WASHINGTON (April 5, 2001) -- Pope John Paul II has appointed Monsignor Joseph A. Pepe, Chancellor of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe, as Bishop of Las Vegas.

Bishop-designate Pepe succeeds Bishop Daniel F. Walsh, who was transferred to the Diocese of Santa Rosa in California in April 2000.

Archbishop Gabriel Montalvo, Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, announced the appointment.

Joseph A. Pepe was born in Philadelphia, June 18, 1942.

He attended Catholic elementary and secondary schools in Philadelphia, and St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, and was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia on May 16, 1970. He earned a Doctorate in Canon Law, summa cum laude, at the University of St. Thomas, in Rome, in 1976. He also has an M.A. in Biology.

Following ordination, Bishop-designate Pepe held pastoral, seminary, and administrative positions in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. From 1986 to 1992 he was Vice Chancellor, later Chancellor, of the Philadelphia archdiocese.

Bishop-designate Pepe was named Judicial Vicar of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe in 1993. In 1998 he was appointed Chancellor, Moderator, and Vicar for Clergy of Santa Fe.

For media inquiries, e-mail us at commdept@usccb.org
Department of Communications | 3211 4th Street, N.E., Washington DC 20017-1194 | (202) 541-3000 © USCCB. All rights reserved.