Kenneth Howell (born 20 February 1958) is the

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Toowoomba The Roman Catholic Diocese of Toowoomba is a Latin Rite suffragan diocese of the Archdiocese of Brisbane, established in 1929, covering the Darling Downs and south west regions of Queensland, Australia. St Patrick's Cathedral is the seat of ...

. He was previously an auxiliary bishop of the

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Brisbane The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Brisbane is a Latin Church metropolitan archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Australia located in Brisbane and covering the South East region of Queensland, Australia. Part of the Roman Catholic Ecclesiastical ...

. He was consecrated by

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

Mark Coleridge Mark Benedict Coleridge (born 25 September 1948) is an Australian Catholic bishop. Since 11 May 2012 he has served as the sixth Roman Catholic Archbishop of Brisbane in Queensland. He previously served as the Archbishop of Canberra–Goulburn ...

St Stephen's Cathedral, Brisbane The Cathedral of St Stephen is the heritage-listed cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Brisbane and seat of its archbishop in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. St Stephen's was only meant to serve as a temporary seat for the arc ...

on 14 June 2017. He was appointed Bishop of the

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

on 24 May 2023.

Early life

Howell was born in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

in 1958 and educated at St James College, Brisbane. After graduating from high school, he joined

Queensland Rail Queensland Rail (QR) is a railway operator in Queensland, Australia. Owned by the Queensland Government, it operates local and long-distance passenger services, as well as owning and maintaining approximately 6,600 kilometres of track and relate ...

and worked as a clerk in the chief engineer's office. He entered Pius XII Regional Seminary (now Holy Spirit Seminary, Brisbane) in 1977.

Priesthood

On 24 June 1983, Howell was ordained by Archbishop

Francis Roberts Rush Francis Roberts Rush (1916–2001) was a Roman Catholic priest in Queensland, Australia. He was Roman Catholic Archbishop of Brisbane. Early life Francis Roberts Rush was born in Townsville on 11 September 1916, the son of Thomas Rush and his wi ...

of Brisbane. He served as assistant priest at the parishes of

Noosa Heads Noosa Heads is a coastal town and suburb in the Shire of Noosa, Queensland, Australia. In the , the suburb of Noosa Heads had a population of 4,484 people. It is a popular holiday destination. Geography The suburb is bounded to the west by Wey ...

Burleigh Heads Burleigh Heads is a suburb in the City of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. In the , Burleigh Heads had a population of 10,077 people. Geography Burleigh Head is a cape () jutting into the Coral Sea at the northern mouth of Tallebudgera C ...

and

between 1983 and 1994. Between 1994 and 1997, he completed a Licentiate in Sacred Liturgy at the Pontifical Institute Sant’Anselmo in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. He returned to Australia in 1997 and served as Secretary to Archbishop

John Bathersby John Alexius Bathersby (26 July 1936 – 9 March 2020) was an Australian bishop of the Roman Catholic Church. He was the sixth archbishop of the Archdiocese of Brisbane, serving from 1991 until his retirement in 2011. Bathersby was conferred ...

until 2001, while also serving as a priest and then dean at St Stephen's Cathedral, Brisbane. He also served as the vice rector of the

Holy Spirit Seminary, Brisbane Holy Spirit Seminary is a Catholic provincial seminary for Queensland located in Brisbane, Australia. Originally known as the Pius XII Provincial Seminary, it was founded in 1941 on top of Beehive Hill in the Brisbane suburb of Banyo, in a large R ...

between 2002 and 2008. He became the administrator of St Mary's Parish,

South Brisbane South Brisbane is an inner southern suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the , South Brisbane had a population of 7,196 people. Geography The suburb is on the southern bank of the Brisbane River, bounded to the north-west, ...

in 2008 and Parish Priest at Burleigh Heads in 2013.

Episcopacy

On 28 March 2017, Pope Francis appointed Howell as auxiliary bishop of the

following the resignation of Monsignor Joseph John Oudeman

OFMCap The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; postnominal abbr. O.F.M. Cap.) is a religious order of Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of Three " First Orders" that reformed from the Franciscan Friars Minor Observant (OFM Obs., now OFM ...

. He was given the titular see of

Thamugadi Timgad ( ar, تيمقاد, links=, lit=, translit=Tīmgād, known as Marciana Traiana Thamugadi) was a Roman city in the Aurès Mountains of Algeria. It was founded by the Roman Emperor Trajan around 100 AD. The full name of the city was ''Colo ...

and was consecrated on 14 June 2017 by Archbishop

. On 1 February 2021, he was appointed

Vicar General A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ...

of the Archdiocese of Brisbane. On 24 May 2023, Pope Francis appointed Howell to the

after accepting the resignation of Bishop Robert McGuckin.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Howell, Kenneth 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in Australia Roman Catholic bishops of Toowoomba Living people 1958 births