Pope names Michael Router as new Bishop of Derry

Pope Leo has named Bishop Michael Router as the new Catholic Bishop of Derry.

He moves from the Diocese of Armagh, where he has been Auxiliary Bishop for the last seven years, to succeed Bishop Donal Mckeown who has been in post since 2014.

Earlier this year, Bishop McKeown submitted his resignation to the Pope, having reached the age of 75.

Bishop-elect Router's installation is due to take place in September.

Speaking to BBC News NI, Bishop Router said his appointment was "an immense honour" but had come as "a bit of a shock and quite a surprise".

"We had just organised a major congress in Armagh, so my thoughts were far from moving from there," he said.

"But I am absolutely delighted.

"I've heard so much good about the Diocese of Derry and everyone I've talked to in the last 24 hours or so has told me that I'm a very lucky man to be coming here."

Earlier around 100 people attended a service in St Eugene's Cathedral to welcome the Bishop-elect to the diocese.

A native of County Cavan and a priest for almost four decades, Bishop Router told parishioners the Church holds a very different position on the island of Ireland than it did a generation ago and "no longer occupies the centre of public life".

"Many people, particularly younger generations, no longer identify naturally with the institutional Church," he said.

"The wounds caused by abuse and failures of leadership continue to cause severe pain and upset for many and we must never cease asking forgiveness, listening with humility and working patiently towards healing and reconciliation.

"Alongside these realities we face declining numbers of clergy, changing parish structures and the onerous task of passing on the faith in an increasingly secular culture."

He said those realities could not simply be ignored or be solved by "nostalgia for a past that cannot return".

He said as Bishop he would "minister among you not with all the answers but with a willingness to listen, especially to those who have become distant from the Church."

He also paid tribute to the "courage and generosity" of his predecessor, who had guided the Diocese through "a period of significant social, cultural and ecclesial change".

The leader of the Catholic Church in Ireland Archbishop Eamon Martin, who is from Derry, said the new bishop could expect "a warm welcome from the people" of the city.

"Bishop Michael brings many gifts to his new role," Martin said, adding that as Auxiliary Bishop in Armagh he was a source of "tremendous support" who would be greatly missed there.

He described the Bishop-elect as "a gifted preacher and communicator", who would bring a "natural pastoral instinct" to the role.

Martin also paid tribute to outgoing Bishop McKeown, who he said is a "a person of genuine empathy, kindness and compassion".

"He is a true 'son of encouragement' and a caring pastor," Martin said.

Church of Ireland Bishop of Derry and Raphoe Andrew Forster also paid tribute to the outgoing Bishop, saying it had been "a joy and a privilege to serve alongside Donal".

He said he now looked forward to "walking alongside" his successor "as we seek to share the light of Christ in our Dioceses."