Pope Francis has appointed Bishop José Antonio Fernández Hurtado of Tuxtepec, Mexico, as metropolitan archbishop of Durango.
The 61-year-old prelate is a native of Morelia.
He succeeds 75-year-old Archbishop Héctor González Martínez, who retired for reasons of age.
The Archdiocese of Durango has a population of some 1.17 million Catholics served by only 178 priests and eight permanent deacons, as well as some 275 religious.
Durango is in west central Mexico.
