Father Earl K. Fernandes says that when he was growing up in Toledo, Ohio, his mother used to pray that he’d become “a good boy, a tall boy, and a doctor like my dad.” God had other plans for his profession.
On April 2nd, the Vatican announced that Pope Francis has appointed the 49-year-old Cincinnati pastor, the son of Indian immigrants, to be the next bishop of the Diocese of Columbus, Ohio.
The first Indian-American to head a U.S. Roman Catholic diocese, Fernandes succeeds Bishop Robert J. Brennan, who now leads the Diocese of Brooklyn. Fernandes’ episcopal ordination and installation is scheduled for May 31.
In a press conference Saturday morning in Columbus, the bishop-elect spoke at length about the example of his immigrant parents, the experiences he has had being the victim of racial discrimination, and his “synodal” approach to his new role.
“The Pope wants a synodal Church, a Church that walks together. I look forward to walking together with the people, the priests, the deacons, and religious — actually, the whole people of God — in the Diocese of Columbus,” Fernandes said.