South Hills pastor appointed auxiliary bishop for Pittsburgh diocese
The pastor of Resurrection Parish in the South Hills has been appointed auxiliary bishop for the Diocese of Pittsburgh, it was announced Friday.
The appointment of the Rev. Mark Eckman to be one of Bishop David Zubik’s assistants for the pastoral and administrative needs of the diocese was made by Pope Francis and announced in Washington, D.C., by Archbishop Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States.
“I am honored that the Holy Father has placed such trust and confidence in me and I will serve wherever needed,” the 62-year-old Eckman said in a news release issued by the diocese. “I only ever wanted to be a parish priest.”
Following Eckman’s ordination as bishop at St. Paul Cathedral in Pittsburgh on Jan. 11, he will be one of three auxiliary bishops in the diocese, joining Bishop William Waltersheid, who was appointed an auxiliary bishop in 2011, and Bishop William Winter, who is now retired but still assists with pastoral needs.
The Resurrection Parish includes St. John Capistran Church in Upper St. Clair and St. Thomas More Church in Bethel Park. Eckman is a native of Pittsburgh, attended St. Paul Seminary and graduated from Duquesne University and St. Vincent Seminary in Latrobe. Eckman was ordained in 1985 and in the years since has fulfilled a number of roles, including parochial vicar, high school chaplain, pastor and administrator at two parishes, and episcopal vicar for clergy personnel. In addition, he has served on several boards.
Zubik said that Eckman “has shown himself to be a caring, compassionate, responsible, skilled pastor of the Church.”