Pope Francis has appointed a new bishop in the United States. The Holy See announced Thursday that the Pope appointed Fr. David Austin Konderla as bishop of Tulsa, Oklahoma.
He succeeds Bishop Edward J. Slattery, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese upon reaching the age limit was accepted by the Holy Father.
Born in Bryan, Texas in 1960, David Austin Konderla would go on to study at the University of Dallas and St. Mary’s seminary in Houston. He was ordained a priest in 1995.
Bishop-elect Konderla served in a number of pastoral roles in the diocese of Austin, including parish vicar, director of priestly vocations, member of the personnel board, and member of the presbyteral council.
Prior to his appointment, he was serving as parish priest at the St. Mary Catholic Centre at the University of Texas A&M at College Station, and as diocesan consultant.
The American diocese of Tulsa comprises an area of some 68,394 kilometers. Out of a population of some 1,790,000, some 65,658 are Catholic. They are served by some 107 priests, 76 permanent deacons, and 126 religious.
