Pope Leo XIV Appoints 2 New Auxiliary Bishops for Washington D.C. - Including the Youngest Bishop in the USA

Pope Leo XIV Appoints Two New Auxiliary Bishops for the Archdiocese of Washington; Accepts Resignation of Most Reverend Roy Campbell

Pope Leo XIV has appointed Reverend Gary R. Studniewski and Reverend Robert P. Boxie, III, as auxiliary bishops of the Archdiocese of Washington. At the same time, the Holy Father accepted the resignation of the Most Reverend Roy E. Campbell, 78, from the Office of Auxiliary Bishop of Washington.

WASHINGTON - Pope Leo XIV has appointed Reverend Gary R. Studniewski and Reverend Robert P. Boxie, III, as auxiliary bishops of the Archdiocese of Washington. Bishop-elect Studniewski is a priest of the Archdiocese of Washington and currently serves as pastor of the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Washington, D.C. Bishop-elect Boxie is a priest of the Archdiocese of Washington and currently serves as chaplain to Howard University in Washington, D.C.

At the same time, the Holy Father accepted the resignation of the Most Reverend Roy E. Campbell, 78, from the Office of Auxiliary Bishop of Washington. The appointments and resignation were publicized in Washington, D.C. on May 1, 2026, by Cardinal Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States.

The following biographical information for Bishop-elect Studniewski and Bishop-elect Boxie was drawn from preliminary materials provided to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops:

Bishop-elect Gary R. Studniewski

Bishop-elect Studniewski is a priest of the Archdiocese of Washington and currently serves as pastor of the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Washington, D.C. He was born on May 8, 1957, in Toledo, Ohio. He received an Army commission through the ROTC program at the University of Toledo in 1979, completing a Bachelor of Education degree in Biology. He served in various artillery assignments in the 82d Airborne Division Artillery (1980-1981), and then in the 3d Infantry Division Artillery, United States Army Europe (1983-1986), and from 1987 to 1989 he served in the Army’s Personnel Command in Alexandria, Virginia.

In 1989 Father Studniewski left active duty to enter seminary, and studied at the Pontifical North American College in Rome (1990-1995), earning both a Bachelor of Sacred Theology and Licentiate in Sacred Theology from the University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome. He was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of Washington on June 24, 1995.

Bishop-elect Studniewski served as military chaplain from 1995-2014, retiring with the rank of colonel. His pastoral assignments in the Archdiocese of Washington have included: Assumption parish in Washington (2014-2016); St. Francis Xavier parish in Leonardtown, Maryland (2016-2017); St. Peter’s parish in Washington (2017-2022); and the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament (2022 to present).

Bishop-elect Robert P. Boxie, III

Bishop-elect Robert P. Boxie, III is a priest of the Archdiocese of Washington and currently serving as chaplain to Howard University in Washington. Father Boxie was born on September 18, 1980, in Lake Charles, Louisiana. He earned a Bachelor of Engineering from Vanderbilt University (2002), a Juris Doctor from Harvard University (2007), and studied at the Pontifical North American College in Rome, earning a Bachelor of Sacred Theology (2015) and a Licentiate in Sacred Theology (2017) from the Pontifical Gregorian University. He was ordained to the priesthood on June 25, 2016.

Father Boxie’s pastoral assignments include: parochial vicar at St. Francis of Assisi parish in Derwood, Maryland (2016); and parochial vicar at St. Joseph parish in Largo, Maryland (2017-2020). Since 2020, he has served as chaplain at Howard University in Washington. Bishop-elect Boxie has also served as professor in the Archdiocese of Washington’s permanent diaconate program since 2018 and has been an assistant vocations director for the archdiocese since 2016.

The Archdiocese of Washington is comprised of 2,104 square miles in the District of Columbia and the State of Maryland.

###USCCB Release

Statements on the appointments of two new Auxiliary Bishops of Washington by Pope Leo XIV

The Holy Father has named Father Gary Studniewski and Father Robert Boxie III as Auxiliary Bishops of Washington and accepted Bishop Roy E. Campbell, Jr.’s resignation and appointed Bishop Evelio Menjivar to West Virginia diocese.

Note: Biographical information on the Bishops-Elect can be found in the media advisory here.

Statement from Cardinal Robert McElroy, Archbishop of Washington:

I am delighted to share with you the news that today Pope Leo has appointed Father Gary Studniewski and Father Robert Boxie to be Auxiliary Bishops of the Archdiocese of Washington. Both are exemplary leaders in our local church, and they will provide great wisdom, counsel and collaboration to me and selfless priestly service to the entire People of God in the District and the five Maryland counties.

Today the Holy Father has also announced the appointment of Bishop Evelio Menjivar-Ayala to be the new bishop of Wheeling-Charleston, West Virginia. All of you understand how great a loss this is for the Archdiocese. Bishop Menjivar’s pastoral love and zeal, as well as his passion for justice and sensitive care for the Hispanic and immigrant communities of our Archdiocese have planted seeds of grace that will yield a harvest here for decades to come. Our consolation is that the people of West Virginia will have a splendid new bishop to continue the work that Bishop Brennan has undertaken there, and for that we give thanks.

Finally, Pope Leo also announced today that he has accepted the resignation of Bishop Roy Campbell as auxiliary bishop of Washington. To Bishop Campbell, who has so magnificently served as pastor and shepherd within our local church, our only words must be thanks. It was a great gift to the Archdiocese that God called Bishop Campbell from his life as a successful banking executive to enter the pathway to the priesthood and ultimately the episcopate. His wisdom, prudence, and love for Our Lord and Our Lady, combined with a keen mind for administration and a caring heart for the poor and the marginalized to provide for us a magnificent leader for the life of our Archdiocese. And his particular care for the black communities of our Archdiocese is an immense grace to our local church. Bishop Campbell will continue as pastor of Saint Joseph until July. It is a fitting tribute to him that Bishop-Elect Boxie, whom Bishop Campbell formed in his first assignment, now has been appointed a bishop on the same day that Bishop Campbell retires as auxiliary bishop.

I give thanks to Pope Leo for his great care for the people of the Archdiocese of Washington, and for providing to our local church and to the people of West Virginia such splendid episcopal leadership. And I thank Cardinal Christophe Pierre, who has done so much to make these appointments possible during his service as our Papal Nuncio.

Statement from Bishop-Elect Gary R. Studniewski

It was in the Church of Washington in 1987 that I encountered Christ in a powerful way, and a great desire to serve his Church emerged from that. The happiest day of my life was being ordained a priest of Washington in 1995.

In 2016 I retired from the U.S. Army, having been away from the archdiocese for eighteen years as a priest chaplain. I longed to return to the Church of Washington. I so wanted to be a pastor and to serve the beautiful and diverse church that I fell in love with in 1987. It has been a great blessing for me to serve as Pastor at St. Peter’s Church on Capitol Hill, and at the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament. These have been the happiest years of my priesthood.

Although totally unexpected and unimagined, I humbly embrace the call to be a bishop. I am grateful to Almighty God for his never-failing mercy. The Lord said to me, “My grace is enough for you, for in weakness power reaches perfection.” The Lord has supplied grace after grace throughout my priesthood. I rely now on that grace to faithfully serve the Church of Washington for the rest of my days.

I strongly desire to support Cardinal McElroy in achieving the goals for pastoral action he has established. I have always been very, very proud to be a part of this extraordinary presbyterate. As the archbishop allows, I am eager to support my brother priests in their life and ministry. And it will give me particular delight to travel across the archdiocese and minister to the People of God in parishes of such rich diversity.

I thank the Holy Father and Cardinal McElroy for the call to serve. It is exciting for me to be a bishop for the Church of Washington, and I am delighted to be a part of this church on mission.

Statement from Bishop-Elect Robert P. Boxie III

I am both overwhelmed and deeply humbled but grateful to the Holy Father Pope Leo for appointing me as one of the new auxiliary bishops of the Archdiocese of Washington. To say this is unexpected is an understatement—God’s plans are not our plans! I am especially grateful for the support of Cardinal McElroy and the confidence of my brother priests as I begin this new role. I pray every day—and I ask you to pray with me—that I live up to the full responsibility of this sacred duty now entrusted to me with wisdom, pastoral charity, and zeal, always relying on the help of God.

Bishop Campbell, I want to thank you in a particular way as you enter retirement. You have served this Archdiocese faithfully and with great dedication. I know this personally, having had the privilege of serving as your parochial vicar for three years at St. Joseph in Largo. Your example of hard work and faithful service carried out with a pastor’s heart has meant a great deal to me, especially knowing that you had not one, but two full-time jobs. It is a great honor to follow you as an auxiliary bishop.

Finally, I believe this appointment represents something much bigger than me. It’s an acknowledgement of the community that I come from and that has formed me in the faith, especially my family and my home parish; it recognizes the community I now serve, especially the students and young people at Howard University and parishioners at Immaculate Conception here in DC; and it underscores the vitality, vibrancy, and diversity of this local Church here in Washington to which I belong.

I look forward to working with you Cardinal McElroy, my brother bishops, my brother priests, archdiocesan staff, religious women and men, and all the lay faithful as together we bring the Good News of the Gospel and the hope of the Risen Christ to all throughout the Archdiocese of Washington and beyond. Today is spiritually rich and full of many graces—the graces of First Friday dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the name of my home parish; the graces and intercession of the Blessed Mother as we begin this month of May dedicated to her, and the feast of St. Joseph the Worker—I ask for all the spiritual graces that I will need to faithfully and joyfully serve this local Church in Washington.

Source - https://adw.org/news/statements-on-the-appointments-of-two-new-auxiliary-bishops-of-washington-may-2026/