Oscar Cantú

Oscar Cantú (born December 5, 1966) is a Mexican-American Catholic prelate who serves as Bishop of San José in California.

Cantú served as Bishop of Las Cruces from 2013 to 2018, and as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of San Antonio from 2008 to 2013. When Cantú became a bishop in 2008, he was the youngest in the United States.

Biography

Early years Cantú was born on December 5, 1966, in Houston, Texas, the son of Ramiro and Maria de Jesus Cantú. He is the fifth of eight children. Oscar Cantú attended Holy Name Catholic School and St. Thomas High School in Houston. After graduating, he attended the University of Dallas and received a Bachelor of Arts degree there.

Having decided to become a priest, Cantú entered the University of St. Thomas in Houston, where he received his Master of Divinity and Master of Theological Studies degrees. He is fluent in English, Spanish, Italian, and French.

Priesthood Cantú was ordained a priest at Saint Francis de Sales Church in Houston by Archbishop Joseph Fiorenza for the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston on May 21, 1994. After his ordination, the archdiocese assigned Cantú as parochial vicar at St. Christopher Parish in Houston. He taught at the University of St. Thomas and at St. Mary's Seminary, and served as pastor of Holy Name Parish.

At the time of his consecration, Cantú was the youngest bishop in the United States. He chose as his episcopal motto Zelus domus tuae comedit me (Zeal for the Lord's house consumes me).

Bishop of Las Cruces

On January 10, 2013, Benedict XVI named Cantú as the second bishop of Las Cruces. He was installed on February 28, 2013.

Cantú visited Japan in 2015 for the ceremonies marking the 70th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima by the US Army Air Corps during World War II. He was installed on September 28, 2018.

In November 2020, the Congregation for Bishops at the Vatican initiated an investigation into Cantú's handling of allegations of clerical sexual abuse and misconduct when he was bishop of Las Cruces. The Congregation was carrying out its investigation under the provisions of Vos estis lux mundi. The investigation was headed by Bishop Thomas Olmsted of the Diocese of Phoenix.

Viewpoints

Diversity in the Catholic Church In a 2022 interview with Catholic California Daily, Cantú questioned why there were so few American bishops of Hispanic ancestry. He said:“I think we have a distinct opportunity to be bridges from the historical institutional church in the United States to a growing population whose voice has not always been asked for, whose experiences and opinions have not always been sought.”