Gregory Michael Aymond

infobox bishopstyles
name=Gregory Aymond
dipstyle=The Most Reverend
offstyle=Your Excellency
relstyle=Monsignor
deathstyle=not applicable |

Gregory Michael Aymond (born November 12, 1949) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He is the fourth and current Bishop of Austin.

Biography

Gregory Aymond was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, and attended Notre Dame Seminary, from where he obtained his Master's in Divinity in 1975. He then furthered his studies at [http://lim.loyno.edu/ Loyola Institute for Ministry] , and was ordained to the priesthood on May 10, 1975.

After serving as a pastor and high school teacher, Aymond became director of Pastoral Education and professor of Pastoral Counseling and Homiletics at his "alma mater" of Notre Dame Seminary in 1981. He later served as President-Rector of the seminary from 1986 to 2000. During his priestly ministry, he was also director of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith and a member of its national board from 1977 to 2000, and the founder and director of the Archdiocese of New Orleans's Christ the Healer Medical Mission Program in Granada, Nicaragua.

On April 7, 1990, Aymond was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of New Orleans and Titular Bishop of "Acholla" by Pope John Paul II. He received his episcopal consecration on January 10, 1997 from Archbishop Francis Schulte, with Archbishops Philip Hannan and John Favalora serving as co-consecrators. In 1998, he allowed a Catholic schoolteacher to continue teaching despite allegations that the latter had earlier molested a student and failed to alert police, saying that the alleged victim refused speak with Aymond [Bishop Accountability. [http://www.bishop-accountability.org/resources/resource-files/databases/DallasMorningNewsBishops.htm Catholic Bishops and Sex Abuse] ] ; the schoolteacher was later sentenced to prison after admitting to having molested seventeen boys.

Aymond was named Coadjutor Bishop of Austin, Texas, on June 2, 2000, being formally installed as such on the following August 3. He later succeeded John McCarthy as the fourth Bishop of Austin on January 2, 2001.

Within the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, he chairs the [http://www.usccb.org/ocyp/ Committee for the Protection of Children and Young People] , and sits on the [http://www.usccb.org/education/cmsubcommittee.shtml Committees for Campus Ministry] , [http://www.usccb.org/education/ Education] , [http://www.usccb.org/laity/laitycom.shtml Laity] , and [http://www.usccb.org/wm/ World Missions] .

References

External links

* [http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/bfellh.html Catholic-Hierarchy]
* [http://www.austindiocese.org/dept/bishops_office/aymond_bio.php Diocese of Austin]