Panaji: Pope Leo XIV on Saturday appointed Fr Francisco Agnelo Pinheiro, a priest of the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman, as the new bishop of the diocese of Sindhudurg, Maharashtra. The post of bishop of that diocese became vacant following the resignation of Bishop Alwyn Barreto, also a Goan, in 2024.Pinheiro, 53, hails from Raia and is currently serving as in-charge of the apostolate of inter-religious dialogue in the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman, a post he has held since 2018, as well as professor of philosophy at the Patrarchal Seminary of Rachol. He is well known for his contribution to promoting understanding and harmony among different religious communities. Pinheiro, born in 1972, is the last of nine children born to the late Pedro Santana Pinheiro and the late Maria Margarida Quadros. His brother, Fr Richard Pinheiro, is parish priest of Santa Cruz church.He studied at St Theresa’s High School, Raia, and joined the diocesan minor seminary and St Xavier’s Higher Secondary School, Mapusa. He secured 4th in Class XII board exam.After an orientation year at the minor seminary of Our Lady of Saligao-Pilerne, he joined the Patriarchal Seminary of Rachol in June 1991 for his philosophical and theological studies. Between the philosophy and theology courses, from 1993 to 1996, he completed, with distinction, his graduation in psychology at St Xavier’s College, Mapusa.He was ordained a priest in 2000 and then appointed as assistant to the parish priest at St Alex Church, in Calangute.He received a master’s degree in philosophy at Jnana Deepa Vidyapeeth, Pune, in 2004, and was appointed professor of philosophy at the Patriarchal Seminary of Rachol that same year.
