Joseph Strickland

On the announcement of his appointment, Vatican Radio called Strickland "one of North America’s new generation of blogging priests" for his Running Priest Blog. He is an avid runner, having run in numerous races in the East Texas area, hence the reason for the name of his blog.

He was appointed to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tyler by Pope Benedict XVI on September 29, 2012, and was consecrated on November 28, 2012, at Caldwell Auditorium in Tyler, Texas. Daniel Cardinal DiNardo was the celebrant and principal consecrator. Strickland is the first native East Texan to head the 33-county Church in Tyler.

Strickland is a vigorous defender of the Catholic Church's doctrinal and dogmatic positions on marriage, human life, and religious freedom. On November 4, 2012, Strickland led a public rally and prayer service in downtown Tyler asking the faithful to turn toward God prior to the election. In an editorial written for the Tyler Morning Telegraph, Strickland said, "The fundamental truths that once were and still should be the bedrock of our society are being challenged daily. I believe the election on Nov. 6 brings a great task to all of us as people of faith to soberly reflect on what we believe and how those beliefs should be embodied in our laws and supported by our leaders."

While attending meetings in September 2012 for new Bishops in Rome, Strickland and Bishop John T. Folda of Fargo contracted Hepatitis A from contaminated food served to them.

Strickland succeeds Álvaro Corrada del Río, SJ, who was appointed Bishop of Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, in July 2011.

Strickland served as administrator of the diocese of Tyler from March 2000 until January 2001 when Bishop Alvaro Corrada was installed as the third bishop of the Diocese. In 2010, Strickland was named vicar general of the diocese. He served in that capacity until being named delegate of the apostolic administrator upon Bishop Corrada's departure for Puerto Rico.

In 1992, Strickland was assigned by Bishop Edmond Carmody to study canon law at Catholic University of America, where he earned a JCL in 1994. He was then named judicial vicar of the Diocese of Tyler and Rector of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. In 1995, he was named a Prelate of Honor with the title of Monsignor by Pope John Paul II.

Strickland was born in Fredericksburg, Texas. As a young child, his family moved to Atlanta, Texas, where his parents were founding members of St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church. Strickland attended Holy Trinity Seminary and was ordained to the priesthood on June 1, 1985, for the Diocese of Dallas. His first assignment was to Immaculate Conception Parish in Tyler, Texas. Upon the creation of the Diocese of Tyler in 1987, Strickland was incardinated into the new diocese and was named the first vocation director for the diocese in March 1987 by Bishop Charles Herzig. His service in the diocese also included periods at Sacred Heart Parish in Nacogdoches, Texas and St. Michael Parish in Mt. Pleasant, Texas.

Joseph Edward Strickland (born October 31, 1958) is an American prelate of the Catholic Church. Since his consecration on November 28, 2012, he has been the Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tyler.