Mark J. Seitz

Mark Joseph Seitz (born January 10, 1954) is an American Catholic prelate who has served as Bishop of El Paso since 2013. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop for the Diocese of Dallas from 2010 to 2013.

Biography

Early life Mark Seitz was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on January 10, 1954, the eldest of ten siblings. In 1972, he entered Holy Trinity Seminary at the University of Dallas in Texas. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy in 1976 and a Master of Divinity degree in 1980.

Ordination and ministry Seitz was ordained to the priesthood for the Diocese of Dallas by Bishop Thomas A. Tschoepe at Saint Joan of Arc Church in Okauchee, Wisconsin, on May 17, 1980. The diocese assigned Seitz as a parochial vicar at Good Shepherd Parish in Garland, Texas. In 1982, Seitz earned a Master of Theology degree from the University of Dallas.

In 1985, Seitz attended Saint John's University in Collegeville, Minnesota, where he was awarded a Master of Liturgical Studies degree that same year. Seitz also took summer courses at the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Indiana, and Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Pope John Paul II named him as a prelate of honor in December 2004. In 2010, Seitz became pastor of All Saints Parish in Dallas.

On June 27, 2019, Seitz and several members of the Hope Border Institute of El Paso, Texas, escorted seven Central American asylum seekers to the Paso del Norte International Bridge in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico to assist them in claiming asylum in the United States. In February 2022, Seitz condemned a lawsuit filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton against Annunciation House, a Catholic charity in El Paso. Paxton accused the charity of harboring "illegal aliens".

Racism In the aftermath of the El Paso Walmart shooting on August 3, 2019, Seitz wrote a pastoral letter on racism and white supremacy,"If we are honest, racism is really about advancing, shoring up, and failing to oppose a system of white privilege and advantage based on skin color. When this system begins to shape our public choices, structure our common life together and becomes a tool of class, this is rightly called institutionalized racism. Action to build this system of hate and inaction to oppose its dismantling are what we rightly call white supremacy. This is the evil one and the ‘father of lies’ (John 8:44) incarnate in our everyday choices and lifestyles, and our laws and institutions." In February 2020, Seitz, along with bishops from Texas, Arkansas, and Oklahoma, met with Pope Francis in Rome. The pope gave Seitz 50 rosaries that he personally blessed for survivors of the El Paso Walmart shooting.