William Michael Mulvey (born August 23, 1949) is an American

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Minister (Christianity), Christian clergy who is an Ordinary (church officer), ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which me ...

of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

who has served as bishop of the

Diocese of Corpus Christi The Diocese of Corpus Christi () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or diocese, of the Catholic Church in southern Texas in the United States. The Diocese of Corpus Christi is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the met ...

in Texas since 2010.

Biography

Early life and education

William Mulvey was born on August 23, 1949, in

Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, the second of six children of Daniel H. Mulvey Jr. and Marjorie Jane Patterson Mulvey. His siblings are Dan, Martha, John, Tim and Kim. He has 12 nieces and nephews. All of William Mulvey's early education was completed at Catholic schools, including St. Theresa and St. Cecilia Schools in

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

. He also attended St. Thomas High School in Houston in 1966. Mulvey was confirmed by Bishop Wendelin Nold at St. Cecilia Parish in Houston. Mulvey graduated St. Edward's Catholic High School in Austin, Texas, in 1967 and then entered

St. Edward's University St. Edward's University is a private, Catholic university in Austin, Texas, United States. It was founded and is operated in the Holy Cross tradition. History Founding and early history St. Edward's University was founded by the Reverend Edwa ...

in Austin. He graduated from St. Edward's in 1971 with a

Bachelor of Business Administration A Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) is an undergraduate degree in business administration awarded by colleges and universities after completion of four years and typically 120 credits of undergraduate study in the fundamentals of busine ...

degree. After finishing college, Mulvey decided to become a priest. He traveled to Rome to attend the seminary at the

Pontifical North American College The Pontifical North American College (NAC) is a Catholic Church, Roman Catholic educational institution in Rome, Italy, that prepares seminarians to become priests in the United States and elsewhere. The NAC also provides a residence for Prie ...

. He was awarded a

Bachelor of Sacred Theology The Bachelor of Sacred Theology (abbreviated STB) is the first of three ecclesiastical degrees in theology (the second being the Licentiate in Sacred Theology and the third being the Doctorate in Sacred Theology) which are conferred by a number o ...

degree from the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas in 1974. Two years later, Mulvey received his

Licentiate in Sacred Theology Licentiate in Sacred Theology (; abbreviated LTh or STL) is the second of three ecclesiastical degrees in theology (the first being the Baccalaureate in Sacred Theology and the third being the Doctorate in Sacred Theology) which are conferred ...

from the

Pontifical Gregorian University Pontifical Gregorian University (; also known as the Gregorian or Gregoriana), is a private university, private pontifical university in Rome, Italy. The Gregorian originated as a part of the Roman College, founded in 1551 by Ignatius of Loyo ...

Ordination and ministry

Mulvey was ordained to the priesthood for the Diocese of Austin on June 29, 1975, by

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI (born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding John XXII ...

in St. Peter's Square in Vatican City, one of 359 priests ordained by Paul VI on that occasion. After Mulvey returned to Austin in 1976, the diocese assign him as associate pastor at the following Texas parishes: *St. Mary/Our Lady of Guadalupe in

Taylor, Texas Taylor is a city in Williamson County, Texas, United States. The population at the 2020 United States census, 2020 Census was 16,267, up from 15,191 as of 2010. History In 1876, the Texas Land Company auctioned lots in anticipation of the ar ...

, from 1976 to 1977 *St. Louis in Austin, from 1977 to 1980 In 1980, Mulvey spent a sabbatical year with the

Focolare movement The Focolare Movement is an international organisation of spiritual and social renewal and Christian new religious movement that promotes the ideals of unity and universal brother/sisterhood grounded in the Golden Rule. It was founded by then e ...

. After his sabbatical, the diocese assigned him as chaplain at Bishop Louis Reicher Catholic High School in Waco, Texas. He was also named in 1984 as pastor of St. Joseph Parish in Waco. Mulvey left Waco in 1986 to become director of spiritual formation at St. Mary's Seminary in Houston. He remained in that posting until 1992, when the diocese appointed him as pastor of St. Thomas Aquinas Parish in

College Station, Texas College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, United States, situated in East-Central Texas in the Brazos Valley, towards the eastern edge of the region known as the Texas Triangle. It is northwest of Houston and east-northeast of Austin, ...

. Mulvey moved back to Italy in 1995 after he was appointed director of the Center for Spirituality for Diocesan Priests, a Focolare facility in

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

. Two years later, he became director of the Focolare Center in

Hyde Park, New York Hyde Park is a town in Dutchess County, New York, United States, bordering the Hudson River north of Poughkeepsie. Within the town are the hamlets of Hyde Park, East Park, Staatsburg, and Haviland. Hyde Park is known as the hometown of Fra ...

. After four years with the Focolare movement, Mulvey returned to Texas in 1999 to become pastor of St. Helen Parish in Georgetown. Mulvey left St. Helen in 2004 when Bishop

Gregory Aymond Gregory Michael Aymond (born November 12, 1949) is an American prelate of the Catholic Church who has served as the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans, Archbishop of New Orleans since 2009. Aymond was previously the Roman Catholic Dioce ...

named him as chancellor of the diocese. Mulvey became vicar general in 2007. He was named in August 2009 as vice rector of St. Mary's Seminary in Houston. A few weeks later, he was elected administrator of the Diocese of Austin after Aymond was named archbishop of the

Archdiocese of New Orleans The Archdiocese of New Orleans (; ; ) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical division of the Catholic Church spanning Jefferson (except Grand Isle), Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. John the Baptist, St. Tammany, and Washingto ...

Bishop of Corpus Christi

Mulvey was appointed as bishop of Corpus Christi by

Pope Benedict XVI Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...

on January 18, 2010. Mulvey was consecrated on March 25, 2010, by Cardinal

Daniel DiNardo Daniel Nicholas DiNardo (born May 23, 1949) is an American Catholic retired prelate who served as Archbishop of Galveston-Houston from 2006 to 2025. He previously served as Coadjutor and later Bishop of Sioux City from 1997 to 2004. On Novem ...

. His principal co-consecrators were Aymond and Bishop

Edmond Carmody Edmond Carmody (born January 12, 1934) is an Irish-born American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Corpus Christi in Texas (2000 to 2010), bishop of the Diocese of Tyler in Texas (1992 to 2000) and as ...

. In March 2019. Mulvey and the diocese were sued for

defamation Defamation is a communication that injures a third party's reputation and causes a legally redressable injury. The precise legal definition of defamation varies from country to country. It is not necessarily restricted to making assertions ...

by Monsignor Michael Heras and Reverend John Feminelli. The two clerics had been included on a list of diocesan clergy with credible accusations of sexual abuse that was released by the diocese in January 2019. The lawsuit was dismissed in August 2019. In November 2019, Mulvey made a peripheral stem cell donation to a San Antonio woman with cancer. He had joined the Be the Match Registry for

bone marrow transplant Hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (HSCT) is the transplantation of multipotent hematopoietic stem cells, usually derived from bone marrow, peripheral blood, or umbilical cord blood, in order to replicate inside a patient and produce a ...

s before he became bishop. Mulvey in May 2020 condemned the

domestic terrorism Domestic terrorism or homegrown terrorism is a form of terrorism in which victims "within a country are targeted by a perpetrator with the same citizenship" as the victims.Gary M. Jackson, ''Predicting Malicious Behavior: Tools and Techniques ...

attack that wounded a sailor at

Naval Air Station Corpus Christi Naval Air Station Corpus Christi is a United States Navy naval air base located six miles (10 km) southeast of the central business district (CBD) of Corpus Christi, in Nueces County, Texas. History A naval air station for Corpus Christi ...

References

External links

Bishop Michael Mulvey, STL, DD Diocese of Corpus Christi Corpus Christi, TX

Diocese of Austin

Diocese of Corpus Christi

Episcopal succession

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mulvey, William Living people 1949 births American Roman Catholic clergy of Irish descent Pontifical Gregorian University alumni St. Thomas High School (Houston, Texas) alumni St. Edward's University alumni Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas alumni Catholics from Texas 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Members of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre