Pope Leo names two new auxiliary bishops for Archdiocese of Madrid

by Catholic Trends

October 16, 2026

in International, News

Reading Time: 2 mins read

The two new auxiliary bishops of Madrid, Andrés Martínez Esteban and Fernando Murga GómezArchdiocese of Madrid

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Pope Leo XIV has appointed two priests with different areas of expertise to serve as auxiliary bishops of the Archdiocese of Madrid, Spain, bringing experience in diocesan administration, priestly formation, theology and Church history to the archdiocese’s episcopal leadership.

The Vatican Press Office announced the appointments on October 16, naming Fernando Murga Gómez, moderator of the archdiocesan Curia, and Andrés Martínez Esteban, vicar general of the Ordinariate for Eastern Catholic faithful resident in Spain.

Murga Gómez has been assigned the titular see of Tasbalta, while Martínez Esteban will hold the titular see of Temuniana.

Born in Bilbao on May 25, 1965, Murga Gómez initially trained and worked as an architect before pursuing priestly formation. He later earned a bachelor’s degree in theology from the Universidad Eclesiástica San Dámaso in Madrid.

Ordained for the Archdiocese of Madrid on May 7, 2011, he began his ministry in parish pastoral work, serving at Nuestra Señora de la Soledad from 2011 to 2014 before becoming parish priest of San León Magno, a position he held until 2015.

He subsequently took on responsibilities in priestly formation and seminary administration, serving as a formator and administrator at Madrid’s Conciliar Seminary from 2015. In 2025, he became moderator of the archdiocesan Curia.

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His experience also includes involvement with the Movimiento de Cursillos de Cristiandad. In 2026, he served as technical coordinator for the Madrid phase of Pope Leo XIV’s Apostolic Journey to Spain.

Martínez Esteban, born in Madrid on December 17, 1971, brings an academic background in theology and Church history to his new ministry.

He holds a doctorate in theology from the Universidad Eclesiástica San Dámaso in Madrid and another in Church history from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. He also obtained a diploma in library science from the Vatican School of Palaeography and Archival Science.

Ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Madrid on May 17, 1997, he has served in several parishes, including San Juan Evangelista, Nuestra Señora de Delicias, Nuestra Señora de la Asunción, Nuestra Señora de la Moraleja, Sagrado Corazón de Jesús, and San Cristóbal y San Rafael.

Alongside his parish ministry, he directed the diocesan archive of Madrid from 2004 to 2024 and has taught in the Faculty of Theology at the Universidad Eclesiástica San Dámaso since 2007. He also served as spiritual director at the Conciliar Military Seminary from 2012 to 2015.

Since 2024, Martínez Esteban has been vicar general of the Ordinariate for Eastern Catholic faithful resident in Spain. He joined the Episcopal Council of the Archdiocese of Madrid in 2025.

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Daily Reading

Saturday of the Twenty-eighth week in Ordinary Time

Letter to the Ephesians 1,15-23.

Brothers and sisters, hearing of your faith... in the Lord Jesus and of your love for all the holy ones,
do not cease giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers,
that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation resulting in knowledge of him.
May the eyes of (your) hearts be enlightened, that you may know what is the hope that belongs to his call, what are the riches of glory in his inheritance among the holy ones,
and what is the surpassing greatness of his power for us who believe, in accord with the exercise of his great might,
which he worked in Christ, raising him from the dead and seating him at his right hand in the heavens,
far above every principality, authority, power, and dominion, and every name that is named not only in this age but also in the one to come.
And he put all things beneath his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church,
which is his body, the fullness of the one who fills all things in every way.

Psalms 8,2-3ab.4-5.6-7.

O LORD, our LORD,
How glorious is... your name over all the earth!
You have exalted your majesty above the heavens.
Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings
You have fashioned praise because of your foes.

When I behold your heavens, the work of your fingers,
The moon and the stars which you set in place?
What is man that you should be mindful of him,
or the son of man that you should care for him?

You have made him little less than the angels,
and crowned him with glory and honor.
You have given him rule over the works of your hands,
putting all things under his feet.

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 12,8-12.

Jesus said to his disciples: "I tell... you, everyone who acknowledges me before others the Son of Man will acknowledge before the angels of God.
But whoever denies me before others will be denied before the angels of God.
Everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the holy Spirit will not be forgiven.
When they take you before synagogues and before rulers and authorities, do not worry about how or what your defense will be or about what you are to say.
For the holy Spirit will teach you at that moment what you should say."

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