Evelio Menjivar-Ayala, aged 55, who fled El Salvador in a car trunk in 1990, takes the helm of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston
Pope Leo XIV has appointed Bishop Evelio Menjivar-Ayala, a man who once entered the United States as an undocumented immigrant hidden in a car trunk, to lead the Catholic Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston.
The appointment, announced on Friday by the Vatican, is a historic milestone for the Catholic Church in America.
Menjivar-Ayala, 55, will become the first Salvadoran-born bishop to lead a US diocese, taking the helm in one of the nation’s most rural and least racially diverse states.
From civil war to the chancel
Menjivar-Ayala’s journey to the altar is a testament to the “immigrant dream” he often references in his sermons.
Fleeing the violence of the Salvadoran Civil War as a teenager in 1990, he made three attempts to reach the US. On his final successful try, he was smuggled across the border in the trunk of a car.
Before his calling to the priesthood, he worked as a janitor and construction labourer in Los Angeles and Maryland.
He eventually secured a green card with the help of his predecessor, Bishop Mark Brennan, and became a US citizen in 2006.
The appointment comes at a time of heightened tension between the Vatican and the White House. Menjivar-Ayala has been an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump’s “maximum pressure” immigration policies, previously describing federal enforcement tactics as a “shock and awe” campaign against the vulnerable.
“I have much to learn, but my heart is ready and wide-open,” Menjivar-Ayala said during a news conference in Wheeling. “I want to listen to the poor, those on the margins of the church and society, to the workers, and to the immigrants.”
Also read |
‘The brain needs to be used’: Pope Leo warns priests over use of AI for writing sermons
Leading a Diocese in transition
The Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston covers the entire state of West Virginia, serving roughly 61,000 Catholics across 92 parishes. Menjivar-Ayala succeeds Bishop Mark Brennan (79), who spent his tenure stabilising the diocese following a high-profile scandal involving his predecessor’s financial and sexual misconduct.
Cardinal Robert McElroy of Washington praised the appointment, saying that Menjivar-Ayala’s “passion for justice” will be a vital asset in a state that continues to endure significant economic hardship and inequality.
Bishop Menjivar-Ayala is scheduled to be formally installed at a ceremony on July 2.
First Published:
May 03, 2026, 11:19 IST
End of Article