Former Louisville priest named Archbishop of Indianapolis

Catholic News Service and Record Staff Reports

Pope Francis has named Bishop Charles C. Thompson of Evansville, Ind., to head the Archdiocese of Indianapolis. Bishop Thompson is pictured in an undated photo. (CNS photo/the Message)
Pope Francis has named Bishop Charles C. Thompson of Evansville, Ind., to head the Archdiocese of Indianapolis. Bishop Thompson is pictured in an undated photo. (CNS photo/the Message)

WASHINGTON — Pope Francis has named Bishop Charles C. Thompson of Evansville, Indiana, to head the Archdiocese of Indianapolis.

Archbishop-designate Thompson, who has been Evansville’s bishop since 2011, will succeed Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, who was named to head the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey, last November.

The appointment was announced June 13 in Washington by Archbishop Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States.

Archbishop-designate Thompson, 56, a native of Louisville, was vicar general of the Louisville Archdiocese from 2008 until he was named bishop of Evansville. He also served as pastor of Holy Trinity Church beginning in 2002 and taught canon law at St. Meinrad Seminary and School of Theology in Southern Indiana.

On the national level, he is a member of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Administrative Committee, the Committee on Priorities and Plans, and the Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations.

Archbishop of Louisville Joseph E. Kurtz said in a statement released June 13 that he received the appointment with “great delight and gratitude.”

“Archbishop-designate Thompson has served with great distinction as a very caring, pastoral, and humble servant of Jesus Christ for the past six years as Bishop of Evansville, Indiana,” the Archbishop of Louisville noted. “He is a hard worker and a person who always seeks the path of holiness for himself and for those with whom he serves.

“It was my privilege to work closely with him in Louisville for four years before his appointment as a bishop.  During that time I witnessed his gifts of service, not only as the pastor of Holy Trinity Church but also as my Vicar General.”

Archbishop-designate Thompson was known as “Father Chuck” when he served as a priest here and spent his childhood in Marion County, Ky. He is the eldest of Coleman and Joyce Thompson’s three children.

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