Archbishop Shelton J. Fabre

Installation Livestream:

Statement of Most Reverend Shelton J. Fabre on Appointment as Tenth Bishop and Fifth Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Louisville

My Dear People of the Archdiocese of Louisville, Good morning, and may God’s peace be with you! Please allow me to begin by expressing my gratitude and personal support to our Holy Father, Pope Francis, who today has named me the Tenth Bishop and Fifth Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Louisville. Pope Francis has called me to continue my pastoral ministry here with you, the particular church of Louisville! I am both humbled and excited by this appointment by the Holy Father, and I pledge to serve the needs of this local church to the very best of my ability. In all we do, it is the Lord Jesus Christ we praise and serve as together we grow in faith.

I thank Archbishop Joseph Kurtz, my brother bishop, who has faithfully served the needs of this Archdiocese these many years. Thank you, Archbishop Kurtz, for the many ways you have shepherded this local church. I have greatly appreciated our camaraderie as brother bishops in the fifth ecclesiastical region of the Church here in the United States, and I look forward to our continued interactions, mutual fraternal support, and prayer for one another. I pray God’s blessings upon you, Archbishop Kurtz, as you move into retirement.

With the same heartfelt sincerity, I warmly greet all the faithful of this Archdiocese! My brothers and sisters, I anticipate meeting you and experiencing the cultures of the People of God in this Archdiocese. I look forward to getting to know you through our interactions and, most importantly, by listening to your hearts. I also look forward to you getting to know me as I am here to serve you, to journey with you in faith, and to celebrate all that God is doing in our lives. I am grateful for your faith and dedication to Our Lord Jesus Christ, and for the privilege to walk with this family of faith in faith on this road to salvation.

As we embark on this faith journey together, I want to greet, in a very special way our priests, deacons, consecrated religious, and the seminarians in the Archdiocese. Together, cooperating with God’s grace, we have been called to make known to all of God’s holy people the Good News of Jesus Christ as we are on mission to make missionary disciples. I look forward to sharing this mission that has been entrusted to us by Jesus Christ as we work together to serve the needs of the whole People of God. Please know that I am deeply grateful to each and every one of you for all that you do, and I look forward to listening to you and to our ministry together for the Lord.

I also want to take this opportunity to thank the people of the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux. To all the priests, deacons, consecrated religious, seminarians and all the people of Houma-Thibodaux, I express my deep, deep gratitude for our life together in south Louisiana, which has been my home for the past eight and one half years. I have been incredibly happy and fulfilled as Bishop of Houma-Thibodaux. I am grateful for the love, support, and kindness you have shown to me during my episcopal ministry in south Louisiana. I pray that our providential God will continue to bless the Church of Houma-Thibodaux.

When first ordained a Bishop, I chose as my episcopal motto, “Comfort my People,” from the prophet Isaiah. (cf. Isaiah 40:1). These words are dear to my heart because they capture what I have always desired to do as a Bishop, as a pastor of souls. I sincerely believe our Lord is communicating these words to His people right now.

As a shepherd, I have seen great suffering among God’s holy people. In August 2021, the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux and communities throughout south Louisiana were utterly devastated by Hurricane Ida, the most powerful storm of its kind to ever make landfall in Louisiana. I would be remiss if I did not remind our nation of the many challenges that remain as a result of Hurricane Ida. However, I would be equally remiss if I did not also mention our neighbors in the Diocese of Owensboro who were profoundly affected by the devastating tornado of December 10, particularly calling to mind and reverencing the 77 souls lost in what has been termed the deadliest storm in the history of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Please know of my heartfelt prayers for all those affected as I offer my own assurance of support to the ongoing relief efforts. May the Lord bring “Comfort to His People.”

In March 2020, Archbishop Kurtz graciously welcomed me here to present to local leaders Open Wide Our Hearts, the U.S. Bishops’ Pastoral Letter Against Racism. While I recognize that our community has faced what some may say is far too great an experience of injustice and disregard for human life and dignity, I come to you with a message of joyful hope. I have great faith and hope in the work already underway within our community regarding racial equality. I have great hope that through genuine encounter and accompaniment, we will work together to realize an even greater sense of the promotion of life, charity, justice, and peace as we endeavor to build an even greater civilization of love. Recognizing the great gifts of our diversity, as I stated earlier, I look forward to meeting you and experiencing the cultures of this wonderful, local church, which of course includes African Americans, as well as Hispanic/Latino, Vietnamese, Lebanese, Korean, European, African, and Filipino brothers and sisters, many from every land and nation.

While the presbyterate and the people of Houma-Thibodaux will always be in my heart, I pledge to serve the Archdiocese of Louisville with the same fervor and commitment. I look forward to making the Archdiocese of Louisville my new home, and I rejoice in the opportunity to become a part of this local Church and this unique area of our slice of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

Therefore, I am no longer in the “Who Dat” nation of the New Orleans Saints, for I know well this is “Cardinal and Wildcat country” where basketball is king. The Lord has led me from the bayous to the bluegrass, from gumbo and jambalaya to barbecue and the hot brown. I leave the coasts of a Cajun community to walk with you in the foothills of the heartland. And I do so, knowing that my love for King Cake and Mardi Gras will soon be quenched by Mint Juleps and the Kentucky Derby.

At this point in the history of this wonderful Archdiocese, let us renew our trust in our Lord Jesus Christ and again pledge to serve him by serving one another. In God, we place our hope and our trust, and we are confident that God will never leave us to endure anything alone. I look forward to this journey to the Lord with all of you. As I pledge my prayers for all in the Archdiocese of Louisville, I ask your prayers for me as well.

Peace be with you all and thank you!