A Spanish Franciscan is the new bishop of French Corsica

Bishop-elect François-Xavier Bustillo, who was born in Pamplona and joined the Grey Friars in Italy, has been guardian of the Conventual Franciscan Friars of Lourdes.

Pope Francis has appointed François-Xavier Bustillo, a Spanish-born Franciscan, as the new bishop of Ajaccio, which includes the entire French island of Corsica.The 52-year-old priest has been guardian of the Conventual Franciscan (Grey Friars) convent at the famous French Marian Shrine of Lourdes and the episcopal delegate for the protection of minors and vulnerable people since 2018.

The Vatican announced on May 11 that the pope had chosen him to succeed Archbishop Olivier de Germay who was promoted last October to head the Archdiocese of Lyon.

He is the latest in series of Franciscans the pope has selected to lead dioceses in every part of the world."My goal is not to surf, but to dive into this diocese that I don't know," Fra François told La Croix.

He said he was surprised but happy that the pope had chosen a Franciscan for the post, but said he sees it as a new invitation to "announce the good news to the world".

Bishop-elect Bustillo's road to Corsica has been somewhat unusual.The oldest of four children, he was born in November 1968 in the city of Pamplona where he attended a Catholic school.

After completing high school at age 17, he went to Italy where entered the novitiate of the Conventual Franciscans in Padua, eventually making his solemn profession there in September 1992.

The choice of France

Bustillo studied philosophy and theology in Padua and said he still has fond memories of Italy.But after his priestly ordination in 1994, he and four confreres moved the small French city of Narbonne not far from the Spanish border to re-found the Convent of Saint Bonaventure.

There had been a Franciscan presence there for centuries and a general chapter of the order had even been held there in 1260.But the most recent community, a group of Capuchin Francis, left in 1934 and turned the complex over to the local diocese, Carcassone-Narbonne.

Bishop-elect Bustillo said he and his confreres were sent to live in France, rather than Italy or Spain, because of its state of de-Christianization.Shortly after his arrival there he began graduate studies at the Catholic Institute of Toulouse where he earned a licentiate in theology.

He has held parish offices and responsibilities in his order, and for eleven years was the episcopal vicar of the diocese of Carcassone-Narbonne and a member of the episcopal council of Bishop Alain Planet (2007-2018).

Fra François also served as provincial superior of the Conventual Franciscans of France and Belgium for twelve years (2006-2018).

A tennis player and supporter of the brilliant Narbonne Volleyball team, he is as much at home in interreligious discussions as he is with the political world.

Observers have described the newly appointed bishop of Corsica as a man of dialogue. And his own words support that.

"We need to open our antennas and pick up all the signals, not to make people feel guilty, but to lift up the world," he said, noting that France needs a "a Church without arrogance, that is straightforward and has something to say in a tense society".

From communication to communion

During his three years at Lourdes, which he says is a " place that humanizes", Bustillo said he has experienced the restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 epidemic as "a time of Nazareth" devoted to preaching via the Internet and to writing.

In a recent invigorating book, he confidently discusses the place of priests and invites them to go through the crises with audacity.

Drawing from the various retreats he has led for the clergy, he offers advice which serves as a guide to encourage priests and the Cathlolic people.

"We always talk about the structural, institutional and political role of the Church or its flaws: let us not forget its soul," he says in the book.

It is one of the things he kept in mind during his work as the bishop's delegate for the protection of minors.

"I was able to establish contacts with the civil authorities, to better understand the mechanisms and to work so that the Church is a healthy house that restores strength and life," he said.

A long Franciscan presence in Corsica

Bishop-elect Bustillo said he's eager to discover the Island of Beauty, as Corisca is often called.

He confessed that he doesn't know it, but said he will rely on the Franciscans' historic presence there. He noted there have been several friars who have served as bishop of Ajaccio in the past.

"When I arrived [in Narbonne], I was a priest," he told the local press when he left for Lourdes in the summer of 2018."Over time, I became a pastor, in the biblical sense of the term: one who creates communion, listens and communicates," he said.

It is a roadmap that suits the newly named bishop.He's already a polyglot and vowed that he would soon be speaking Corsican."I want to give it my all!

Once you say yes, you go: the challenge is to get to know people and to move from communication to communion," he said.His episcopal ordination is scheduled for June 13 in Ajaccio's cathedral.