Houston, Texas, Feb 17, 2005 / 22:00 pm
Archbishop Joseph A. Fiorenza was installed Wednesday as the first Archbishop of the newly formed Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston before a crowd of nearly 1,400.
Archbishop Jose Gomez, who was installed as Archbishop of the neighboring San Antonio Archdiocese on Tuesday, joined Fiorenza at St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church for the installation Mass.
On December 29th of last year, Pope John Paul II split the massive Archdiocese of San Antonio in two, creating the new Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston in the process.
Fiorenza, a native of Beaumont, Texas, told those gathered at the Mass that, “it is my honor to serve the first archbishop, of course. But I think it is a wonderful honor and recognition for the depth of the faith of the people in this part of Texas that has caught the eye of the Holy Father.”