Archbishop-Designate Vásquez, 67, has headed the Diocese of Austin since 2010. Additionally, he served as apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Tyler, Texas, from November 2023 to
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HOUSTON — Following the announcement of Bishop Joe S. Vásquez of Austin as the new Archbishop of Galveston-Houston on Jan. 20, Daniel Cardinal DiNardo lauded his successor. “Archbishop-Designate Vásquez is a faithful, articulate and bicultural bishop who has wisely led the Diocese of Austin for the last 15 years,” Cardinal DiNardo said. “Further, we are joyful in welcoming him back to the local Church where he was ordained a bishop and served diligently for many years as auxiliary bishop.” After leading Galveston-Houston since 2004, Cardinal DiNardo’s resignation was accepted by Pope Francis. An Ohio native who was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Pittsburgh, then-Archbishop DiNardo succeeded Archbishop Joseph A. Fiorenza as Galveston-Houston’s shepherd on Feb. 28, 2006. Two years earlier, he had been named See DINARDO, page 5
the Feb. 24 installation of Tyler BishopDesignate Gregory Kelly. The resignation and appointment were publicized in Washington on Jan. 20 by Christophe Cardinal Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the U.S. “I am delighted by the appointment of Bishop Vásquez as the next Archbishop of Galveston-Houston,” said Cardinal DiNardo. “I give gratitude to the Holy Father for naming an experienced, prayerful and humble Shepherd to lead
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See ARCHBISHOP, page 4
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