Pope Benedict XVI has named an experienced Byzantine Catholic bishop as the new Byzantine metropolitan archbishop of Pittsburgh.
Archbishop-elect William Skurla, 55, of the Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Passaic, NJ, will be enthroned April 18 at 2 p.m. in the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, Munhall.
Prior to his 2007 appointment to Passaic he had spent five years as bishop of the Eparchy of Van Nuys, Calif.
The Byzantine Catholic Archeparchy of Pittsburgh is the only self-governing Eastern Catholic Church in the United States, and is directly under the authority of the pope rather than a patriarch in the Eastern Europe or the Middle East.
Eastern Catholics are loyal to the pope, but their worship and church law closely resemble that of the Eastern Orthodox churches.
The Pittsburgh archeparchy -- or archdiocese -- has been without an archbishop since the death of Metropolitan Basil Schott in June 2010.
It is geographically enormous, stretching from Erie to Texas, but about three-quarters of its 58,000 members live in the tri-state area.
Over the past 18 months the archeparchy has been led by the Rev. Eugene P. Yackanich, a local priest who served as administrator.
"We welcome Archbishop William among us, and we look forward to the new life and growth that his appointment will beign to the Metropolitan Church of Pittsburgh," Father Yackanich said in a statement.
"He comes with both pastoral and administrative experience that will serve him well."