New Auxiliary Bishops Ordained For LA Archdiocese

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Three new auxiliary bishops chosen by Pope Francis for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles were ordained Tuesday in a Mass celebrated by Archbishop Jose Gomez.

Monsignors David O'Connell and Joseph Brennan, who already serve in the Los Angeles Archdiocese, were named auxiliary bishops by the pope in July, along with Rev. Robert Barron, who was rector/president of the University of St. Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary in Chciago.

"I am overjoyed to be ordaining these three fine priests to be Auxiliary Bishops," Gomez said in a statement. "Each of them is a man of prayer who has a heart to serve people. This is a time of joy for the entire Catholic family here in the Archdiocese and a time of grace for all the people of Los Angeles."

O'Connell, who was born in Ireland, has been a priest since 1979 and has held a variety of posts in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, primarily in the South Los Angeles area. He is pastor of St. Frances X. Cabrini Church and will serve as the Episcopal Vicar for the San Gabriel Pastoral Region.

Brennan, a Van Nuys native, has served as vicar general and moderator of the curia since 2012. He will serve as the Episcopal Vicar for the San Fernando Pastoral Region, replacing Bishop Gerald E. Wilkerson, who is retiring.

Barron will serve as the Episcopal Vicar for the Santa Barbara Pastoral Region, which is part of the Roman Catholic Archiocese of Los Angeles – the nation's biggest.

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