Chapter 11

The Most Reverend

MICHAEL M. PHAM

BISHOP OF SAN DIEGO

A clergymember in black religious attire with red accents and a pink sash, wearing glasses and a cross necklace, smiles with hands clasped.

Key Dates

Birth Date:  
Jan. 22, 1967 

Birth Place:
Da Nang, Vietnam 

Ordained: 
June 25, 1999 in the Diocese of San Diego

Appointed Auxiliary Bishop of San Diego: 
June 6, 2023

Consecrated:
Sept. 28, 2023 

Appointed Bishop of San Diego:
May 22, 2025

Installed as Bishop of San Diego:
July 17, 2025

About the Coat of Arms

About Bishop Pham

Pope Leo XIV named Bishop Michael Pham the seventh bishop of San Diego on May 22, 2025, the nation’s first Vietnamese American bishop. He was installed on July 17 of that year.

 

The diocese spans San Diego and Imperial counties, and is home to 96 parishes, 39 Catholic elementary schools and seven Catholic high schools.

 

Fulfilling the traditional role of shepherd, Bishop Pham serves three main functions: teaching the doctrine, sanctifying, and governing. Embracing a spirit of synodality, Bishop Pham invites the participation of all — auxiliary bishops, clergy, religious men and women and laity — in building the Kingdom of God.

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About the Coat of Arms

Bishop Pham’s coat of arms combines the Diocese of San Diego’s coat of arms on the left side, and his on the right. On his, a red boat on a blue ocean sits on diagonal lines suggesting a fisherman’s net. This symbolizes his ministry as a “fisher of men,” as well as how his own father had been a fisherman. The boat is also a symbol of the Church, which is referred to as the “barque of Peter.” At the center of the sail is a red beehive (a symbol of the bishop’s baptismal patron saint, St. John Chrysostom, known as a “honey-tongued” preacher). The beehive is surrounded by two green palm branches (an ancient symbol of martyrdom; the bishop’s ancestors were among Vietnam’s first martyrs). The eight red tongues of fire around the boat are a symbol of the Holy Spirit and a representation of the diversity of ethnic communities.

About the Coat of Arms

Bishop Pulido’s coat of arms is divided into four quarters with wavy horizontal lines from top to bottom. The blue and white lines represent the Blessed Virgin Mary. They also suggest water, which alludes to Jesus washing the feet of His disciples and to the waters of baptism. The red and gold lines represent the Holy Spirit and fire. The colors also can be seen as referring to the Blood that (along with water) poured from Jesus’ side at His crucifixion, as well as to the bread (gold) and wine (red) transformed into the Eucharist. At the center is a roundel featuring a symbolic representation of the “mandatum” (washing of the feet), which he believes exemplifies service to all humanity. The roundel’s outer edge is a line composed of small humps; it is borrowed from the coat of arms of the Diocese of Yakima, where Bishop Pulido served as a priest before being named a bishop.

About the Coat of Arms

The coat of arms combines symbols that reflect Bishop Bejarano’s spiritual life and priestly ministry. The main part of the shield shows four wavy vertical lines on a gold background. These represent flowing waters. This alludes to his chosen motto and also symbolizes the graces that come from the Divine life to quench our thirst for God. The upper third of the shield is red because it is borrowed from the coat of arms of the Order of Mercy, of which the Bishop’s patron saint, Raymond Nonnatus, was a member. The central symbol resembles a monstrance because St. Raymond is often depicted holding one. The Eucharist is Bishop Bejarano’s inspiration for his vocation. It was through the Eucharist that he received his call to the priesthood at age seven and which keeps his faith and his ministry going. It represents the call to offer oneself as a living sacrifice. The monstrance is flanked on either side by an image of the Sacred Heart, alluding to the mercy of God and echoing the idea of a sacrificial offering of oneself united to the sacrifice of Christ, and of a rose for Our Lady. It is an allusion to Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the Americas, and highlights the bishop’s Hispanic heritage.

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