Pope Leo XIV Appoints Most Reverend Michael Saporito as Bishop of Metuchen
WASHINGTON – Pope Leo XIV has appointed Most Reverend Michael A. Saporito, currently Auxiliary Bishop of Newark, as the Bishop of Metuchen. The appointment was publicized in Washington, D.C. on September 15, 2026, by Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, apostolic nuncio to the United States. Bishop Saporito’s biography may be found here . The Diocese of Metuchen is comprised of 1,425 square miles in the State of New Jersey. ###
16 days ago
Pope Leo XIV appointed Auxiliary Bishop Michael A. Saporito of Newark as the sixth bishop of the Diocese of Metuchen, New Jersey, ending nearly a year without a permanent diocesan bishop. The Vatican announcement also included the acceptance of Bishop Francis Malone’s resignation in Shreveport, Louisiana. 2 3
The Vatican announced the appointment on September 15, 2026. Saporito, 64, succeeds Bishop James F. Checchio, who left Metuchen after being appointed to lead the Archdiocese of New Orleans. 2 3
Checchio had led Metuchen from 2016 until 2025. After serving briefly as coadjutor archbishop in New Orleans, he became the archbishop there, leaving the Metuchen Diocese without a bishop since November 2025. 2 3
In a statement following the announcement, Saporito said he was grateful and humbled by the appointment. He acknowledged the difficulty of leaving Newark while describing the new assignment as a mission he accepted with trust in the Holy Spirit. 2
Saporito was born in Newark on May 3, 1962, and earned an accounting degree from Rutgers University. He worked as an accountant for three years before entering seminary in 1987 and later studied at Immaculate Conception Seminary School of Theology in South Orange, New Jersey. 2 3
He was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Newark on May 30, 1992. Before becoming a bishop, he served at parishes in River Edge, Paramus, Wyckoff, Maplewood and Westfield. 3
Pope Francis appointed Saporito an auxiliary bishop of Newark in February 2020, and he was consecrated that June by Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, archbishop of Newark. 3
As an auxiliary bishop, Saporito assisted Tobin in an archdiocese serving approximately 1.3 million Catholics. His work included a focus on the new evangelization, participation in Newark’s Evangelization Commission and service as a board member of Christlife, an evangelization apostolate based in the Archdiocese of Baltimore. 2
He also led Newark’s “We Are His Witnesses” pastoral initiative and served on the archdiocesan synod team. 2
The Diocese of Metuchen encompasses Hunterdon, Middlesex, Somerset and Warren counties. It serves a population of about 1.5 million people, including more than 670,000 Catholics, with 192 priests, 196 deacons and 193 men and women religious. 2
Saporito said he looked forward to meeting the diocese’s clergy, religious and lay faithful and to accompanying them as they seek to follow Jesus Christ and bear witness to the Gospel. 2
In a separate announcement the same day, Pope Leo XIV accepted the resignation of Bishop Francis I. Malone of Shreveport, Louisiana. Malone, 76, had submitted his resignation after reaching the customary retirement age of 75 required of bishops under canon law. 2 3
Bishop Robert W. Marshall of Alexandria will serve as apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Shreveport until a successor is appointed and installed. 2
Investigate criteria for episcopal appointments in Catholic canon law
Under current Latin Catholic canon law, episcopal appointment combines objective canonical requirements, a broader assessment of pastoral suitability, and a process reserved ultimately to the Apostolic See. The decisive judgment belongs to the Holy See, while bishops, episcopal conferences, pontifical representatives, clergy, and—appropriately—the laity may contribute information and recommendations.
Canon 378 §1 requires that a candidate:
These are not merely recommendations. They are the canonical qualifications required for suitability under the current Code. Nevertheless, satisfying them does not create a right to appointment: the definitive judgment belongs to the Apostolic See.
The most important criteria are pastoral and spiritual. Canon 378 emphasizes:
Thus, the law does not reduce episcopal suitability to age, degrees, administrative ability, or popularity. The candidate must be capable of exercising the episcopal office as a teacher, sanctifier, and shepherd. The phrase “other qualities” also permits the Holy See to evaluate circumstances specific to a diocese, such as its cultural, pastoral, missionary, or social needs. The Dicastery for Bishops is expressly required to take differing cultural needs into account when determining selection criteria.
The Roman Pontiff freely appoints bishops or confirms those legitimately elected. In practice, the Dicastery for Bishops handles matters concerning the appointment of diocesan and titular bishops, apostolic administrators, and the provision of particular Churches, while considering proposals from dioceses, episcopal conferences, and pontifical representatives.
The Dicastery’s role does not replace the Pope’s authority. It investigates and prepares cases; the definitive canonical judgment remains with the Apostolic See.
The process normally includes several levels of consultation:
Episcopal recommendations. Every three years, bishops of an ecclesiastical province—or, where appropriate, a bishops’ conference—secretly prepare a list of priests considered suitable for the episcopate and send it to the Apostolic See. Individual bishops may also submit names.
The pontifical representative’s inquiry. When a diocesan or coadjutor bishop is needed, the papal representative consults the metropolitan, the suffragan bishops, and the president of the bishops’ conference, and submits the relevant opinions to the Apostolic See.
Local consultation. The representative is to hear members of the college of consultors and the cathedral chapter and may confidentially consult other clergy and laypeople distinguished by wisdom.
Further participation of the faithful. The current constitution Praedicate Evangelium says that, in appropriate ways, members of the people of God in the affected dioceses are also involved. This does not establish a popular election; it provides a means of gathering relevant information and pastoral insight.
For an auxiliary bishop, unless other arrangements apply, the diocesan bishop submits a list of at least three suitable priests.
The consultation process is intentionally confidential. Canon 377 speaks of secret lists and confidential inquiries, which protects both the Church’s discernment and candidates who are not ultimately appointed.
Recommendations do not bind the Pope. Participation in the process is consultative rather than electoral. The Second Vatican Council taught that the right to nominate and appoint bishops belongs properly and exclusively to competent ecclesiastical authority, and it urged that civil authorities not retain such privileges. Canon 377 likewise provides that no new rights of election, nomination, presentation, or designation are to be granted to civil authorities.
Historically, concordats or particular arrangements could allow limited civil involvement, but the current general principle is the Church’s freedom in appointing bishops. The supplied materials do not establish which exceptional arrangements, if any, remain in force in particular countries.
A canonically suitable bishop must therefore meet minimum legal qualifications, but appointment requires more than technical eligibility. The Church evaluates whether the candidate is a man of proven faith and character, capable of teaching and governing, pastorally zealous, prudent, intellectually prepared, and suited to the concrete needs of the diocese. The consultation process gathers evidence from the Church at multiple levels, but the final determination and appointment belong to the Roman Pontiff.