This appointment came just after the Holy Father accepted the resignation of Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, who had served the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston since 2004.

During a press conference in Houston on Jan. 20, Bishop Vásquez expressed his gratitude to Pope Francis, reaffirming his fidelity to the Holy Father and humbly acknowledging the responsibility bestowed upon him. He also thanked Cardinal Di Nardo.

“With God’s grace, I pledge to serve the needs of this local church to the best of my ability.… To the lay faithful of the archdiocese, I say to you, you are a church rich in diversity, goodness, and generosity, and I look forward to meeting with you and listening to you as together we grow in our faith and love of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,” Bishop Vásquez said.

Bishop Vásquez went on to thank the people of the Diocese of Austin. “To you I say, dear priests, deacons, consecrated men and women, seminarians, and lay faithful, thank you for allowing me to serve you for nearly 15 years. I am profoundly grateful for the love, support and prayers you have shown me. I will always carry you in my heart,” he said.

Bishop Vásquez was installed as the bishop of Austin on March 8, 2010. Both before and during his tenure, Bishop Vásquez has been an active member of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), serving on various committees, including as Chair of the Committee on Migration; the Administrative Committee; the Committee for Religious Liberty; and as a consultant to the Committee on International Justice and Peace, the Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, and the Subcommittee on Hispanic Affairs. He also served on the Board of Directors of the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC). More recently, he has served as a consultant to the USCCB Ad Hoc Committee Against Racism and as Lead Bishop for Region X for the V National Encounter for Hispanic/Latino Ministry (V Encuentro).

During his time in Central Texas, the region has seen an exponential growth in population. Between 2010 and 2020, the Austin-Round Rock-Georgetown metro area grew by more than 33%, making it the fastest growing region in Texas. This growth has been reflected in expanding parish communities and countless building projects to meet the needs of the faithful.

To meet these demands, Bishop Vásquez led the Encountering Christ Campaign (ECC), raising more than $85 million in gifts for local parish needs while supporting clergy, enhancing growth and development across the diocese, and strengthening ministries, Catholic education and faith formation. With the help of funds from this campaign, several new sanctuaries have been built on Austin’s eastern corridor.

One of the most memorable building projects was the rebuilding of the historic Church of the Visitation in Westphalia, which tragically burned to the ground in 2019. Bishop Vásquez was there to see the damage firsthand, promising the community his support in the rebuilding effort. Great care was taken to replicate the beauty of the original church, and the bishop dedicated the new sanctuary on Aug. 27, 2023.

Bishop Vásquez remained steadfast in building a culture of vocations in the Diocese of Austin. During his time in Austin, 51 men were ordained as priests of the Diocese of Austin with five more slated to be ordained this June. More than 100 have been ordained permanent deacons, including those whom he recently ordained on March 1. Last year, the Diocese of Austin welcomed one of its largest classes of seminarians to date, with 60 men currently studying to be diocesan priests.

Additionally, several new religious communities have begun ministering in the diocese in recent years, including the Discipulas de Jesus at Sacred Heart in Austin; the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist in Georgetown; the Servants of the Pierced Hearts of Jesus and Mary at St. William Parish in Round Rock; and the Sisters of Mary, Morning Star in Waco.

As the COVID-19 pandemic struck the world in 2020, it also impacted the clergy and faithful here in Central Texas challenging all to worship and serve in new ways. As parishes learned to livestream and use other new communication techniques, Bishop Vásquez led the diocesan staff in responding to the needs of the parishes and the faithful throughout Central Texas.

In 2022, Bishop Vásquez joined the National Eucharistic Revival calling on his flock to renew their relationship with Christ in the Eucharist. He led a Eucharistic procession through the streets of Austin in 2022 and extended his blessing to the entire diocese from the hilltop at St. Edward’s University. Just last year he journeyed with more than 275 people from the diocese to the National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis.

Father James Misko, vicar general of the Diocese of Austin, summarized the feelings of many about Bishop Vásquez’ move to Houston.

“While we will dearly miss his steady leadership, strengthened by his faithful life of prayer and service to God's people, we rejoice with the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston that they will have a shepherd after the heart of Jesus, the Good Shepherd. We hold Bishop Vásquez in our daily prayers as he prepares for this new mission in his episcopal ministry,” Father Misko said.