28/05/2026
Padre Anthony Corcoran SJ, gesuita statunitense nato a Tucson, guida la comunità cattolica locale dal 2017. Continuerà il suo servizio come Amministratore Apostolico del Kirghizistan, che ospita una piccolissima minoranza cattolica, formata da poche centinaia di fedeli. Nonostante i piccoli numeri, la Chiesa locale gestisce importanti e vivaci attività educative, assistenziali e sociali
Un breve profilo
https://www.jesuitscentralsouthern.org/profile/anthony-corcoran-sj/
Pope Leo XIV has elevated Fr. Anthony J. Corcoran, SJ, to the office of bishop. A member of the Jesuits USA Central and Southern Province, Fr. Corcoran has served as apostolic administrator of Kyrgyzstan since 2017 and will continue there as bishop.
“I pray that this decision of the Church to call me to the episcopacy may truly encourage and strengthen the faithful and serve for the common good of this society,” Bishop-elect Corcoran said. “I can affirm that I am called increasingly to give all, to be ‘all in,’ with regard to my vocation to give myself to this community.”
It is estimated that there are currently only a few hundred Catholics living in Kyrgyzstan. Despite the declining numbers, the Church remains vibrant, Bishop-elect Corcoran said, with a notable number of social and educational activities.
Father Corcoran’s lengthy service to the Church in the former Soviet bloc was inspired by his predecessors in the Society of Jesus: “As a novice, I read the remarkable stories of the great missionaries in the Society’s — and our provinces’ – history. I became interested in the possibility of serving in Russia. At the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the Holy Father asked for Jesuits (among other orders) to go to the Soviet Union to find and serve the Catholics who had held onto their faith throughout the terrible persecution of the communists.”
Read more about Fr. Corcoran's Jesuit vocation on our website:
https://www.jesuitscentralsouthern.org/stories/fr-corcoran-named-bishop/
Support his missionary work in Kyrgyzstan: Jesuits.family/fr-corcoran