The first parish in Lubbock, St. Joseph's, was established in 1924. The Diocese of Amarillo built St. Elizabeth's Church in Lubbock in 1936, the second Catholic church in the city.[3] The Sisters of Orange, California, opened St. Mary of the Plains Hospital in Lubbock in 1939. It is now known as Covenant Medical Center–Lakeside[4]
Auxiliary Bishop Plácido Rodriguez of the Archdiocese of Chicago was appointed as the second bishop of Lubbock by John Paul II in 1994.[5] Rodriguez retired in 2015. As of 2023, the current bishop of Lubbock is Robert Coerver from the Diocese of Dallas. He was appointed by Pope Francis in 2016.[6][7]
In March 2021, the Federal Bureau of Investigation issued an arrest warrant for Nathan Webb, who was accused of embezzling $250,000 from Christ the King Cathedral. Webb had been in charge of bill payment and management of donations for the cathedral parish. Webb fled to Colombia after the warrant was issued.[8] After being extradited back to Texas, Webb pleaded guilty to wire fraud and was sentenced in April 2023 to four years in state prison.[9]
Sex abuse
In January 2004, Bishop Rodriguez released a list of five priests and one deacon with credible allegations of sexual abuse of minors. Most of the cases predated the formation of the diocese. The men on the list were either deceased or already removed from ministry.[10]
In January, 2019, Bishop Coerver released a revised list of clerics with credible accusations against them.[11] One priest named on the revised list was Jesus Guerrero, who then sued the diocese in March 2019 for defamation. The Texas Supreme Court dismissed Guerrero's lawsuit in June 2021, citing the First Amendment rights under the US Constitution for churches to manage their own affairs.[12]
Arms was designed and adopted when the diocese was erected
Adopted
1983
Escutcheon
The upper part of the arms has a red background with a gold crown on a silver cross. The lower part of the arms has a black background with a silver sprig of cotton.
Symbolism
The red background represents the Caprock Escarpment in the diocese. The cross and crown represent Jesus Christ. The black background represents the petroleum reserves in the diocese. The cotton sprig represents the primary agricultural crop of the diocese.[14]
