Kevin C. Rhoades

Kevin Carl Rhoades (born November 26, 1957) is an American Catholic prelate who has served as Bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend in Indiana since 2009. He previously served as Bishop of Harrisburg in Pennsylvania from 2004 to 2009.

In 2021, Rhoades led the United States Conference of Bishops' Committee on Doctrine, which targeted President Joe Biden for his stance on abortion. In 2025, he was elected Secretary of the USCCB, the third-highest ranking position in the conference.

Biography

Early life Kevin Rhoades was born on November 26, 1957, in Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania to Charles and Mary Rhoades. The second of three children, he has an older brother and a younger sister. His father was a cousin of Republican State Senator James J. Rhoades. Raised in Lebanon, Pennsylvania, Rhoades graduated from Lebanon Catholic High School in 1975.

Having decided to enter the priesthood, Rhoades enrolled at Mount St. Mary's University in Emmitsburg, Maryland, for two years. Rhoades applied to the Diocese of Harrisburg for placement in the program of priestly formation, and in 1977 entered St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania. He earned a bachelor's degree in philosophy from St. Charles in 1979.

After his 1983 ordination, the diocese assigned Rhodes as parochial vicar at St. Patrick Parish in York, Pennsylvania. During this time, he also ministered in the Spanish-speaking apostolates at Cristo Salvador Parish in York and Cristo Rey Mission in Bendersville, Pennsylvania. In 1985, Rhoades returned to the Gregorian University, earning a Licentiate of Sacred Theology in 1986 and a Licentiate of Canon Law in 1988. The grand jury also revealed that in 2007 Rhoades told the Vatican that he had ordered a second priest accused of sexual abuse to spend the rest of his life in penance. In both cases, Rhoades reported the accused priest to law enforcement, but not to the general public, fearing a scandal. During the 2017 Fall General Assembly of the USCCB, Rhoades was elected chair of the Committee on Doctrine. Under his leadership, the committee voted to deny the eucharist to Democratic Catholic politicians who supported the right to abortion, including President Joe Biden. That same month, an unidentified male claimed that Rhoades had sexually abused him as a minor. After a brief investigation, the Dauphin County District Attorney declared the accusation to be unfounded.

A lawsuit against Rhoades and the Diocese of Harrisburg was filed in July 2019 by Donald Asbee, a Pennsylvania resident. Asbee alleged that he was sexually abused as a boy by two diocesan priests and that the diocese and its bishops tried to cover up the priests' crimes. The diocese had offered Asbee a $176,875 settlement, but he rejected it and sued instead. On November 16, 2022, Rhoades was elected as chair of the USCCB's Committee on Religious Liberty.

In 2025, Rhoades spoke out against the Trump administration's denial of sacraments to Catholic immigrant detainees.

On November 12, 2025, Rhoades was elected secretary of the USCCB, the third-highest position in the conference. He defeated Archbishop James F. Checchio, and succeeded Archbishop Paul Stagg Coakley, who had been elected president.