FALL RIVER — The Diocese of Fall River will install its eighth bishop Pope Francis appointed da Cunha to succeed Bishop George W submitted a letter of resignation upon turning 75 years old on Feb is the first Brazilian-born priest to become a bishop in the United States da Cunha will shepherd about 302,484 people who worship in 84 parishes and 11 mission churches within 1,194 square miles “I see this as a gift from the Lord,” da Cunha said at a press conference Thursday at the Fall River diocese’s Highland Avenue building Da Cunha said the appointment would afford him a chance to “exercise his ministry.” He thanked his “beloved Holy Father Pope Francis for his confidence” and said he was looking forward to ministering in his new home in Fall River “I could never imagine in my wildest dreams standing here today as the future bishop of the Fall River diocese,” da Cunha said Da Cunha arrived in Fall River on Wednesday evening he was welcomed by Coleman and smiled easily as he spoke and shook hands with all present He said he will return to Newark to continue in his present role as auxiliary bishop until September He said he wasn’t aware if his appointment in the Fall River Diocese had anything to do with his background or the strong Brazilian and Portuguese presence in the area Da Cunha’s installation as bishop of the Fall River Diocese is planned for Sept 24 at the Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption in Fall River Details will be announced in the forthcoming weeks parishioners learned of the announcement and said they welcomed da Cunha to Fall River We have a lot of Portuguese people here,” said parishioner Andre Nasser The Cathedral of Saint Mary offers a weekly Mass for the city’s Brazilian population “He is certainly of the heart and mind of the good shepherd and is a holy reflection of our Holy Father Pope Francis himself,” Ozug said Parishioner Martha Ratcliffe said it was the first that she’d heard of the new bishop Cindy Raymond noted that it would be good for the Portuguese and Brazilian residents in Greater Fall River “There’s a lot of Portuguese people around here,” Raymond said “It should be kind of exciting,” said the Rev Neylon of Holy Trinity Church on Stafford Road He said the appointment would be a good thing for the city’s immigrants Gauvin recently took the helm at Espirito Santo on Alden Street “We’re very happy to have him here,” Gauvin said Da Cunha said he had no specific plans yet for the Fall River diocese He said he needed to “get to know” the diocese and learn its “greatest needs.” When questions about closing churches and schools were put forth da Cunha said he did not know enough about the diocese to make any decisions He said that “Catholic education is very important to our mission” and that he wanted the diocese to “continue to provide a Catholic education.” He was questioned about a statement by the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests which said da Cunha ignored the clergy sexual abuse issue in Newark The network said he showed no real “courage” or “compassion” in those cases Da Cunha said he had been a vicar for one year at the time and it was not among his responsibilities to address the issues including the minor seminary of the Vocationist Fathers in Riachão do Jacuípe also known as the Society of Divine Vocations Da Cunha studied philosophy at Universidade Catolica do Salvador and theology at Immaculate Conception Seminary in Darlington graduating with a Master of Divinity degree He was ordained to the priesthood for the Society of Divine Vocations when the archdiocese entrusted Saint Nicholas Parish in Palisades Park to the Vocationist Fathers da Cunha was transferred there to serve as parochial vicar and vice superior of the local community and continued his ministry of promoting vocations he served on the board of the Eastern Religious Vocations Directors Association he was elected secretary of the Council of the Vocationist Delegation in the United States da Cunha served as novice master and director of the Vocationary the house of formation that the Vocationist Fathers maintains in Florham Park His appointment as auxiliary bishop of Newark and titular bishop of Ucres was announced by the Holy See in 2003 Da Cunha was appointed regional bishop for Essex County in 2003 and then vicar for evangelization in 2005 He was named vicar general for the Archdiocese of Newark in 2013 and as such has since served as the principal deputy of the archbishop in the administration of the archdiocese Da Cunha said he was “grateful” for the kind welcome he has received in Fall River He said he will count on Coleman’s expertise in getting to know the community “I know I have so much to learn,” da Cunha said “I’m willing to learn from them and to celebrate our faith in God together.” He said there was “reason to celebrate and rejoice.” Da Cunha is currently a member of the Newark Archdiocesan Board of Consultors the Clergy Personnel Board; the New Jersey Catholic Conference Board of Bishops and chairman of NJCC Public Policy Committee Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Cultural Diversity in the Church; Committee on Migration; and currently is a member of the Sub-Committee on the Church in Latin America the Sub-Committee on Pastoral Care of Migrants He is chairman of the Archdiocesan Implementation Team for the New Energies — Parish Transition Project in the Archdiocese of Newark He serves as a consultor to the subcommittee on Hispanic affairs; and as episcopal liaison to the Brazilian Apostolate in the United States Editor's Note: The following is a press release from the Fall River Diocese press conference is planned for this morning in Fall River FALL RIVER — Pope Francis has appointed the Most Reverend Edgar Moreira da Cunha currently an Auxiliary Bishop of the Newark to become the Eighth Bishop of the Fall River Diocese submitted his letter of resignation upon turning 75 years of age on February 1 The acceptance of his resignation and the appointment of Bishop da Cunha were announced today in Washington by the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States will be installed as Bishop of Fall River in the context of a Mass to be celebrated on Sept at the Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption in Fall River Details of his installation will be announced in forthcoming weeks Bishop da Cunha will shepherd a community of faith of approximately 302,484 persons who worship in 84 parishes and 11 mission churches in southeastern Massachusetts including the minor seminary (or Vocationary) of the Vocationist Fathers in Riachão do Jacuípe He studied Philosophy at Universidade Catolica do Salvador and Theology at Immaculate Conception Seminary Bishop da Cunha was ordained to the priesthood for the Society of Divine Vocations Following his ordination he served as a parochial vicar of St and as director of vocations for his Congregation when the Archdiocese entrusted Saint Nicholas Parish Bishop da Cunha was transferred there to serve as parochial vicar and vice superior of the local community and at the same time continued his ministry of promoting vocations During his time as vocation director he was very active and served on the board of the Eastern Religious Vocations Directors Association In 1992 he was elected secretary of the Council of the Vocationist Delegation in the United States Bishop da Cunha served as novice master and director of the Vocationary the house of formation that the Society maintains in Florham Park His appointment as Auxiliary Bishop of Newark and Titular Bishop of Ucres was announced by the Holy See on June 27 the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus at the Sacred Heart Cathedral Basilica and was appointed Regional Bishop for Essex County on October 15 2003 and then Vicar for Evangelization on May 4 He was named Vicar General for the Archdiocese of Newark on June 6 2013 and as such has since served as the principal deputy of the archbishop in the administration of the archdiocese Bishop da Cunha is presently a member of the Newark Archdiocesan Board of Consultors the Clergy Personnel Board; the New Jersey Catholic Conference (NJCC) Board of Bishops and chairman of NJCC Public Policy Committee; he has served as member of the U.S Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Cultural Diversity in the Church; Committee on Migration; and currently he is a member of the Sub-Committee on the Church in Latin America Refugee and Travelers; he serves as a Consultor to the Sub-Committee on Hispanic Affairs; he also serves as Episcopal Liaison to the Brazilian Apostolate (in the U.S.) He is Chairman of the Archdiocesan Implementation Team for the New Energies – Parish Transition Project in the Archdiocese of Newark The Diocese of Fall River was established in 1904 and covers 1,194 square miles Bishop Coleman has led the Diocese since July 22 The requester URL cannot be found in our server. 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