Bishop Francis Serrao Appointed as Bishop of Mysore
His Holiness Pope Leo XIV has appointed Bishop Francis Serrao, S.J. (66), as the new Bishop of Mysore. The appointment announced on 15th August 2025 comes while Bishop Serrao is serving as the Bishop of Shimoga in Karnataka and as Chairman of the CCBI Commission for Ecumenism.
Bishop Serrao, a Jesuit, was appointed Bishop of Shimoga on 19th March 2014, and was ordained on May 7 of the same year. Born on 15th August 1959, in Moodbidri in the Diocese of Mangalore, he entered the Society of Jesus on 3rd January 1979 at Mount Saint Joseph, Bangalore. His philosophical and theological studies took place at Jesuit institutions—Satya Nilayam in Chennai and Jnana Deepa Vidya Peetha in Pune—followed by a Licentiate in Theology from Vidya Jyoti College, Delhi.
He was ordained a pPriest on 30th April 1992, and made his perpetual profession in the Society of Jesus on 1st May 1999. Over the years his ministry has spanned pastoral service, social action, academic leadership and community formation. He began with pastoral ministry in Mundgod in the Diocese of Karwar, before serving in social development work at Loyola Vikas Kendra in Mundgod. He later directed the Regional Theologate in Bangalore, led Saint Joseph Church in Anekal as Parish Priest, served as superior of the Jesuit community in Bejapur, and was rector of Saint Aloysius College in Mangalore.
His episcopal journey now takes a new turn as he prepares to shepherd the Diocese of Mysore, bringing with him decades of pastoral experience, Jesuit formation and a deep commitment to ecumenism. Bishop Francis Serrao is the ninth Bishop of the Diocese of Mysore. The diocese became vacant in 2024, and Archbishop Bernard Moras was appointed as its Administrator. The Mysore Mission was separated from the Vicariate Apostolic of Pondicherry on 16 March 1845 and made a Pro-Vicariate, later elevated to a Vicariate Apostolic in 1850. In 1886, Mysore became a diocese with Bangalore as its headquarters. Bangalore was separated as a diocese in 1940, followed by the creation of Ootacamund Diocese in 1955 and Chikmagalur Diocese in 1963, both carved out of Mysore.
Today the Diocese of Mysore comprises the districts of Mysuru, Mandya, Kodagu, and Chamarajanagar, bordering the dioceses of Bangalore, Ootacamund, Salem, Mananthavady, Kannur, Calicut, Mangalore and Chikmagalur. It has a Catholic population of 1,34,000, served by 93 Parishes, 140 diocesan Priests, 108 religious Priests, and 893 religious sisters.
