It is with great joy that I congratulate Bishop Kevin Vann of Fort Worth upon his appointment as Bishop of the Diocese of Orange, California. Bishop Vann has been a good friend and collaborator during the five years I have been in Dallas. We have worked together on many projects that serve the Catholics in North Texas. The people of the Diocese of Orange will be well served by their new shepherd who has demonstrated his pastoral and organizational skills far beyond the Diocese of Fort Worth.
Bishop Vann has been in the forefront in many national initiatives including the implementation of Pope Benedict XVI’s outreach to Anglicans wishing to profess the Catholic faith. Recently he ordained six former Episcopal priests to serve in the Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter.
Bishop Vann will now lead a diocese with more than a million-and-a-quarter Catholics, where he will succeed Bishop Tod David Brown who retired after serving the diocese for 14 years.
A Midwesterner from Springfield, Illinois, Bishop Vann became Bishop of Fort Worth in 2005 upon the death of his predecessor Bishop Joseph Delaney. Holding a Doctorate in Canon Law from the Angelicum in Rome, he was ordained for the Diocese of Springfield in 1981, where he served in various capacities until his appointment as co-adjutor bishop of Fort Worth in 2005.
Our close relationship has enriched my time in Dallas. And, while it is with some sadness that I will bid Bishop Vann farewell , my best wishes go with him as he moves westward for this new chapter in his life and ministry.
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