DALLAS_Dallas Bishop Kevin Farrell has been called by Pope Francis to oversee a new Vatican department focused on the lives of ordinary Catholics around the world.
The appointment, effective Sept. 1, will make Farrell the highest-ranking American clergyman serving in the Vatican, the Diocese of Dallas said Wednesday.
Farrell has been bishop of Dallas since 2007. His successor, to be chosen by the pontiff, will become the spiritual leader to more than 1 million Catholics in Dallas and the surrounding area.
Francis chose Farrell to lead the Dicastery for Laity, the Family and Life, a newly created office that combines the responsibilities of two existing pontifical councils. It will be part of the Roman Curia, an administrative body that advises and helps the pope carry out the church's affairs worldwide.
In his new role, Farrell, 68, will focus on the needs of laypeople, those everyday Catholics who are not part of the clergy.
When the pope called in May to ask if he would accept the position, Farrell said, he was "extremely humbled" and "grateful for the holy father's confidence in me." But, he added, "I meet this news with mixed emotions."
"Dallas has been my home for the past 10 years, and it will always be my home," the bishop said Wednesday morning from the diocesan offices on Oak Lawn Avenue.
"I guess I had psychologically decided this is where I was going to retire, so it quickly became home for me."
Arriving after 24 years in the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., he said, he found Dallas to be immediately welcoming.
"The people are so friendly in Dallas. Coming from D.C., I really noticed that," he said. "And some of the most generous people I have met in the United States live in Dallas. I'm going to miss that."
While saying goodbye will be difficult, Farrell said, he looks forward to the challenges of his new assignment.
He said he'll spend the next few weeks wrapping up loose ends and making plans to ensure that various projects he's initiated here will carry on in his absence.
A diocesan spokeswoman said a new bishop could be chosen as soon as October. Auxiliary Bishop Greg Kelly will lead the diocese in the interim.
Farrell's new job will reunite him with his brother Brian, who is also a bishop and the secretary of the Vatican's Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity.
Pope Francis' reorganization of the Roman Curia stems from his expressed desire to make the Catholic Church more inclusive and its administrative framework more efficient.
The pope wrote that he created the new department to help the Curia "adapt to the needs of the universal Church."
In Dallas, Farrell has sought to unite Anglo and Latino Catholics in faith and bridge cultural and economic differences between the two groups. He delivered his first homily as bishop partly in English, partly in Spanish. (He is also fluent in Italian.)
Aside from good Mexican food, he said, one of the things he'll miss most about Dallas will be his ministry to immigrants and other Latinos.
"I love dealing with the Mexican people and the immigrants," he said. "I will truly miss that kind of contact."
He said he's tried to strengthen bonds between Anglo and Latino Christians, and that he hopes such efforts continue once he's gone.
"We should not be building walls, we should be building bridges," Farrell said. "And I think there should be more dialogue. We don't all have to agree with each other, but we have to talk to each other."
The bishop hasn't been shy about taking a stand on societal issues. He's condemned domestic violence and opposed the open carrying of firearms. He called on lawyers to help thousands of migrant children who entered the United States without authorization, fleeing political violence in Central America. And in 2014, he invited the family of a Dallas Ebola victim to stay at a church-owned cabin as they waited in quarantine to see if they had contracted the deadly disease.
"We help people because we're Catholic, not because they're Catholic," he said at the time.
For a Catholic cleric of his generation, he's unusually comfortable with social media, maintaining his blog and a Twitter account with more than 10,000 followers.
Under his leadership, the Diocese of Dallas saw an increase in vocations to the priesthood, and the successful completion of a landmark, $130 million fundraising campaign.
"We're exceptionally proud, but we're also exceptionally sad to be losing him," said diocesan spokeswoman Annette Gonzales Taylor.
"He's just be an outstanding leader and, from my point of view, a wonderful boss. He's going to be sorely missed."
Dave Woodyard, president of Catholic Charities of Dallas, called it a "distinct honor" to have worked with Farrell.
"He is a humble servant," Woodyard said, "and a strong advocate for the thousands of people who need hope and help in life," from new immigrants to children in poverty.
Born in Dublin _ he still speaks with a light brogue _ Farrell has a bachelor's degree from the University of Salamanca in Spain and a master's degree in philosophy from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. He also holds a master's in business administration from the University of Notre Dame.
He was ordained to the priesthood in Rome in 1978 and served as a chaplain to the University of Monterrey in Mexico.
Five years after his ordination, he was assigned to the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., where he served in a number of roles, including as an auxiliary bishop.
Cardinal Donald Wuerl, Washington's archbishop, on Wednesday praised Farrell for his "demonstrated pastoral skills and his recognized administrative abilities."
With the heightened emphasis that Pope Francis has placed on the role of the laity in the Catholic Church, "the leadership that Bishop Farrell brings will be a blessing for all of us," the cardinal said.
Pope Benedict XVI chose Farrell as the seventh bishop of Dallas in 2007. He succeeded Bishop Charles V. Grahmann, who announced his retirement upon turning 75.
The Diocese of Dallas encompasses nine counties, more than 80 parishes and chapels, 26 elementary schools, three diocesan high schools, six other private Catholic schools, two seminaries and a university _ the University of Dallas, where Farrell serves as chancellor.
Thomas Keefe, UD's president, said the bishop's reassignment to Rome "is bittersweet news for me personally" and for the university as a whole.
"We will miss his ardent dedication to our institution and our mission," Keefe said.
"Not only has Bishop Farrell provided me with invaluable counsel, loyalty and friendship, but his unwavering support has been an integral part of the university's transformation into one of the country's elite Catholic universities. For this, we are eternally grateful."
Farrell asked for prayers as he begins "this next unexpected chapter of my priesthood."
"May God continue to bless the Diocese of Dallas," he said.
