Pope Francis names new bishop for Mexico

Pope Francis today named Father Mario Nicolás Villanueva Arellano, 53 years old, as the new Auxiliary Bishop for the Archdiocese of Tijuana, in Mexico, governed pastorally by Bishop Francisco Moreno Barrón, who is undergoing cancer treatment.

The announcement was made by the Press Office of the Holy See this September 19, and was also disseminated by the Apostolic Nunciature through the General Secretariat of the Conference of the Mexican Episcopate.

The Archdiocese of Tijuana, located in the state of Baja California, on the northern border of Mexico with the United States, covers an area of ​​29,970 square kilometers and, according to data of the Conference of the Mexican Episcopate, pastorally cares for around 2 million Catholics.

Bishop Francisco Moreno Barrón, who will turn 70 in October, has undergone medical treatments and surgeries since the end of 2022 due to epithelioid mesothelioma.

According to Medline Plus, information service of the United States National Library of Medicine, mesothelioma is a cancer that affects “the tissue that lines the lungs, stomach, heart and other organs.” It is, he points out, a “rare, but serious” condition that occurs mostly “after being exposed to asbestos.”

In its most recent statement Regarding his state of health, dated September 13, Bishop Moreno Barrón shared that, according to doctors, after completing five chemotherapies, his health conditions are “excellent, with a good response to treatment, he does not have a contraindication to carry out his activities. personal and work-related, as long as they are not high impact.”

Who is Father Mario Nicolás Villanueva Arellano?

Mario Nicolás Villanueva Arellano was born on January 19, 1971 in the municipality of Pénjamo, in the Mexican state of Guanajuato, in the north-central part of the country.

He moved to Baja California and entered the Diocesan Seminary of Tijuana at the age of 24, where he was ordained a priest on July 12, 2003.

Already as a priest, he was the parochial vicar of the Sanctuary of the Virgin of Guadalupe in Tijuana and also held the position of treasurer of the Diocesan Seminary of Tijuana.

In 2008, he continued his academic training at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, where he studied a bachelor’s degree in Spiritual Theology and a diploma in Priestly Formation.

Upon his return to Mexico, he assumed different positions at the Diocesan Seminary of Tijuana. Initially, he resumed his duties as treasurer, then he was named Spiritual Director, and since June of this year, until his recent appointment, he served as Rector of the Seminary.