Bishop Daniel Garcia visited Dripping Springs in January when he blessed the grounds of the future St. Dympha Center at St. Martin de Porres Catholic Church. He was assisted by Alter Server Jane Unger. CENTURY NEWS PHOTO SUZANNE PACHECO
Austin Auxiliary Bishop named Bishop of Monterey
The Diocese of Austin announced that Pope Francis has appointed Austin Auxiliary Bishop Daniel E. Garcia as fifth Bishop of Monterey, California. Bishop Garcia will be installed as the Bishop of Monterey on Jan. 29, at 2 p.m. at Madonna del Sasso Parish in Salinas, California.
Bishop Garcia has deep Central Texas ties. He was ordained as a priest for the Diocese of Austin on May 28, 1988, by Bishop John E. McCarthy. He was born on Aug. 30, 1960 as the eldest of four children of Daniel Castilleja Garcia Jr. and the late Sarah Muñoz Garcia. He grew up in Cameron. He is bilingual in Spanish and English.
He earned an associate of arts degree from Tyler Junior College in 1982. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from St. Mary’s Seminary at the University of St. Thomas in Houston in 1984 and earned a Master of Divinity from the same university in 1988. He earned a Master of Arts in Liturgical Studies in 2007 from St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota.
Bishop Garcia has served in a variety of roles in the Diocese of Austin. His first assignment was as associate pastor of St. Catherine of Siena Parish in Austin, followed by Cristo Rey Parish in Austin and St. Louis King of France Parish in Austin. He briefly served at St. Mary Magdalene Parish in Humble in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. In 1995, he was named Founding Pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Austin, leading the parish from its inception through multiple building projects until his appointment as Vicar General and Moderator of the Curia in 2014.