Pope appoints Detroit Auxiliary Bishop Cepeda as auxiliary bishop of San Antonio

WASHINGTON (OSV News) -- Pope Leo XIV has appointed Bishop Jose Arturo Cepeda, who has served as auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Detroit for 14 years, as auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of San Antonio.

Msgr. Veceslav Tumir, chargé d’ affaires at the apostolic nunciature, in the temporary absence of Cardinal Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States, announced the appointment Aug. 26 in Washington.

With this appointment, Bishop Cepeda will return to his home diocese, where he was ordained a priest in 1996. The Archdiocese of San Antonio encompasses 19 counties in south-central Texas and has a total population of nearly 2.8 million, of which over 1.16 million are Catholic.

Bishop Cepeda was born on May 15, 1969, in San Luis Potosí, Mexico, and immigrated to the U.S. with his family when he was 19. He later studied at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (Anglicum) where he received a licentiate and doctorate of sacred theology. He was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of San Antonio at his home parish of St. Mary Magdalen by Archbishop Patricio Flores.

Pope Benedict XVI named Father Cepeda as auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Detroit in April 2011. He was ordained a bishop in May, becoming the youngest bishop in the United States at age 41.

In a press release shared by the Archdiocese of Detroit, Bishop Cepeda expressed "the excitement of one embarking on a new journey, but also with the sadness of leaving a beloved family."

"I give thanks to God, to our Holy Father, to Archbishop Edward Weisenburger, and all of you. I am deeply grateful for the trust placed in me and for the opportunity I had to serve for 14 years in this archdiocese," Bishop Cepeda wrote. "My episcopal ministry undoubtedly took shape here, my temporary home. As I begin my new mission, know that I hold you in my prayers and humbly ask that you keep me in yours."

According to the press release, Bishop Cepeda will be formally welcomed as a San Antonio auxiliary bishop during two Masses on Oct. 12, in Spanish and English, at San Fernando Cathedral in San Antonio, where he previously served as parochial vicar.