Bishop Mario E. Dorsonville, a former auxiliary bishop of The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington, was installed March 29 as the fifth bishop of Houma-Thibodaux, Louisiana.

“I put my trust in Jesus Christ because whenever He gives us a mission, He also gives us the strength and the wisdom to carry it out,” Bishop Dorsonville said as he was installed during a nearly two-hour liturgy at the Cathedral of St. Francis de Sales in Houma. 

During the Mass, Archbishop Christophe Pierre, the apostolic nuncio to the United States, read Pope Francis’s mandate appointing Bishop Dorsonville as the bishop of Houma-Thibodaux.

In the decree, Pope Francis asked the faithful of the Diocese of Houma–Thibodaux to welcome their new bishop “as a father to be loved and a teacher to be heeded.”

Archbishop Pierre told Bishop Dorsonville that he will be made to feel at home in his new diocese “because you will find in this diocese many opportunities to continue your ministry as shepherd.” He also urged Bishop Dorsonville to “listen to the laity who have many gifts and much love for the Church” and serve as “both a brother and a father” to his priests.

After the decree was read, Bishop Dorsonville said he accepted the appointment “with faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and with the love of God in my heart.” He then presented the mandate to diocesan officials and the faithful of the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux. 

Afterwards, Bishop Dorsonville was presented with a crosier (shepherd’s staff) and escorted to his cathedra, (bishop’s chair) – the symbols of his authority. The faithful who packed the cathedral to witness the installation applauded as the new bishop of Houma-Thibodaux assumed his post. He was then welcomed by representatives of his new diocese.

Bishop Dorsonville succeeds Bishop Shelton J. Fabre, who was installed as the archbishop of Louisville, Kentucky, on March 30, 2022.

In his first homily to his new flock, Bishop Dorsonville said, “I am so grateful for your kindness in welcoming me to this great state of Louisiana. It is your home and now it is mine too. I realize that a new chapter of my life has begun, knowing that the book gets better as the book goes on.”

Promising that “from now on you are in my prayers,” Bishop Dorsonville called on his new family of faith to “walk together to answer God’s call to continue to build up the Church we love …  if we do that together we will be closer to holiness.”

He also asked for prayers of his new flock that “in my words, actions and deeds from now on you do not recognize my voice, but (instead) a faithful instrument of Jesus Christ.”

Among the clergy at the installation Mass were Cardinal Wilton Gregory, archbishop of The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington; Cardinal Donald Wuerl, archbishop emeritus of Washington; New Orleans Archbishop Gregory Aymond, the metropolitan archbishop of the ecclesiastical province of which the Diocese of Houma–Thibodaux is part; Archbishop Timothy Broglio of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, and president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops; more than 30 other bishops and archbishops and more than 150 priests.

Hundreds crowded the cathedral for the Mass, which was also livestreamed on the diocesan website and on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyPxC1w3aEc). More than 300 people from throughout the United States and as far away as Italy and Ireland followed the Mass online.

Prior to the Mass and following ancient Church tradition, Bishop Dorsonville knocked on the door of his new cathedral where he was admitted by diocesan officials. He used a hammer that was given to him as a young man by his father. After entering the cathedral, Bishop Dorsonville blessed a crucifix, processed into the church and prayed before the tabernacle.

Located southwest of New Orleans, the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux was erected in 1977, and comprises the civil Louisiana parishes of Terrebonne and Lafourche, as well as parts of St. Mary and Jefferson parishes. It has 38 churches and 11 schools, and comprises an area of 3,500 square miles with a total population of more than 257,000 of which nearly 34 percent – about 90,000 – are Catholic.

The diocese is still recovering and rebuilding from Hurricane Ida, the deadly category 4 storm that slammed Louisiana in August 2021. It was one of the three strongest hurricanes on record to ever hit the state.

Bishop Dorsonville in his homily promised to “build up the dignity of the human person by loving the poor and fixing my eyes on the people who are still struggling to rebuild their homes and their lives after the last hurricane. We are here for them.”

Father Patrick “P.J.” Madden, who served Houma-Thibodaux as diocesan administrator since April 1, 2022, said the installation Mass was planned as a celebration “for and about the people” of the diocese because Bishop Dorsonville “is so conscious of the pain in our diocese as we continue to recover from Hurricane Ida.”

Mario E. Dorsonville was born Oct. 31, 1960 in Bogotá, Colombia, the only child of Leonor M. Rodríguez and Carlos J. Dorsonville. He attended the Major Seminary of the Archdiocese of Bogotá, receiving a bachelor’s degree in philosophy in 1981 and a bachelor’s degree in sacred theology in 1985. He was ordained to the priesthood on Nov. 23, 1985 in Bogotá.

Following ordination, he served as parochial vicar, pastor, associate chaplain and professor in his native Bogotá. He received a licentiate in sacred theology from the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana de Bogotá in 1991 and a doctorate in ministry from The Catholic University of America in 1996.

From 1992-1994, while studying at CUA, he assisted the Hispanic community on weekends at two parishes in Arlington, Virginia, and served as a lecturer at the Inter-American Development Bank Headquarters in Washington, D.C. He served as professor of theology and catechesis at the Institute for Hispanic Pastoral Studies of Arlington from 1993-1994.

He returned briefly to Colombia to serve as chaplain and professor of business ethics to the National University of Colombia and professor of pastoral counseling and catechesis at the Major Seminary of the Archdiocese of Bogotá from 1995-1996.

In The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington, he was as a parochial vicar of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Bethesda, Maryland and St. Mark the Evangelist Parish in Hyattsville, Maryland. He was a member of the Board of Directors for Carroll Publishing Company from 2001-2004.

Bishop Dorsonville served as vice president of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington and director of the Spanish Catholic Center from 2005 to 2015. He was also an adjunct spiritual director of St. John Paul II Seminary in Washington, D.C., as well as a mentor for newly ordained priests.

He was named an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Washington by Pope Francis in 2015. He served as vicar general for the Archdiocese of Washington since 2015. He was a member of the Board of Directors of the Maryland Catholic Conference and a member of the Board of Directors of Catholic Charities.

Bishop Dorsonville was the chairman for the Migration and Refugee Services Committee for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (2019-2022). He has served as a member of the bishops’ Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, Committee on Migration, Committee for Religious Liberty, and the Ad Hoc Committee Against Racism.

Pope Francis appointed him bishop of Houma-Thibodaux on Feb. 1.