Welcome, Bishop Solis!

Friday, Jan. 13, 2017

SALT LAKE CITY — After 20 months without an ordinary, the Diocese of Salt Lake City has received word that Bishop Oscar Solis has been appointed its new head.

“The wait has been worth it,” said Monsignor Colin F. Bircumshaw, diocesan administrator, at the Jan. 10 press conference introducing the bishop to Utah. Bishop Solis, the monsignor said, is “joyful, he is experienced, and multi-talented.”

Ordained a priest in 1979 in his native Philippines, Bishop Solis ministered in his home country as well as in New Jersey and Louisiana before being appointed an auxiliary bishop for Los Angeles in 2004. 

Bishop Solis is Auxiliary Bishop for the San Pedro Region of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, which has the largest Filipino Catholic population in the country. Previously he served as the archdiocese’s Vicar for Ethnic Ministry and Director of the Office of Justice and Peace. 

At the press conference, Bishop Solis said he has been working very hard for the last 13 years in Los Angeles – “I would like to emphasize the words ‘very hard,’” he said, to laughter from those in the room, who included not only members of the press but Pastoral Center staff and diocesan priests and deacons – “and lo and behold, I received a very surprising and shocking phone call informing me that Pope Francis was asking me to become the 10th Bishop of Salt Lake City.”

The call came out of nowhere, he said; his first response was, “Am I in trouble?

In response, the apostolic nuncio to the United States, Archbishop Christophe Pierre, who was on the other end of the line, “made me feel at peace,” Bishop Solis said.

Since that call, he has felt many emotions, among them fear of uncertainty and gratitude for God’s blessings, he said.

The visit to Salt Lake City for the announcement of his appointment was only his second to the Beehive State; he had come once before to officiate at a wedding, he said in an interview.

Since hearing of his new assignment, he has started to become acquainted with the diocese; already he has learned about Catholic Community Services’ and other pastoral outreach to the poor and needy. He said he can’t wait to hear the voices of the Madeleine Choir School students, and he is looking forward to working with members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to enhance the well-being of all the people of Utah

“I humbly submit myself to you as the new servant leader of the Diocese of Salt Lake City and a shepherd for the people of the state of Utah,” he said as he concluded his prepared remarks. “Please pray for me. Pray that God will give me the wisdom and the strength to be a responsible shepherd of the flock of the diocese of Salt Lake City and the people of Utah. … I am overjoyed, I am encouraged and excited to be here. From now on I say that this is my home, this is my church, this is my state and you are my family, and we are a family.”

During the press conference, the bishop spoke in English and in Spanish, and also replied in Filipino to a greeting from a Filipino priest, Father Renato Rodillas of Saint Olaf Parish.

“It’s an honor for me to share the mission of our Church not only with the Hispanics but with all cultures,” he said, in Spanish as he concluded his remarks. “This is a mission to share and to proclaim God’s love. … I hope everyone feels that they are part of the Church, so let’s work together to build God’s kingdom.”

During the press conference, Bishop Solis fielded several questions about pressing issues such as immigration and the possibility of the ordination of women priests.

As an immigrant himself, Bishop Solis said he is thankful that the United States opens its doors to immigrants and gives them opportunities to work and worship together.

“This is the spirit of America, and this is the beautiful spirit of our Church, to work with every people of every race, of every culture, of every language and every state of life,” he said.

The Church also has a strong tradition of ecumenism, he said in response to another question, and he believes it is important to seek similarities rather than differences.

During the nine weeks before his installation, he plans to learn what needs to be done in the diocese and work with his brother priests, he said. “I do not know everything … I come with an open mind and open heart.” 

He values women, he said, particularly because of his mother, sisters, aunt and his special devotion to the Blessed Mother, and believes women’s gifts should be maximized for the good of the Church and for society, but he stands with the pope on the issue of women’s ordination.

Having learned that the diocese encompasses the entire state of Utah, roughly 85,000 square miles, he said he will be not only a Roman bishop but a roaming bishop.

“I feel like a baby, a child, with something great in front of me,” he said. “So I can’t wait to go around. Maybe after the snow. My Oriental blood is too thin.”

Cardinal Roger Mahony, Archbishop emeritus of Los Angeles, lauded Bishop Solis for his work in the archdiocese. 

“His personal warmth and pastoral presence captivated everyone, Filipinos and all others alike,” the archbishop emeritus said in a press release. “Fortunately, his new home in Salt Lake City will not hinder in the least his leadership among the Filipino priests, and his energetic commitment to expand all models of ministry for Filipino Catholics everywhere.”

Archbishop José H. Gomez of Los Angeles said in a statement that he will miss Bishop Solis, but could not be happier for him. “I have relied on his good advice and pastoral judgment, and I am inspired by his love and dedication to the people of the San Pedro Pastoral Region and the whole family of God here in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. We are all going to miss him greatly,” the archbishop said.

Name: Bishop Oscar Azarcon Solis

Place of Birth: San Jose City, Philippines

Family: His parents, Anselmo dela Fuente Solis and Antonia Ortega Azarcon, are deceased. He has two sisters, Celia S. Tapia and Maria Socorro S. Pacubas, and a brother, the Rev. Ronald A. Solis (Opus Dei). Three of his siblings are deceased: Helen, Wilfredo and Eugenio.

Education: AB in philosophy from the Divine Word Seminary, Tagaytay City; STB (cum laude) from the Divine Word Seminary, Tagaytay City; and post-graduate studies in Oriental Religions and Cultures.

Priestly Ordination: April 28, 1979 in San Jose City, Philippines

Episcopal Ordination: Feb. 10, 2004 in Our Lady of the Angels Cathedral, Los Angeles, Calif.

Episcopal Motto: Fiat Voluntas Tua (Your will be done)

Favorite saying: “God created our hearts not as storage bins for his graces and blessings; he made our hearts to be distribution centers of his blessings and love.”

After pastoral assignments in the Philippines, Bishop Solis came to the United States and served in the Archdiocese of Newark, N.J. from 1984 to 1988. He then served as a parish priest in the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux, LA., from 1993 to 2003. Since 2004, he has been an auxiliary bishop for Los Angeles. In the archdiocese, he was the vicar for ethnic ministry and was the auxiliary bishop of the San Pedro Pastoral Region, covering southern Los Angeles County.

He was appointed Bishop of Salt Lake City on Jan. 10, 2017

The official installation of Oscar Solis as tenth bishop of the Diocese of Salt Lake City will take place in the Cathedral of the Madeleine on Tuesday, March 7, 2017 at 2 p.m. Tickets will be required for the Installation. Solemn Vespers will be held in the cathedral March 6 at 7 p.m. A public reception will be held March 7, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Salt Lake City Marriott Downtown at City Creek, 75 S. West Temple.