Air Force veteran appointed auxiliary bishop of the military archdiocese

CNA Staff, Feb 21, 2025 / 17:05 pm

Pope Francis appointed Father Gregg Caggianelli, an Air Force veteran and Florida priest, as auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, on Friday.

Caggianelli, 56, has served on active duty and in the reserves for more than 30 years. He currently works at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado, as a mobilization assistant to the Air Force Academy chaplain.

Caggianelli is a priest of the Diocese of Venice, Florida, and has served as vice rector of a Florida seminary since 2013. Cardinal Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the U.S., announced his appointment on Feb. 21. 

Caggianelli shared that he was both “humbled and grateful” for the appointment. 

“After the initial shock and disbelief, and much time begging for God’s mercy, I was filled with true praise and thanksgiving to God,” he said in a Feb. 21 statement. 

Caggianelli said he has had a lifelong desire to serve as a priest and in the military.

“Since I was a little boy, there have only been two things I have wanted to do in life,” Caggianelli said. “At age 11, I started thinking of being a priest and at age 14 I had a great desire to serve in the military.” 

Caggianelli was born on Aug. 2, 1968, in Kingston, New York. He obtained a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Michigan in 1990 and a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Dayton four years later. Caggianelli was ordained to the priesthood on Oct. 25, 2002.

Caggianelli said his time “wearing the uniform in one capacity or the other, and as a priest, serving as a chaplain in the Air Force Reserve” has been joy-filled. 

“All of this has been a life-giving experience that has been filled with joy,” he said. 

Caggianelli was commissioned in 1990 as an Air Force line officer, serving at the Air Force Research Laboratory in Ohio. He left active duty in 1996 to study to become a priest at St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary in Boynton Beach, Florida, where he later became vice rector in 2013. 

“Throughout the Scriptures, for some reason, God chooses the most unlikely of people,” Caggianelli reflected. “Jesus called a motley lot of fishermen, tax collectors, and sinners as his disciples. He simply asked them to follow him. God continues to call each of us to follow him in a unique way, and we trust in his promise to remain with us always.”

After his ordination in 2002, Caggianelli served as a parochial vicar at Incarnation Parish in Sarasota until 2010. He also headed the vocations and seminary formation for the Diocese of Venice as associate director from 2006 to 2007 and director from 2007 to 2010. He later became the administrator of St. Francis Xavier Parish in Fort Myers from 2010–2013. 

Caggianelli shared his excitement to serve those in the military. 

“As I begin this new journey, I look forward to assisting Archbishop [Timothy] Broglio and the other bishops, chaplains, and good people who serve the Archdiocese for the Military Services,” Caggianelli said. “Most of all, I look forward to giving my life in service of Our Lord in the care of our soldiers, sailors, airmen, coastguardsmen, guardians, veterans, and diplomats throughout the world.”

The Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, was founded by Pope John Paul II to serve Catholics in the U.S. military and government employment outside the United States. Based in Washington, D.C., the archdiocese serves an estimated 1.8 million Catholics. 

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