Pope Benedict appoints bishop of Texas diocese

Brownsville, Texas, Dec 9, 2009 / 10:04 am

The Vatican announced today that Pope Benedict XVI has appointed Auxiliary Bishop Daniel Flores of the Archdiocese of Detroit as bishop of the Diocese of Brownsville, Texas.

“We are very sad to lose him,” said Archbishop Allen Vigneron of Detroit in a statement on December 9, “but we understand that his being sent to Brownsville is God's will, for him, for the priests and people there, and for us.”

Bishop Daniel Flores, 48, was born in Palacios, Texas, in 1961. After studying at Holy Trinity Seminary at the University of Dallas and earning both a bachelor's and master's degree, he was ordained for the Diocese of Corpus Christi, Texas, in 1988.

Bishop Flores also attended the University of St. Thomas in Rome, where he completed a licentiate and doctoral degree in theology in 2000. After his return to the U.S., the bishop was assigned to serve in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston as part of the formation faculty of St. Mary's Seminary as well as the teaching faculty at the University of St. Thomas School of Theology.

At the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), Bishop Flores served on the Task Force for Faith Formation and Sacramental Practice.

“Bishop Flores has a remarkable grace of Christian fraternity, of being a brother,” continued Archbishop Vigneron. “He has shared that gift with me personally, and I thank God and him for this blessing.

“He goes with the love and prayers of all of us, his family in Detroit – where he will always find a ready welcome 'back home.'”

Bishop Flores will be installed as the shepherd of the Diocese of Brownsville on February 2, 2010. He  will lead 995,160 laity, 120 priests, 65 permanent deacons and 178 religious.