It's official: Fabre named archbishop in Louisville

Bishop Shelton Fabre offered sometimes tearful gratitude to the people of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux on Tuesday at a press conference announcing that he will become archbishop of Louisville, Kentucky.
On a live-streamed event in Louisville, Fabre’s voice broke for a moment as he thanked the priests, religious and laity he has served for the last 8-1/2 years.
“I have been incredibly happy and fulfilled as the bishop of Houma-Thibodaux,” Fabre said.
In Schriever on Tuesday, diocesan officials said in another live-streamed press conference that an appointed administrator will tend to the Houma-Thibodaux Diocese’s affairs in the interim between Fabre’s official departure for Louisville on March 30 and the selection of Fabre’s successor. They said the church may need eight months or more to appoint a new bishop for the diocese, which extends into eastern St. Mary Parish.
Tuesday’s announcement was no longer a surprise. The Pillar, a news website covering the Catholic Church, broke the word of Fabre’s appointment Monday, citing unnamed church sources in Rome and in Louisville.
Fabre will replace Archbishop Joseph Kurtz, who resigned in accordance with church rules when he turned 75 in August.
Fabre, 58, was ordained in Baton Rouge and became an auxiliary bishop in New Orleans in 2007. He was appointed to lead the Houma-Thibodaux Diocese in October 2013.
At the press conference in Louisville, Fabre noted that as he leaves Houma-Thibodaux, the area continues to struggle with storm damage.
“I would be remiss if I did not remind the nation of the many challenges as a result of Hurricane Ida,” he said.
He also noted that 77 were people were killed by a tornado that hit Owensboro, Kentucky, in December.
Fabre, the first African American to serve as Houma-Thibodaux’s bishop, chairs a committee against racism for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
The Pillar described Fabre as “a leading voice among the bishops in acknowledging and combating the problem of racism in American society.”
On Tuesday, Fabre urged people to “understand that we are stronger when we are together and to recognize … that it is a call to respect the human life and the human dignity of each person.”
In Schriever, the Rev. Jay Parker, the Houma-Thibodaux Diocese chancellor, explained the process by which a new bishop will be selected.
Each year, he said, bishops in the Province of New Orleans have the chance to submit the names of priests they feel would be good bishops. At an annual provincial meeting, bishops vote on the names and give the results to the apostolic nuncio, the Vatican’s diplomatic representative in Washington. Since 2016, that post has been held by Archbishop Christophe Pierre.
The nuncio gathers facts about the candidates named by the bishops.
When an opening occurs, the nuncio narrows the list of candidates and sends questionnaires to 20 to 30 people who know them. The nuncio then submits three names, with his preference noted, to the Congregation of Bishops in Rome.
If the congregation’s prefect finds the documentation to be in order, a cardinal relator is appointed to make a report, and a vote is taken. In an audience with Pope Francis, the prefect presents the congregation’s recommendation. The decision belongs to the pope.
The process will almost certainly last beyond Fabre’s March 30 departure date.
According to the Rev. Eric Leyble, the Houma-Thibodaux Diocese’s judicial vicar, an administrator will be appointed to serve until a bishop is named.
Unless the Vatican appoints an administrator directly, the selection will be up to a college of consultors made up of members of the diocese’s council of priests. The college of consultors will contain 6-12 members charged with choosing the administrator, who must be a priest, at least 35 and “outstanding in doctrine and prudence.”