Lawrence Sydney Nicasio

The Most Reverend

Lawrence Sydney Nicasio
Bishop of Belize City & Belmopan
Nicasio in 2017
ChurchRoman Catholic
ProvinceKingston in Jamaica
DioceseBelize City & Belmopan
Appointed26 January 2017
Installed13 May 2017
Term ended1 January 2024
PredecessorDorick M. Wright
SuccessorVacant
Orders
Ordination16 June 1989
by Osmond Peter Martin
Consecration13 May 2017
by Léon Kalenga Badikebele, Patrick Christopher Pinder, Fernand J. Cheri
Personal details
Born(1956-09-05)5 September 1956
Dangriga, British Honduras (now Belize)
Died1 January 2024(2024-01-01) (aged 67)
Belize City, Belize
Alma mater
MottoSollicitum ambulare cum Deo

Lawrence Sydney Nicasio (5 September 1956 – 1 January 2024) was a Belizean clergyman and Roman Catholic bishop in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Belize City-Belmopan.

Biography

Lawrence Sydney Nicasio was born on 5 September 1956,[1] and came from a Garifuna family.[2] He attended Augustine High School in his hometown of Dangriga and graduated from Belize Teachers' College in Belize City. He then taught at various schools and was appointed director of the Catholic schools in the Toledo District.[3]

In 1981 he began studying philosophy at Cardinal Glennon College in Shrewsbury, Missouri, which was followed by studies at the theology college on the same grounds, Kenrick Theological Seminary, near St. Louis.[3] On 16 June 1989, he was ordained to the priesthood.[4] He was Vicar in Belmopan for 13 years from 1991 to 2004, pastor in Orange Walk Town, and then pastor of two suburban churches in Belize City: St. Ignatius (2005–2008) and St. John Vianney (2008–2013).[5]

On 26 January 2017, Pope Francis accepted the resignation of Bishop Dorick M. Wright and appointed Nicasio as the new Bishop of Belize City-Belmopan.[6][4][7] He received episcopal consecration from the Apostolic Nuncio in Belize, Archbishop Léon Kalenga Badikebele, on 13 May 2017. Co-consecrators were the Archbishop of Nassau, Patrick Christopher Pinder, and Fernand J. Cheri, OFM, Auxiliary Bishop in New Orleans.

Nicasio died from cancer at his residence in Belize City, on 1 January 2024, at the age of 67.[8]

References

  1. ^ Belize: Vatican appoints new bishop . In: Catholic News, Port of Spain, 5 February 2017, p. 5.
  2. ^ Matthew O’Connor: "Garifuna Community Marks Settlement Day". In: The Tablet of 15 November 2017, retrieved 2 July 2018.
  3. ^ a b 05/18 / second-garifuna-catholic-bishop-ordained-belize / `` Second Garifuna Catholic Bishop Ordained in Belize , accessed 2 July 2018.
  4. ^ a b "Rinunce e nomine". press.vatican.va. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
  5. ^ "Belize: Vatican appoints new bishop". In: Catholic News, Port of Spain, 5 February 2017, p. 5.
  6. ^ "AMERICA/BELIZE - Resignation of the Bishop of Belize City-Belmopan and appointment of successor - Agenzia Fides". www.fides.org. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
  7. ^ "Bishop Elect, Father Lawrence Sydney Nicasio, ordained | Amandala Newspaper". amandala.com.bz. 17 May 2017. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
  8. ^ "Roman Catholic Bishop of Belize City-Belmopan has passed away". Loop News. 1 January 2024. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
Catholic Church titles
Preceded by Bishop of Belize City & Belmopan
2017–2024 		Succeeded by
Vacant


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