This morning of February 11, the Mexican Episcopal Conference announced two episcopal appointments at a time of pastoral renewal in various regions of the country. Pope Leo XIV has appointed Adolfo Miguel Castaño Fonseca, until now bishop of Azcapotzalco, as the fourth bishop of the diocese of Atlacomulco. At the same time, he has appointed José Alberto González Juárez, bishop of Tuxtepec, as the fifteenth bishop of the diocese of Campeche.
The official communiqués from the Mexican Episcopal Conference (CEM) express the joy of the Church at these designations. “We join in joy and prayer with the Church that journeys in the Diocese of Atlacomulco and wish Mons. Adolfo Miguel a fruitful performance in the new episcopal assignment that the Lord has entrusted to him,” states one of the bulletins. A similar message accompanies the appointment for Campeche.
Adolfo Miguel Castaño Fonseca, 63 years old, returns to his land of origin to assume this new responsibility. Born on September 27, 1962, in San Mateo Mozoquilpan, municipality of Otzolotepec, State of Mexico, he entered the Toluca Conciliar Seminary in 1977 and was ordained a priest on March 19, 1987. His academic training is distinguished by a specialization in Sacred Scripture; he obtained a degree in Biblical Theology at the Pontifical University of Mexico and a doctorate in the same discipline at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.
For many years he dedicated himself to the formation of future priests in the seminaries of Toluca, where he held various positions such as prefect of studies, professor, general secretary, and librarian. He was also rector of the Temple of the Annunciation in Metepec and actively participated in continental projects, such as the coordination for the translation of the New Testament in the “Bible for the Church of America” initiative of CELAM, in addition to being part of the Biblical Pastoral Center for Latin America. Benedict XVI appointed him auxiliary bishop of Mexico in 2010, and Francis designated him as the first bishop of the newly created diocese of Azcapotzalco in 2019. In the CEM, he has held relevant responsibilities, including the direction of Biblical Pastoral Care and, currently, the presidency of the Episcopal Commission for Prophetic Pastoral Care.
The diocese of Atlacomulco was erected by John Paul II in November 1984. Since then, it has been successively shepherded by the bishops Ricardo Guízar Díaz, Constancio Miranda Weckmann, and Juan Odilón Martínez García, who submitted his resignation in 2024 and left the see vacant under the apostolic administration of Juan Pedro Juárez Meléndez. This diocese covers a region in the northwest of the State of Mexico with a strong presence of indigenous Otomí and Mazahua peoples, where Franciscan evangelization has deep roots since the 16th century. With more than a hundred presbyters and numerous parishes in rural and semi-urban areas, Atlacomulco represents a pastoral challenge in which the biblical and formative experience of its new bishop will be able to contribute valuable elements for the consolidation of the faith and the formation of the clergy.
For his part, José Alberto González Juárez, 58 years old, arrives in Campeche after eleven years at the helm of the Diocese of Tuxtepec, in Oaxaca. Born on December 19, 1967, in El Parral, municipality of Villacorzo, Chiapas, he was ordained a priest in 1995 for the archdiocese of Tuxtla Gutiérrez. His career has been strongly focused on priestly formation: he studied philosophy at the Pontifical University of Mexico and held positions such as professor, prefect, spiritual director, and rector of the Major Seminary of Tuxtla Gutiérrez. He also served as vicar general and episcopal vicar for the clergy and consecrated life. Francis appointed him bishop of Tuxtepec in 2015.
The diocese of Campeche, one of the oldest in southeastern Mexico, was erected by Leo XIII in 1895 by dismembering territory from the then extensive diocese of Yucatán. Its territory coincides with the nearly 58 thousand square kilometers of the state of Campeche and serves a predominantly Catholic population, with important Mayan communities in rural areas. The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, a World Heritage Site in the walled city of Campeche, symbolizes a centuries-old history that now receives its fifteenth bishop. The see had been vacant since the transfer of José Francisco González González to Tuxtla Gutiérrez in 2025.
The CEM has invited the faithful to accompany the new bishops with their prayer, as well as the dioceses of Azcapotzalco and Tuxtepec, which in the coming months will receive their respective successors. From this blog, we wish the new bishops of Atlacomulco and Azcapotzalco a fruitful episcopal ministry. Congratulations!