First Filipino to head U.S. diocese will supervise Salt Lake City

Auxiliary bishop of Los Angeles appointed after 20-month vacancy

Pope Francis appointed Auxiliary Bishop Oscar A. Solis of Los Angeles as bishop of Salt Lake City. (Photo Credit: CNS / J.D. Long-Garcia, The Tidings)

The first Filipino bishop of the United States will become the first to head a diocese.

The Vatican announced the appointment of Bishop Oscar A. Solis as the new head of the Diocese of Salt Lake City Jan. 10. The Philippines-born bishop, who is currently an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, will be covering a 20-month vacant spot left in Salt Lake City by the previous bishop John Charles Wester, who was moved to the Archdiocese of Santa Fe, N.M. in April 2015.

Solis considered his role as the 10th bishop of Salt Lake City "a recognition of the diversity of the Church in America and the universality of the Church. I know what it means to be a pastor, a shepherd of a particular diocese," he told the L.A. diocesan newspaper Angelus News. "It is a tremendous blessing and a responsibility and a privilege to be a service to the local Church in the United States of America, coming from the Philippines."

For more information on Bishop Solis, visit Catholic News Agency's article here.