Arizona born and baptized now a bishop

It is rare for a man to become a Catholic bishop, and more extraordinary to become the second bishop in a predominantly Muslim country that doesn’t have an episcopal see. Yet this week marked a historic moment in the Catholic Church: Pope Leo appointed Father Anthony Corcoran, a Jesuit, as bishop of Kyrgyzstan, a Central Asian nation bordering China. The choice of an American-born priest is noteworthy, though not surprising. For nearly a decade, Father Anthony has led the country’s small Catholic community as apostolic administrator, a role that carries pastoral responsibility but limited authority in governing the local Church. Kyrgyzstan is home to more than seven million people, hundreds of whom are Catholic. Given the tiny size of the Catholic community, the Church there is not considered a diocese.  

Cochise County roots
 
Arizona has always felt like home to Anthony Corcoran. Two of his grandparents were born in southern Arizona, and both sets of grandparents were married in the state. His mother and father were both born in Bisbee. As an infant, he was baptized at Saint Andrew’s Catholic Church in Sierra Vista. Though his family moved to Texas when he was young, Corcoran returned often for holidays and summer vacations. “I have fond memories of visiting with cousins and grandparents in Bisbee, Douglas, Dos Cabezas and Tucson,” he told the New Outlook.  

Corcoran’s education and ministry have taken him from the United States to Asia. He entered the Society of Jesus in Grand Coteau, Louisiana, in 1985 and was ordained a priest in 1996. He earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Marquette University in Wisconsin and a master’s degree in international political economic development from Fordham University in New York. He later completed ecclesiastical degrees in theology at the Weston Jesuit School of Theology in Boston, earning a licentiate in sacred theology in 1997 and a doctorate in sacred theology in 2007. He professed his final vows in the Society of Jesus in Moscow in 2002.  

When his parents retired, they returned to Sierra Vista and became active at Saint Andrew’s Church. “This church community has remained my home parish over the decades,” he said. Corcoran, a Jesuit for 40 years, said the longtime pastor Monsignor Greg Adolf helped shape his ministry. “In addition to being the priest and pastor who ministered to my family, he taught me most about being a priest for others and has become part of my life and that of my entire family. Whenever I had to leave to return to the missions in Siberia or Central Asia, I could leave my parents with this priest, and my heart could be free to go forward and serve where I was called.” Though both of his parents have since died, Corcoran still returns to southern Arizona. His most recent visit was this past September when he attended the Catholic Foundation’s annual gala where he spoke with the faithful and priests he’s met over the years, “Father Anthony is simply one of the most extraordinary priests that I have known and is a continual inspiration to me, as he is to countless others. As is the case with truly saintly people, he is completely unaware of how powerfully the Lord works through him!  Everyone who knows him is struck by his modesty and unassuming character, which cannot disguise his brilliance and spiritual depth,” Monsignor Adolf said.  

Monsignor Adolf says Corcoran, who speaks Spanish and is Fluent in Russian, represents much of the Church’s history in Arizona, “Over the years, I have teased him, while completely serious, saying that he embodies the spirit of Padre Kino, our 'Apostle on horseback' in his missionary zeal, his love for the people he serves, and his marvelous ability to build bridges of understanding between peoples. He is truly a ‘missionary’s missionary’!”  
For years, Corcoran has been known to the faithful in Sierra Vista as Father Tony. When he returns home, he spends time with family and friends, including Deacon Lauro Teran and his wife, Lupita, who serve at the parish. “During one of his visits to Sierra Vista, Monsignor Greg asked him to spend time with our Hispanic group and he graciously accepted,” they said. “Everyone was so happy that he took the time to share some of his stories and knowledge, and that he spoke to them in Spanish. Another time, he joined our family for Thanksgiving dinner.” Despite the distance, the Terans have remained in close contact with Corcoran. “From the pictures and videos, we can tell how much the people in Kyrgyzstan, especially the children, love him and appreciate him. He has a true Jesuit heart, willing to sacrifice daily for the Lord and his Church.” 
 
Corcoran’s ministry has taken him from villages in Cambodia to missions in Pakistan and to serving as the major superior of Russia, but the Terans say he has never lost touch with his roots in Cochise County. “Father Anthony is a very intelligent person. He is deeply knowledgeable about his faith and the people he serves. He is gentle, caring and a very holy priest. He makes you feel valued, like part of his family, as if he has known you forever whenever you speak with him. He is very generous with his time. He is a true servant of the Lord.” Though it’s unclear when his next visit to Arizona is, Monsignor Adolf looks forward welcoming one of the sons of the parish, “There is tremendous excitement here at St. Andrew’s, where his visits “home” are always great occasions, as well as throughout the Cochise Deanery where he has many family connections!”
 
A heart for God’s people
 
That deep appreciation for people has shaped the bishop-elect’s pastoral care. “My parents were so proud to have grown up in Bisbee at a time when the community included people from many ethnic and religious traditions,” he said. “My father’s best friend was a deeply faithful Polish American whose example and encouragement led him into the Catholic faith.” Corcoran, 63, said he often reflects on how his parents spoke about the “remarkable dignity” of the Mexican Catholics who were their friends and neighbors, and how blessed they felt to be raised in such a diverse environment. “No doubt this has profoundly shaped our conviction that the central element of our identity is that we are Catholic Christians, with all our other characteristics finding their place in light of that identity,” he said. For Corcoran that principle has deepened his love for God’s people. “Indeed, as a priest, this is what consoles in a parish: when members of the community see themselves first and foremost as followers of Jesus Christ in his Church and are united in that belief. Without this, a community risks becoming an arena for self-interest or group interest. With it, miracles really can happen in daily prayer and sharing.”  

As Bishop-elect Corcoran prepares to be ordained to the episcopacy his prayers for the people of Kyrgyzstan intensifies as he asks his home diocese to pray for his new family across the world, Pope Francis referred to the tiny Catholic community in Central Asia as “germoglio,” or “seedling.” I beg the prayers of the faithful in Arizona for Christ’s small flock in Kyrgyzstan and for their shepherd—may we go forward with real courage, burn with a deep faith in Jesus Christ, and desire always to share this Good News with those around us regardless of the challenges we encounter.”
 
A landmark moment
 
The Lord often works in ways we do not expect, and Bishop-elect Anthony Corcoran’s appointment is one of them. His elevation to the episcopacy is both historic and deeply significant for southern Arizona. Tucson is home to Arizona’s first Catholic diocese, established on May 8, 1897, by Pope Leo XIII. Long before Arizona became a state, this region was the center of Catholic life in the Southwest.
 
Over the decades, Arizona has produced at least a thousand Catholic priests through birth, baptism, or seminary formation, yet only two have been called to the episcopacy. Corcoran now joins that exclusive pair. The other Arizona-born bishop is Bishop James Wall of Gallup, New Mexico who was born in Ganado, Arizona. Corcoran, however, is the first bishop both born and baptized in the Diocese of Tucson. More than a century after the Diocese of Tucson was established, in fact, almost 129 years to the day, Pope Leo XIV—the first U.S.-born pontiff— named the second bishop, a son of Arizona, for Kyrgyzstan, a Muslim-majority nation. Though the timing is remarkable, Corcoran sees it simply as the work of God, “I pray that this decision of the Church to call me to the episcopacy may truly encourage and strengthen the faithful and serve for the common good of this society. I can affirm that I am called increasingly to give all, to be ‘all in,’ with regard to my vocation to give myself to this community.”