Pope accepts resignation of West Virginia bishop, names Washington auxiliary as successor
Pope Leo XIV accepted Bishop Mark E. Brennan's resignation from the Wheeling‑Charleston Diocese. He appointed Auxiliary Bishop Evelio Menjivar‑Ayala of Washington as the new bishop of the same diocese. The announcement was made publicly in Washington on May 1, 2026 by Cardinal Christophe Pierre, the apostolic nuncio. The Wheeling‑Charleston Diocese covers the entire state of West Virginia.
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Pope Leo XIV announced several episcopal changes on May 1 2026, accepting the resignation of the Bishop of Wheeling‑Charleston, appointing a new ordinary for that diocese, and naming two new auxiliary bishops for the Archdiocese of Washington while also accepting the resignation of an existing auxiliary there.
Pope Leo XIV accepted the resignation of Bishop Mark E. Brennan, age 79, who had led the Diocese of Wheeling‑Charleston since his 2019 installation 1.
Auxiliary Bishop Evelio Menjivar‑Ayala of Washington was appointed as Brennan’s successor, becoming the tenth bishop of the West Virginia diocese 1 2 3.
Menjivar‑Ayala, 55, was born in El Salvador and is the first Salvadoran bishop in the United States; he was ordained a priest in 2004 and became an auxiliary bishop of Washington in February 2023 1 2.
The diocese covers the entire state of West Virginia, serving roughly 1.81 million people across more than 24,000 square miles 1.
Pope Leo XIV appointed Father Gary R. Studniewski and Father Robert P. Boxie III as auxiliary bishops for Washington 3.
Studniewski, a former Army chaplain (1995‑2014) who retired as a colonel, has been pastor of the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament since 2022 3.
Boxie, a chaplain at Howard University’s Sister Thea Bowman Catholic Student Center, also teaches in the archdiocese’s permanent diaconate program and holds engineering and law degrees from Vanderbilt and Harvard 3.
Both appointments were announced by Cardinal Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States, and were highlighted by Cardinal Robert W. McElroy as “a day of great joy” for the archdiocese 3.
Along with the new appointments, Pope Leo XIV accepted the resignation of Auxiliary Bishop Roy E. Campbell Jr., who had served Washington since his 2017 appointment by Pope Francis 3.
The announcements were part of a broader set of U.S. episcopal appointments announced by the Vatican on the same day, which also included the appointment of Bishop‑designate John Gomez to the Diocese of Laredo, Texas 2.
How does the Catholic Church regulate episcopal succession?
The Catholic Church “regulates” episcopal succession in two closely connected ways: (1) by guarding the valid sacramental transmission of the episcopate (so that a bishop truly belongs to apostolic succession), and (2) by ensuring the canonical and hierarchical communion that links each bishop to the College of Bishops under its Head, the Bishop of Rome.
Catholic teaching presents apostolic succession as guaranteeing continuity of apostolic faith and sacramental life. Pope Benedict XVI explains that “Apostolic Succession… is… the criterion of the permanence of the particular Churches in the Tradition of the common apostolic faith,” and that it is “a means of guaranteeing the faithful transmission of the Apostolic witness.”
He also stresses that it is “not merely a material sequence” but “a historical instrument that the Spirit uses” so that Christ himself reaches the Church through ordained ministers: “through their hands it is he who acts in the sacraments.”
The Catechism of the Catholic Church summarizes this tradition: the Church holds that bishops, “through their appointment to the dignity and responsibility of bishop, and in virtue consequently of the unbroken succession going back to the beginning, [are] regarded as transmitters of the apostolic line.”
To be in apostolic succession, a man must receive episcopal consecration through other bishops who are themselves validly ordained. John Paul II teaches that one attains “the fullness of episcopal ministry” by “virtue of episcopal consecration” and by hierarchical communion.
Benedict XVI, speaking specifically of bishops in China, likewise describes episcopal ordination “conferred upon them by other validly ordained Bishops,” emphasizing that the Church must preserve apostolic succession intact.
The Church also requires communion with the Bishop of Rome. Benedict XVI explicitly ties the verification of apostolic succession to communion with Rome: “Apostolic Succession, verified on the basis of communion with that of the Church of Rome…”
John Paul II further explains the collegial structure: bishops are united “among themselves as a College,” based on “episcopal ordination and hierarchical communion,” and belonging to the structure of the Church “as willed by Jesus Christ.”
So, the Church’s regulation aims at both:
The 1983 Code of Canon Law is explicit about the Pope’s role. Canon 377 states: “The Supreme Pontiff freely appoints bishops or confirms those legitimately elected.”
Pius XII clarifies the canonical logic behind regulation. He teaches that “no person or group… can claim the right of nominating bishops,” and that “no one can lawfully confer episcopal consecration unless he has received the mandate of the Apostolic See.”
Relatedly, Pius XII adds that no other authority can nullify the canonical appointment: “no authority whatsoever, save that which is proper to the Supreme Pastor, can render void the canonical appointment granted to any bishop.”
Canon 377 also shows that episcopal selection involves consultation and advice—e.g., bishops compose lists of presbyters “more suitable for the episcopate” and send them to the Apostolic See, and recommendations are handled through a structured process.
But Canon 377 also sharply limits civil involvement: “In the future, no rights and privileges of election, nomination, presentation, or designation of bishops are granted to civil authorities.”
And historical papal legislation (in Quartus Supra) insists on the Church’s rejection of popular election as a right: there is “no power of electing bishops… given to the people by either divine or ecclesiastical law,” while the laity may sometimes provide testimony about candidates’ lives and morals.
Because bishops form a true College, succession is not treated as a purely administrative replacement of individuals. John Paul II says the collegial union “affects the inmost being of each Bishop” and “belongs to the structure of the Church as willed by Jesus Christ.”
This means regulation is meant to secure a living ecclesial reality:
Benedict XVI describes the ordination of bishops as a means through which “the faithful transmission of the Apostolic witness” occurs, and through which “Christ himself… is the true Shepherd and Guardian” to the Church.
In Catholic terms, episcopal succession is “regulated” so that the episcopate is transmitted through valid ordination and sustained through hierarchical communion, especially communion with the Church of Rome.
Canon law and papal legislation then protect this continuity by reserving the decisive appointment/confirmation power to the Pope and requiring the mandate of the Apostolic See for lawful episcopal consecration.