Most Rev. Ricardo Ramírez, C.S.B., D.D.
Bishop of Las Cruces
1280 Med Park Drive
Las Cruces, New Mexico 88005
(505) 523-7577 FAX (505) 524-3874
rramirez@dioceseoflascruces.org

Date and Place of Birth: September 12, 1936, Bay City, Texas

Parents: Natividad Espitia Ramírez and María Espinosa Ramírez

Bishop Ramírez is the second of two sons. He was ordained to the priesthood on December 10, 1966 in Houston, Texas. He is a member of the Congregation of St. Basil. He was named Titular Bishop of Vatarba and Auxiliary Bishop of San Antonio on October 27, 1981, by Pope John Paul II and was ordained to the Episcopacy on December 6, 1981, in San Antonio, Texas, by Archbishop Patricio F. Flores. On October 18, 1982, he became the first Bishop of the Diocese of Las Cruces, New Mexico.

Education

• Latin American School Jefferson Davis Grammar, 1942-1950.
• Bay City High School, Bay City, Texas, 1951-1955.
• University of St. Thomas, Houston, Texas, 1955-1959, B.A.
• University of Detroit, 1967-1968, M.A.
• Doctor of Laws honoris causa, from Neumann College, Wichita, Kansas.
• Doctor of Divinity honoris causa, from the University of St. Michael's College, Toronto, Canada
• Doctor of Humane Letters honoris causa, from Siena Heights University, Adrian, Michigan

Seminaries Attended

• St. Basil's Seminary, Toronto, Canada, 1963-l965
• Seminario Conciliar, Mexico City, Mexico, 1965-1966

Further Studies

East Asian Pastoral Institute, Manila, Philippines, 1973-1974

Appointments

• 1967 St. Mary's Church, Owen Sound, Canada
• 1968-1970 Chaplain of University Students/Centro Cultural Aragón, Mexico City
• 1970-1976 Family Religious Education Project, Tehuacán, Puebla, Mexico
• 1976-1981 Mexican American Cultural Center, Executive Vice President, San Antonio, Texas
• 1981-1982 Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of San Antonio, Texas
• 1982-Present First Bishop of the Diocese of Las Cruces, New Mexico

 Currently Serving As

• Member, USCCB International Justice and Peace Committee
• Member, USCCB Domestic Social Development Committee
• Member, USCCB Subcommittee on Hispanic Liturgy
• Member, Catholic Church Extension Society Advisory Board
• Episcopal Advisor, Institute for Hispanic Liturgy
• Episcopal Moderator, Asociación Nacional de Sacerdotes Hispanos (ANSH)
• Member, Committee on the Catholic Common Ground Initiative
• Elected delegate from the U.S. to the Synod for America, 1997
• Elected alternate to the Synod of 1987 by the U.S. Bishops
• Appointed representative from the U.S. to the Fifth General Conference of Bishops of Latin America and the Caribbean in Aparecida, Brazil
• Served as member, New Mexico Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (USCCR)
• Served as member, U.S. State Department Advisory Committee on Religious Freedom Abroad
• Served two terms as Commissioner, United States Commission on International Religious Freedo (USCIRF)
• Served as Chairman of NCCB Committee on the Church in Latin America
• Served as Chairman of NCCB Catholic Campaign for Human Development
• Served as Chairman of the USCCB Subcommittee for Hispanic Liturgy
• Served as Member of the USCCB Committee on Migration and Refugee Services
• Served as member of NCCB Committee on the Liturgy
• Served as Consultant of the USCCB Committee on Hispanic Affairs