Pope Leo XIV appointed a new bishop for the Diocese of Metuchen and an apostolic administrator for the Diocese of Shreveport in a series of announcements on Tuesday, September 15.

Bishop Michael Saporito was named the next bishop of Metuchen, New Jersey. He is currently an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey. His appointment fills the vacancy created when then-Bishop James Checchio was installed as the coadjutor Archbishop of New Orleans in late 2025.

“I am deeply grateful and humbled that Pope Leo XIV has called me to serve as the Bishop of Metuchen. While it is not easy to leave the people and places that have formed and sustained me, I welcome this new mission with trust in the Holy Spirit,” said Bishop Saporito in a statement published Tuesday by the diocese.

He continued: “I look forward to meeting the priests, deacons, religious and lay faithful of the Diocese, walking with them as we seek to follow Jesus Christ and bear witness to the hope of the Gospel.”

A native of New Jersey, Bishop Saporito worked as an accountant for three years before entering seminary. He was ordained a priest in 1992 at the age of 30. Prior to being named an auxiliary bishop in February 2020, Bishop Saporito served at several parishes throughout the Archdiocese of Newark.

The Diocese of Metuchen consists of four counties in central New Jersey and is located directly north of the Diocese of Trenton. It was founded in 1981 with a population of approximately 1.5 million, 670,000 of them Catholic, according to the diocese’s website.

Pope Leo also announced that he had accepted the resignation of Bishop Francis Malone of Shreveport, Louisiana. Bishop Malone is 76, over the retirement age of 75.

Bishop Robert W. Marshall of Alexandria, Louisiana, will serve as the apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Shreveport until a new bishop is appointed.

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