First auxiliary bishop
of Phoenix ordained

Andrew Junker/CATHOLIC SUN

Auxiliary Bishop Eduardo Alanís Nevares blesses the congregation after his July 19 episcopal ordination at St. Thomas Aquinas Parish in Avondale. Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted, the Phoenix Diocese ordinary, follows behind him. Bishop Nevares will serve all Catholics under Bishop Olmsted's leadership.

Bishop Nevares embraces role of servant

"To each and every one of you present, my blessing to you is the blessing St. Paul gave to the Church at Ephesus," the first auxiliary bishop of Phoenix said before quoting Paul's letter to the Ephesians July 19 at St. Thomas Aquinas Parish.

"I pray that out of [God's] glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith," he said to the more than 2,000 gathered.

That included around 60 Catholics from the Tyler Diocese, nearly 200 priests and more than 20 bishops.

For many in the church, it was the first time they heard Bishop Nevares speak, and his few minutes behind the ambo made a big impression.

"What impressed me the most is that instead of talking about himself, he chose a blessing for the people," said Armando Ruiz, who serves on the diocesan Justice for Immigrants committee. "It told you a lot about what will be his pastoral path."

It's a path marked by service and not prestige, something Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted encouraged in his homily.

"It is our privilege and our duty to serve and not to be served, to put others' needs ahead of our own, and to resist all temptations to lord it over anyone," Bishop Olmsted said.

"This is the example that the Lord Jesus left for us, when He washed the feet of the Apostles, and then said to them, 'What I just did was to give you an example: as I have done, so you must do,'" he said.

Serving others is a responsibility the auxiliary bishop is ready to embrace. He chose "Serve the Lord with gladness" as his episcopal motto.

As the diocese's first Hispanic bishop — and in light of the state's controversial immigration law, SB 1070 — his outreach to the Spanish-speaking community will be considerable.

The new bishop even referred to the timing of his appointment as something "providential," describing himself as a "bridge person" who will try to bring people together.

"I will help Bishop Olmsted," Bishop Nevares said. "He has asked especially that I animate the Hispanic community and raise up men and women to the priesthood and religious life."

His effect was felt immediately following the Mass. As he made his way not 50 feet from the exit of the church to the parish office, he was stopped by dozens of men, women and children — many from the Neocatechumenal Way — asking for a blessing or to kiss his ring.

He stopped with each one of them, taking photos, blessing them, listening to their prayer requests. It was over 100 degrees, and print and broadcast media from Spanish and English outlets were waiting for a press conference. Still, Bishop Nevares took his time. He never rushed those who wanted a second of his attention.

A servant's journey

Bishop Nevares has long been known for this kind of pastoral care. His parents were Mexican immigrants and his mother immigrated with her five children — baby Eduardo still in the womb — after his father had found work. Born in San Antonio and raised in Houston, the 11-year-old future bishop was inspired by a visiting missionary who talked of his work in Madagascar.

As a teenager, he attended a junior seminary for the Missionaries of Our Lady of La Salette, into which order he was ordained a priest in 1981. In 2007, he was incardinated into the Diocese of Tyler, where he had been serving for years.

"He's a holy man, he's a servant of the Church. This is how he's lived his life since he was 12 years old," said Deacon Mark D'Eramo, a friend of the bishop's from Tyler. "He's totally focused on the people. He will serve well in this diocese."
Phoenix seminarian A.J. Enfield, who attends school at the Pontifical College Josephinum in Columbus, Ohio, where Bishop Nevares served as vice rector, described the new bishop as a great listener.

"When I first met him, I was impressed with his availability. The more I talked to him, I realized it was just you and him," Enfield said. "He's completely present to whomever he's talking to. It really stood out for me. There was never a moment where his mind was elsewhere."

He is also known for his outreach to Hispanics. Bishop Nevares formed the Diocese of Tyler's first Spanish-speaking program to train men to be permanent deacons.

It's this reputation of holiness and availability that have excited so many local Catholics — especially Hispanics — since learning of his appointment in Phoenix.

"We have someone like ourselves in this position. We can identify with him," said Manuel Torres Caballero, a parishioner at San Martin de Porres. "We feel that also with our Bishop Olmsted, because he speaks Spanish. But with Bishop Nevares, we get something else. I don't know how to describe it."

Caballero said it's a difficult time for Hispanics locally and Bishop Nevares' ordination provides some joy and hope.

"We feel hope in a difficult time, joy and happiness," he said. "We feel supported."

At the same time, both Bishops Olmsted and Nevares have stressed that the new auxiliary is here to serve everyone, not just one group. It was a point emphasized with a string of ethnic groups greeting the new bishop before the final blessing.

"I must admit that now I know I am not in Tyler," Bishop Nevares joked about his previous diocese. "I've never been greeted by so many beautiful ethnic groups."

'Serve the Lord with gladness'

During the Mass, Bishop Nevares knelt before Bishop Olmsted while two deacons held the Book of Gospels over his head. Bishop Olmsted then anointed Bishop Nevares' forehead with oil. Finally, more than 20 visiting bishops — including Cardinal Roger Mahoney of Los Angeles — laid their hands on the new bishop's head and prayed for him.

Scores and scores of priests from the Phoenix Diocese and the Diocese of Tyler attended the ordination, a testament to the close relationship a bishop shares with his co-workers in the vineyard.

"He's going to be terrific. He seems like a humble man. He'll help us as a bishop," said Fr. Dennis O'Rourke, VF, pastor of St. Gabriel the Archangel Parish in Cave Creek and dean of the northeast parishes.

"It's a fabulous opportunity for us to grow as a diocese, to experience a second shepherd," he said. "A diocese our size really needs a second bishop."

As for Bishop Nevares, working with the diocese's priests and deacons will be a priority.

"The bishop is nothing without his priests and without his deacons. They are the bishop's representatives in the individual parishes and ministries," he said in an interview with The Catholic Sun. "So as I go out among the parishes and ministries and the religious and lay faithful, I will serve as I teach the Catholic faith. A bishop's teaching authority is a real service."

At one part during the Mass, the soon-to-be-ordained bishop lay prostrate in front of the altar while the congregation chanted the Litany of Saints, an emotional and profound moment for him.

"God, here's my life. It's for you," Bishop Nevares described his thoughts during the liturgy.

This complete surrender to God disposes the new bishop to serve all of God's people. It helps him recognize each person's dignity.

"I've got so much on my plate, but I've only got this one person right in front of me. So right now, right here is Christ with me. My whole theology tells me that the beauty of the Christian faith is that Jesus Christ came and reconciled us to the Father and to one another through His suffering and death," Bishop Nevares said.

"Because of that He was able to send us His Holy Spirit. And because of that, the Holy Spirit lives with us through baptism. Each of us is a temple of the Holy Spirit, our brothers and sisters of Christ," he said. "And because of that I want to give them my full and undivided attention."

J.D. Long-García contributed to this story.