Oscar Cantú (born December 5, 1966) is a Mexican-American prelate of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

who has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of San Jose in California since 2018. He served as bishop of the

Diocese of Las Cruces The Diocese of Las Cruces ( la, Dioecesis Las Cruces, es, Diócesis de Las Cruces) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the southwestern region of the United States, comprising the 10 southern counties i ...

in New Mexico from 2013 to 2018, and as an auxiliary bishop of the

Archdiocese of San Antonio The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio is an archdiocese of the Catholic Church in the United States, and sui juris Latin Church in full communion with the pope of Rome. It encompasses in the U.S. state of Texas. The Roman Catholic Archd ...

in Texas from 2008 to 2013. When Cantú became a bishop in 2008, he was the youngest bishop in the United States.

Biography

Early years

Oscar Cantú was born on December 5, 1966, in Houston, Texas, the son of Ramiro and Maria de Jesus Cantú, natives of small towns near

Monterrey, Mexico Monterrey ( , ) is the capital and largest city of the northeastern state of Nuevo León, Mexico, and the third largest city in Mexico behind Guadalajara and Mexico City. Located at the foothills of the Sierra Madre Oriental, the city is anchor ...

. He is the fifth of eight children. Cantú attended Holy Name Catholic School and St. Thomas High School in Houston and graduated from the

University of Dallas The University of Dallas is a private Catholic university in Irving, Texas. Established in 1956, it is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. The university comprises four academic units: the Braniff Graduate School ...

. He received his Master of Divinity and Master of Theological Studies from the

University of St. Thomas St. Thomas University or University of St. Thomas may refer to: *Saint Thomas Aquinas University, Colombia *Saint Thomas Aquinas University of the North, Tucumán province, Argentina *St. Thomas University (Canada), Fredericton, New Brunswick *St. ...

in Houston. Cantú attended the

Pontifical Gregorian University The Pontifical Gregorian University ( it, Pontificia Università Gregoriana; also known as the Gregorian or Gregoriana,) is a higher education ecclesiastical school ( pontifical university) located in Rome, Italy. The Gregorian originated as ...

in Rome from 1998 to 2002, earning a

Licentiate in Sacred Theology Licentiate in Sacred Theology ( la, Sacrae Theologiae Licentiatus; abbreviated STL) is the second of three ecclesiastical degrees in theology (the first being the Baccalaureate in Sacred Theology and the third being the Doctorate in Sacred Theol ...

and a Doctor of Dogmatic Theology. He is fluent in English, Spanish, Italian, and French.

Priesthood

Cantú was ordained a priest by Archbishop

Joseph Fiorenza Joseph Anthony Fiorenza (January 25, 1931 – September 19, 2022) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He was the seventh bishop and the first archbishop of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston in Texas, serving from 1985 to 200 ...

of the

Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

on May 21, 1994. Cantú spent his early career as a priest working in Houston area parishes. His first assignment was as curate at St. Christopher Parish. He taught at the University of St. Thomas and at St. Mary’s Seminary, and served as pastor of Holy Name Parish. Cantú conducted youth retreats in the

Christian Family Movement The Christian Family Movement (CFM) is a national movement of parish small groups of Catholics and their families who meet in one another's homes or in parish centers to reinforce Christian values and encourage other fellow Christian parents through ...

in the archdiocese, and worked with the Engaged Encounter ministry. He was also involved in The Metropolitan Organization (TMO), which addresses

fair housing Housing discrimination in the United States refers to the historical and current barriers, policies, and biases that prevent equitable access to housing. Housing discrimination became more pronounced after the abolition of slavery in 1865, typical ...

, immigration, and education.

Auxiliary Bishop of San Antonio

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the soverei ...

appointed Cantú titular bishop of Dardanus and auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of San Antonio in 2008. He was consecrated a bishop on June 2, 2008, by Archbishop José Gómez. At the time, Cantú was the youngest bishop in the United States. He chose as his episcopal motto ''Zelus domus tuae comedit me'' (Zeal for the Lord's house consumes me).

Bishop of Las Cruces

On January 10, 2013, Cantú was named the second bishop of the Diocese of Las Cruces. He was installed on February 28, 2013. At the time, he was the youngest bishop to head a diocese in the United States. Cantú visited Japan in 2015 for the ceremonies marking the 70th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima. He was a representative of the

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Conference (US ...

(USCCB) at the state visit of Pope Francis to Mexico in February 2016. Coat of arms of Oscar Cantú

Bishop of San Jose

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. ...

appointed Cantú as coadjutor bishop of the Diocese of San Jose on July 11, 2018. He was installed on September 28, 2018. On May 1, 2019, after the retirement of Bishop Patrick J. McGrath, Cantú automatically became the third bishop of San Jose. Cantú chaired the USCCB Committee on International Justice and Peace from 2015 to 2017. In that role, he visited churches in the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, and Asia. These included churches in

South Sudan South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the ...

and the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

that were under great duress. He twice visited Iraq and Cuba. Cantú visited churches in Gaza, Jerusalem,

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

, and the

West Bank The West Bank ( ar, الضفة الغربية, translit=aḍ-Ḍiffah al-Ġarbiyyah; he, הגדה המערבית, translit=HaGadah HaMaʽaravit, also referred to by some Israelis as ) is a landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...

, advocating the Catholic Church position on a

two-state solution The two-state solution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict envisions an independent State of Palestine alongside the State of Israel, west of the Jordan River. The boundary between the two states is still subject to dispute and negotia ...

to the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. He spoke at the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

against the proliferation of nuclear weapons. He called for religious liberty in the Middle East, Indonesia,

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

, and India. In November 2020, the Congregation for Bishops at the Vatican initiated an investigation into Cantu’s handling of allegations of

clerical sexual abuse There have been many cases of child sexual abuse, sexual abuse of children by Priesthood in the Catholic Church, Catholic priests, nuns, List of popes, Popes and Sexual abuse scandals in Catholic orders and societies, other members of Cons ...

and misconduct when he was bishop of the Diocese of Las Cruces. The investigation is being carried out under the provisions of Vos estis lux mundi, the 2019 law for holding bishops accountable in the handling of sexual abuse cases.Catholic News Agency. California Bishop Cantu under Vatican 'Vos estis' investigation. https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/46614/california-bishop-cantu-under-vatican-vos-estis-investigation

References

External links

Roman Catholic Diocese of San Jose Official SiteRoman Catholic Diocese of Las Cruces Official SiteArchdiocese of San Antonio

Episcopal succession

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cantu, Oscar 1966 births Living people Clergy from Houston Roman Catholic bishops in New Mexico St. Thomas High School (Houston, Texas) alumni University of St. Thomas (Texas) alumni University of Dallas alumni Pontifical Gregorian University alumni Catholics from Texas American people of Mexican descent 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States