The U.S. bishops will meet in Baltimore next month for their annual fall plenary assembly.
During the meeting, the bishops will vote on the conference budget, a new edition of the lectionary, and updates to conference guidelines on socially responsible investments and diocesan financial reporting, as well as an annual Day of Prayer for Racial Justice.
They will also hear updates from the committees on migration, cultural diversity, and the newly created task force on artificial intelligence. They will hold a canonical consultation on two sainthood causes – Maria Middleton, a young woman in Pennsylvania known for her holiness despite developing a fatal brain cancer in her late teens; and Thomas Vander Woude, a Virginia man who died in 2008 while saving the life of his son with Down syndrome who had fallen into a septic tank.
In addition, the bishops will vote for a conference secretary. The current secretary, Bishop Kevin Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend, was elected last year to fill the role for the remainder of the term left by Archbishop Paul Coakley, who was chosen president of the conference.
Rhoades is on the ballot for a new term as secretary. Running against him is Bishop Earl Fernandes of Columbus. Although Fernandes has only been a bishop for four years, he has experience as a Missionary of Mercy during the jubilee year, working as secretary for the nuncio to the United States, and serving on a diocesan marriage tribunal.
The bishops will also vote for the chairman of six standing committees. Winners will serve one year as chairman-elect, followed by a three-year term as chairman of the committee. The committees up for a vote, and their respective candidates, are as follows:
Committee on Catholic Education
Bishop James Conley of Lincoln, a vocal advocate of classical Catholic education, whose diocese is known for its affordable Catholic schools.
Bishop Edmund Whalen, an auxiliary bishop of New York, who has more than 15 years of experience teaching at both the high school and seminary level, and has also served as the principal of a Catholic high school.
Committee on Communications
Bishop Daniel Felton of Duluth, who holds a master’s degree in social communications from the Pontifical Gregorian University.
Bishop Louis Tylka of Peoria, who spearheaded logistics for the recent beatification of prominent media personality Archbishop Fulton Sheen.
Committee on Cultural Diversity in the Church
Bishop Steven Maekawa, O.P., of Fairbanks, a fourth-generation Japanese American whose expansive diocese includes numerous indigenous communities and immigrant populations.
Bishop Michael Pham of San Diego, a refugee who fled Vietnam as a child and last year became the first Vietnamese American bishop to lead a U.S. diocese.
Committee on Doctrine
Bishop William Joensen of Des Moines, who has a master’s degree in moral theology.
Bishop Steven Lopes of the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter, who holds a doctorate in sacred theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University and spent a decade serving on the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in Rome.
Committee on National Collections
Bishop Mark Eckman of Pittsburgh, who has more than four decades of experience in parish administration and service on diocesan boards.
Bishop Jerry Vincke of Salina, who has a background in public relations and marketing, as well as experience as the director of a retreat house.
Committee on Pro-life Activities
Bishop John Folda of Fargo, a vocal pro-life advocate who noted pro-life work as one of his prominent priorities when he was appointed to head the diocese 13 years ago.
Bishop Donald Hying of Madison, where the state Supreme Court last year invalidated a 175-year-old abortion ban, prompting strong objections from the state’s bishops.
Will the prediction markets broach
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