Just hours after it was announced Feb. 1 that Pope Francis had appointed Washington Auxiliary Bishop Mario E. Dorsonville as the fifth Bishop of Houma-Thibodaux, Louisiana, the bishop was introduced to his new diocese at a press conference where he said, “I am humbled and very happy and … I am here to serve you.”
“I am one with you. I am one for you,” Bishop Dorsonville said at a meeting with staff, members of the local press and others at the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux Pastoral Center. “I pledge my time, my care, my devotion and my love as a shepherd to be the instrument to bring Jesus Christ in your life.”
Archbishop Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States, made the announcement earlier in the morning that Bishop Dorsonville would succeed former Houma-Thibodaux Bishop Shelton Fabre, who was installed last April as the archbishop of Louisville, Kentucky.
Bishop Dorsonville praised his predecessor as “a wonderful leader and shepherd.” Archbishop Fabre said in a statement that “with great joy, I thank God” for Bishop Dorsonville’s appointment.
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. The diocese comprises an area of 3,500 square miles with a total population of 257,423 of which nearly 32 percent – about 81,500 – 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.
Father Jay Baker, chancellor of the diocese, told Bishop Dorsonville that due to the COVID-19 pandemic and continuing hurricane rebuilding efforts, he will find “a land flowing with challenges and possibilities.”
Bishop Dorsonville said he is focused on “so much suffering in today’s world” and told his new flock that “we need to, as our beloved Pope Francis has said, move from indifference to solidarity.”
“I come to continue the process of rebuilding, the process of being better and the process to be there as an instrument of Jesus Christ in the lives of those who are suffering,” he said. “We will walk together finding the voices of the Holy Spirit that will let us know what are the paths we will take.”
Pointing out that he comes from The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington which has “so many accents, so many faces, but just one faith – we are one family,” Bishop Dorsonville said he was happy to learn his new diocese “has great people and a rich history.”
“I’m delighted to see how Houma-Thibodaux has the spectrum of so many cultures and many talents and gifts,” he said.
Speaking to his “dear brother priests” and the men and women religious who serve in the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux, Bishop Dorsonville said, “I will count on your wisdom and pastoral care to continue to build this church of Christ,” and urged them to reach out to youth and families.
Lonnie Thibodeaux, director of media and public relations for that diocese, told the local media that “today we celebrate the joy of the arrival of a new pastoral shepherd.”
In introducing Bishop Dorsonville to the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux, Father Patrick John “PJ” Madden, who has served as the interim diocesan administrator since last April, called the appointment “a proud moment for us this morning.” He noted that Bishop Dorsonville – who was born in Bogotá, Colombia and comes from a Colombian and French heritage – has “a multi-cultural background that perfectly suits our multi-cultural diocese.”
The priest told Bishop Dorsonville that he would discover in the diocese “a faith-filled Cajun spirituality – you are going to love it.”
Noting that he was told that “three of four alligators” live near the Houma-Thibodaux Pastoral Center, the bishop jokingly noted, “We do not have that in Washington.”
“I am sure little by little you will help me understand the culture and animals that I will see,” he said. “Please pray for me and if anyone knows how to avoid alligators, please let me know.”
Bishop Dorsonville will be installed March 29 at St. Francis de Sales Cathedral in Houma, Louisiana.
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