Shepherd&#039;s Slant

December 23, 2025

My Brothers and Sisters in Christ Jesus,

Christmas is now nigh upon us. We have been preparing these four weeks of Advent, seeking to bring the Lord more deeply into our lives. What an amazing God we worship. Our God was born among us. He stands with us. He understands us after all he knew the joys, the struggles, the fears, the hopes, the challenges of all of us. He went through it all even to the point of undergoing death as is our lot. But His resurrection is the source of our hope. We, too, will rise with Him on the last day. That is our faith, that is the foundation of our hope, that is the motivation of our love.

I pray you have a joyous Christmas with your family and friends. I will head to ‘bitter’ Chicago to be with family on Christmas Day and until December 31 when I return to Tucson. Know you are all in my prayers on Christmas Eve when I celebrate Mass at the Cathedral.

Soon we will begin 2026. The past year holds moments of joy and deep sorrow. The loss of Pope Francis yet the election of Pope Leo XIV. The continued loss of innocent life in so many places around the world. Peace remains elusive yet our deepest longing. The amount of suffering in the world, hunger, starvation, the sense of hopelessness is staggering yet the glimpses of compassion, care and selfless service shines through. Let’s pray that 2026 will help realize a bit more the coming of the kingdom of justice and peace, that the world that is, will become more like the world God intends.

Now our long novena of prayer that Pope Leo XIV would send us a Shepherd, a Pastor, and a Father to care for our Diocese has been answered. Bishop-elect James Misko’s appointment as the eighth of the Diocese of Tucson was announced by the Vatican yesterday. He is a priest of the Diocese of Austin in Texas. He entered seminary after a successful time in the restaurant business, to discern the Lord’s call for him to be a priest.

He was born in 1970 and ordained a priest in 2007. Since that time he has served in parish ministry and more recently in diocesan administration as the Vicar General and Moderator of the Curia for the Diocese of Austin. After Bishop Joe Vásquez was made the Archbishop of Houston, he was chosen by some of his brother priests to be the Diocesan Administrator of the Diocese until their next bishop was appointed, who is now Bishop Daniel Garcia. So Bishop Elect Misko has had experience administering a diocese.

I picked him up at the airport on Sunday just before the announcement was made early Monday morning. It was a joy to meet and congratulate him. We had time to visit our city briefly before joining for a welcome dinner with Revs. Edward Lucero and Msgr. Raul Trevizo along with our new Chancellor Anna Gallardo and Clara Heslinga who will be his Executive Assistant. Yesterday he met with our Diocesan Staff for breakfast. They were delighted to meet and get to know him. He worked closely with the pastoral staff in Austin and I know they miss him already. During the press conference he had a chance to introduce himself and help the Tucson community and diocese to get to know a little about him and his hopes coming among us as our eighth bishop.You can watch the press conference here Press Conference

After the press conference he walked over to the Cathedral to meet some of the priests, deacons, religious and laity who were able to stop by to greet him and to participate in his first Mass in Tucson.

After Mass, Bishop-elect Misko joined our department directors for lunch followed by some meetings with those who will be helping to organize his Ordination which will take place on February 20. The evening before there will be a Vespers Service that will be open for anyone to attend. More information will be forthcoming soon.

Monday evening he celebrated the Mass for our seminarians and their families who came for their annual Christmas party. I know our seminarians were delighted finally to meet the bishop who will help guide them through seminary and God willing, in time, to ordain them to serve in our Diocese. We currently have ten seminarians,. It is always a gift to meet the families of the seminarians since it was their witness and support that made their entrance into the seminary a possibility. In attendance were our vocation directors and pastors of the home parishes of our seminarians.

Today Bishop-elect Misko joined the chairs of various diocesan boards for breakfast followed by an opportunity to continue discussing plans for his ordination.

He joined the pastoral staff for our annual Christmas Mass and luncheon before needing to leave to return home. It generally takes two or three months for the new bishop to arrive in the diocese. During that time I will continue to serve as the Apostolic Administrator until his ordination as a bishop.

Bishop Elect Misko hopes to come back to Tucson for a few days sometime before he finally arrives to be ordained and installed as our eighth bishop. The Diocese of Tucson was founded in 1897. As you know our first bishops were all from France. Bishop Jean Baptiste Salpointe was Vicar Apostolic in Tucson before we became a Diocese. He wrote a diary describing his days serving the vast area where he served as bishop which was much larger than we are currently. He wrote that he hardly ever slept in his own bed. He was followed by Bishop Peter Bourgade, then Bishop Henry Granjon, both from France. Our first non-French born prelate was Bishop Daniel Gercke followed by our only local bishop, who served as a priest in Tucson, Bishop Francis Green who was followed by Bishop Manuel Moreno from Los Angeles then yours truly and then the now Archbishop Edward Weisenburger. It is with joy that we welcome our eighth bishop from Texas.

Last week I had the privilege and joy along with Fr. Miguel Mariano to renew the marriage vows of Peter and Pat Likins. They were celebrating their 70th wedding anniversary. They were childhood sweethearts. Peter was the President of the University of Arizona who served with distinction and was highly regarded in our community. They had six children and now grandchildren and great grandchildren. They make us all proud.

I was deeply saddened to learn last week of the death of Bobbi O’Rielly, wife of 64 years to Buck O’Rielly. They have done so many amazing things for the community. Bobbi’s death is a great loss. We join in prayer for her, for Buck and for the whole family. Plans are pending.

The Annual Cathedral Christmas concert was a smashing success. Prior to the performance in the Cathedral, the Catholic Foundation sponsored a reception for major donors to our Annual Catholic Appeal. The turnout for the performance filled the Cathedral.

Mr. Carlos Zapién, the Cathedral Music Director, performed magnificently. We all know his amazing talent. Along with him there was a performance by our Cathedral Chorale and the Tucson Girls’ Chorus. They received a standing ovation and rightly so, it was a beautiful Christmas gift. Carlos’ wife Mary Ann with the help of others arranged the stunning environment for the Cathedral Concert. Carlos also performed a magnificent concert in Yuma for the second year. They, too, were mesmerized by the environment and the performance. You can watch a recent recording of Carlos at the historic San Xavier Del Bac Mission by visiting O Holy Night

Last Saturday I had the joy of participating in the Annual Bi-national Posada in Nogales Sonora along with Bishop Jose Luis Cerra Luna, the new Bishop of that Diocese. We had a good turnout walking together with Mary and Joseph seeking room in the inn, so she could give birth.

The rejection experienced as we approached different places reflects the pain the family must have felt. Imagine knowing she was to deliver soon, how they must have felt being turned away. The Posada reflects the struggle of people on the move today, seeking safety and security as they flee violent situations in their home countries. Like Mary and Joseph they seek asylum.

I was delighted to see so many young people involved including a large group of Kino teens from Lourdes Catholic High School in Nogales and a few young people from Salpointe and St. Augustine. Kino Teens is an organization in some of our Catholic High Schools who are learning about the intricacies of immigration and involved in helping immigrants feel welcome in our community. They make us proud.

We wish Archbishop Edward Weisenberger birthday greetings from Tucson as he celebrates his ‘21st’ birthday on this very day, December 23.

We were delighted to hear the appointment of Msgr. Peter Dai Bui as an Auxiliary Bishop in Phoenix. I am sure that he will be a big help to Bishop John Dolan and the other Auxiliary Bishop Eduardo Nevares. I met Msgr. Bui when he was in the office of Cor Unum in Rome when I was chair of the Catholic Relief Services Board. He returned to his diocese and now has served as Vicar for Clergy and parish work. He will be a wonderful addition to the bishops in Arizona.

I will be celebrating two Masses at the Pima County Jail on Christmas Eve morning. Imagine the pain of families whose sons or daughters, fathers or mothers are in jail on Christmas. It is always a moving experience to celebrate Mass with those incarcerated and to try to put a little Christmas prayer and joy on the day that lacks much joy for those in prison. We try to create a Christmas scene on the chalkboard since prisons lack Christmas reminders. It is also a chance to greet the jail officers who have to work on Christmas Eve.

On January 4 I will celebrate the Mass to conclude the Jubilee Year of Hope in St. Augustine Cathedral at Noon. You will remember on Christmas Eve 2025 Pope Francis declared a Jubilee of Hope under the title Pilgrims of Hope. Pope Francis quoted from Hebrews, May we who have taken refuge in him be strongly encouraged to seize the hope set before us. We have this hope, a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters the inner shrine behind the curtain, where Jesus, a forerunner on our behalf, has entered' (Heb 6:18-20).

We joined in Hope for peace over division, we hoped for migrants and refugees, we hoped for the sick and the elderly and those dedicated to their care, we hoped for greater unity among Christians, and we hope for youth and young adults.

This Jubilee is the 27th Ordinary Jubilee since the first in 1300. In addition of the Ordinary Jubilees held every 25 years, there have also been a few Extraordinary Jubilee Years called for by various Popes.

During the Jubilee Year many did a pilgrimage to Rome to walk through the four Holy Doors. Pope Francis to begin the Jubilee Year walked through the door of the Rebibbia Prison in Rome. He wanted to show mercy and hope for inmates and all humanity.

Please join us for the Mass on January 4 at noon.

The next Shepherd’s Slant will be published on January 6.

As always, I thank you for your support and prayers.

Yours in Christ,
Most. Rev. Gerald Kicanas