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To: Archdiocese of Atlanta staff clergy and staff
From: The Most Reverend Gregory J. Hartmayer, OFM Conv.
Atlanta, Georgia–Pope Francis has named Father John Nhan Tran Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Atlanta. Bishop-designate Tran, a native of Vietnam, will come to Atlanta from the Archdiocese of New Orleans, where he currently serves as pastor of Mary, Queen of Peace in Mandeville, Louisiana. The ordination will take place on January 23, 2023.
Archbishop Gregory J. Hartmayer, OFM Conv., will welcome Bishop-designate Tran at a news conference in Atlanta today, Tuesday, October 25, at 10 a.m., at the Chancery, located at 2401 Lake Park Drive, Smyrna, Ga, 30080. Local media are welcome at the news conference, but should RSVP to communications@archatl.com. The news conference will be livestreamed on the archdiocesan Facebook and livestream pages.
“I am overjoyed to welcome Bishop-designate John Tran to Atlanta. Our archdiocese is blessed with a diverse community of Catholics from around the world. Bishop-designate Tran reflects and celebrates this diversity. Bishop Ned, Bishop Konzen and I look forward to working with him to shepherd the people of God in Georgia,” said The Most Rev. Gregory J. Hartmayer, OFM Conv., Archbishop of Atlanta.
Bishop-designate Tran was born in Vietnam in 1966. He and his family left his home country and received refugee status in the United States following the Vietnam War. Settling in New Orleans, Bishop-designate Tran attended Edna Karr Jr. High School in New Orleans before moving to New York to finish high school. He then attended Don Bosco College in New Jersey before returning to the New Orleans area to complete his studies at St. Joseph Seminary College and Notre Dame Seminary. Bishop-designate Tran graduated from Notre Dame Seminary with a Masters of Divinity in 1992 and was ordained to the priesthood for the Archdiocese of New Orleans soon afterward on May 30, 1992.
“The call I received from the Apostolic Nuncio, Archbishop Christophe Pierre, left me speechless and with trepidation,” said Bishop-designate Tran. “After several days of prayer and trusting that God will provide, I was able to embrace the appointment by Pope Francis. I am indeed humbled to serve as Auxiliary Bishop in the Archdiocese of Atlanta.”
“We thank Bishop-designate Tran for saying yes to God’s call and to the invitation from Pope Francis to join us here,” said Archbishop Hartmayer.
Bishop-designate Tran has served as both a parochial vicar and pastor in parishes throughout the Archdiocese of New Orleans. Since 2014, he has been pastor of Mary, Queen of Peace in Mandeville. Bishop-designate Tran has also served on a number of local councils and committees including the Priest Personnel Board, Presbyteral (Priests) Council, where he served as chair, and the Council of Deans as Dean of the St. John-St. Charles Deanery. He is a member of the Knights of Columbus and has been active within ministry supporting the Louisiana Vietnamese Community.
“Bishop-designate Tran has ministered faithfully to the people of the Archdiocese of New Orleans throughout his priestly ministry,” said Archbishop Gregory Aymond. “He is greatly respected by the clergy, religious, and laity of the Archdiocese of New Orleans. He is a leader among our priests. We congratulate him and assure him of our prayers as he assumes his new ministry. It is bittersweet as he will be greatly missed.”
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The Archdiocese of Atlanta encompasses the northern half of Georgia covering 69 counties. The archdiocese is a vibrant, diverse and rapidly growing Catholic community. As of 2022, there were 102 parishes and missions, 293 diocesan and religious priests, 38 seminarians, 17 archdiocesan Catholic schools, 1.2 million Catholics and 7.5 million people in north central Georgia.
