Brief Biography of Archbishop John Charles Wester

Friday, May. 29, 2015

Personal

Born Nov. 5, 1950, in San Francisco, Calif., the eldest child of Charles and Helen Wester. He has one brother and two sisters.

He entered the seminary in the eighth grade. He went on to attend Saint Joseph College, in Mountain View, Calif. (1968), and earn a bachelor’s degree (1972) from Saint Patrick College, in Mountain View, Calif. He holds a Master of Divinity (1976) from St. Patrick Seminary in Menlo Park, Calif., and a master’s degree in spirituality (1984) from the University of San Francisco, and a master’s degree (1993) from Holy Names College, in Oakland, Calif.

• He was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of San Francisco on May 15, 1976. Following ordination, he held numerous assignments, including associate pastor of Saint Raphael Parish in San Rafael, Calif. (1976-1979). He served as faculty member, then director of campus ministry, and president of Marin Catholic High School, in Kentfield, Calif. (1979-1986). He was appointed assistant superintendent for high schools for the Archdiocese of San Francisco (1986-1988), and administrative assistant to Archbishop John R. Quinn (1988-1993). From 1993 to 1997 he was pastor of St. Stephen Parish in San Francisco. He was appointed vicar for clergy in the Archdiocese of San Francisco in 1997, a position he held for 10 years.

• In 1997, Pope John Paul II named him a Prelate of Honor with the title Monsignor. 

• On Sept. 18, 1998, he was ordained auxiliary bishop of San Francisco and appointed vicar general. From 2005-2006, Bishop Wester served as the apostolic administrator of the archdiocese. 

• On Jan. 8, 2007, he was named the ninth bishop of Salt Lake City and was installed on March 14, 2007. 

• His Episcopal motto is “Abide in Christ.”

• On April 27, 2015 he was named Archbishop of Santa Fe.

He is a member of the Vatican Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People.

• Former chairman of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Migration

• Currently Chairman of the USCCB Committee on Communications

• Member, USCCB Committee on Migration

• Member, Catholic Education Foundation Advisory board

• Member, Committee on Catholic Education

• Member, Administrative Committee 

• Member, Subcommittee on the Church in Africa 

• Consultant, Committee on Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs

• Consultant, Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth

• Consultant, Committee on Migration

• He is a member of the Catholic Relief Services Board and chairman of the subcommittee on overseas operations. 

• Board of Trustees – Mexican American Catholic College

• Episcopal moderator – National Association for Lay Ministers

• Board of Trustees – Saint Patrick Seminary and University in Menlo Park

• Member – National Association of Catholic Chaplains and Zen/Ch’an – Catholic Dialog

2009 – recipient of the inaugural Religion Award from the Sutherland Institute

2010 – Archbishop Oscar Romero Human Rights Award from Rothko Chapel

2011 – President’s Award (shared with Elder M. Russell Ballard) from the Days of ’47 Pioneers of Progress 

2011 – Silver Beaver Award from the Great Salt Lake Council, Boy Scouts of America

2011 – second place, Best Editorial, Utah Press Association

2011 – second place, Best Editorial on a national or international issue; and third place, Best Editorial on a local issue, Catholic Press Association

2011 – People of Vision award from the Friends for Sight

2011 – installed as a Fourth Degree Knight of Columbus

2014 – Christ the Teacher Award from Utah Catholic Schools 

2014 – Legacy of Life Award from the Intermountain Research and The Heart and Lung Research Foundation

2014 – Friend of Access Award from the Midwest Region of the Alliance for Community Media

2014 – Catholics Can Award from the Diocese of Salt Lake City Commission for People with Disabilities

2014 – second place, Feature Column (Editorial), Utah Press Association