US EditionPope Leo appoints former migrant who entered US without legal status to lead West Virginia Catholics
The pope chose Salvadoran-born Evelio Menjivar-Ayala, a former undocumented immigrant, to lead the state’s only Catholic diocese after accepting Bishop Mark Brennan’s resignation.
- On Friday, May 1, 2026, Pope Leo XIV appointed Bishop Evelio Menjivar-Ayala to lead the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston, making him the first formerly undocumented immigrant to serve as the chief shepherd of West Virginia’s Catholics.
- Bishop Menjivar-Ayala, 55, originally from El Salvador, famously arrived in the United States in 1990 by being smuggled in a car trunk after three failed attempts to flee his country’s civil violence.
- Prior to his priesthood, he worked as a manual laborer in construction and janitorial services, experiences he frequently cites as foundational to his ministry and his advocacy for the dignity of the working class.
- The appointment by Pope Leo XIV—the first American-born Pope—is seen as a direct challenge to the Trump administration’s current immigration crackdowns, as Menjivar-Ayala has been a vocal critic of mass deportations and rhetoric targeting migrants.
- The move was announced alongside several other appointments, including Rev. Robert Boxie III as an auxiliary bishop in Washington, signaling the Pope’s strategy to elevate U.S. clergy who prioritize racial progress and immigrant rights.
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Pope Leo names priest who criticized Trump's immigration crackdown as West Virginia bishop
The next bishop for West Virginia Catholics will be an El Salvador-born advocate for immigrants who has opposed U.S. President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown policies.
Click on Detroit
Catholic priest who criticized Trump immigration crackdown named West Virginia bishop
West Virginia's next Catholic bishop was born in El Salvador and has been critical of President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown.
Tioga Publishing
The Indiana Gazette OnlinePope names former undocumented migrant as US bishop of West Virginia
Pope Leo XIV on Friday named a former undocumented migrant as bishop of West Virginia, weeks after a high-profile clash with US President Donald Trump.
Evelio Menjivar-Ayala, 56 years old. Born in El Salvador and fled from the conflict in his native country (ANSA)
Pope names Menjivar-Ayala, immigrant from El Salvador, to lead Catholic Church in WV
The Rev. Evelio Menjivar-Ayala (right) sits next to the Rev. Mark Brennan during an announcement Friday that Menjivar-Ayala will succeed Brennen as the next bishop of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston. (Photo courtesy Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston)Evelio Menjivar-Ayala, a formerly undocumented immigrant from El Salvador who went on to be the United States’ first Salvadorian bishop, will be the next bishop of the Catholic Church in West Virgini…
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