Pope Francis has appointed Bishop Guy Boulanger as Bishop of both the Diocese of Rouyn-Noranda and the Diocese of Amos in northern Quebec, uniting the dioceses “in persona episcopi” under one bishop.
The Pope on Sept. 16 accepted the resignation of Amos Bishop Gilles Lemay. On the same day, the Pope appointed Bishop Boulanger as Bishop of Rouyn-Noranda and Bishop of Amos. While he oversees both dioceses, they remain distinct entities.
Born in 1963 in Saint-Cecile-de-Whitton, Que., Bishop Boulanger was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Sherbrooke in 1991.
He was appointed Bishop of the Diocese of Rouyn-Noranda in 2020 and ordained bishop by Archbishop Paul-Andre Durocher.
Bishop Lemay turned 75 this year, the age when bishops must submit their resignation to the Pope.
Ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Quebec in 1972, he was appointed auxiliary bishop of Quebec City in 2005 and became Bishop of Amos in 2011.
The Diocese of Rouyn-Noranda has 34 parishes and missions and a Catholic population of 54 972, served by 14 diocesan priests, 44 women who are members of institutes of consecrated life, three permanent deacons, and seven lay pastoral agents. The Diocese of Amos has 58 parishes and missions, a Catholic population of 88,775, and is served by 14 diocesan priests, nine women members of institutes of consecrated life, four permanent deacons, and two lay pastoral agents.
