Fr. Simon-Peter Engurait from Uganda has been elected the Diocesan Administrator of the Catholic Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux in the United States of America (USA) following the passing on of Bishop Mario Dorsonville.

Bishop Dorsonville died of complications arising from liver disease on January 29, leaving the Diocese sede vacante.

Fr. Engurait will serve as the Diocesan Administrator until a time when the Holy Father appoints a Bishop for the American Diocese.

Upon his Monday January 22 election, Fr. Engurait made a profession of faith in the presence of the College of Consultors and notified the Apostolic Nuncio of his election, Ugandan Catholics Online reported.

Born in Ngora District, Eastern Uganda, Fr. Engurait was ordained a Priest on 26 May 2013.

He holds a Masters Degree in Divinity from Notre Dame Seminary in the USA.

Fr. Engurait has been serving as the Vicar General of the American Diocese since 2017.

In a message following his election, Fr. Engurait said he received the news of his election with “a humble and heavy heart.”

“I pray that the Lord will grant me the grace to serve each one of you well even as we grieve together the loss of our beloved Father and Shepherd, Bishop Mario Dorsonville,” he said in a Facebook message.

“While a time will come for more thorough introductions, my focus as well as the focus of the entire Diocesan Staff remains on honoring Bishop Dorsonville in the coming days,” the Diocesan Administrator of Houma-Thibodaux said.

He called on the people of God to pray for the soul of the late Bishop “that he may receive his eternal reward in the company of our heavenly father and the communion of Saints.”