Pope Francis has named Fr. Hector Vila as bishop of Whitehorse, Yukon, the largest city in northern Canada.
Hector Vila was born in Lima, Peru, in 1962 and was ordained a priest in 1995. He studied at the University of Toronto, Canada, and the Redemptoris Mater seminary in Rome, and has served in pastoral roles in the Roman parishes of St. Ireneo and St. Patrizio and in the parish of St. Norbert in Toronto, and is currently rector of the Redemptoris Mater seminary in Toronto.
Bishop-elect Vila succeeds Bishop Gary Gordon who was appointed Bishop of the Diocese of Victoria on June 14, 2014. Bishop Gordon had served as Apostolic Administrator of Whitehorse until he was installed as Bishop of Victoria on August 28, 2014. Since then, the Reverend Kieran Kilcommons, M.H.A., has been Diocesan Administrator of the Diocese of Whitehorse.
According to the CCCB 2015 Directory, the Diocese of Whitehorse has 22 parishes and missions, with a Catholic population of 8,150, served by seven diocesan priests, three priests who are members of religious communities, two Sisters who are also members of religious communities, and seven lay pastoral assistants.
