George Leo Thomas
George Leo Thomas is an American prelate of the Catholic Church who has served as Bishop of Las Vegas since 2018.Early life and education
George Thomas was born in Anaconda, Montana, as the second of the five children of George and Mary Thomas. Raised in Butte, he graduated from Butte Central Catholic High School there in 1968, also when his family moved to Bellevue, Washington. Thomas studied at Carroll College in Helena, from where he obtained his BA degree in literature in 1972. He then went on to study for the priesthood at St. Thomas Seminary in Bothell, earning his MDiv in 1976. He was ordained to the priesthood by Archbishop Raymond Hunthausen on May 22, 1976.
Thomas served as associate pastor at a Kirkland parish and St. James Cathedral. He was also a parish administrator at Sacred Heart Church in Bellevue and Duvall. Thomas did chaplain work for the King County Jail, Seattle City Jail, and Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart in Seattle. For 10 years, he served as chairman of the Board of Directors for Catholic Community Services.
Thomas entered graduate school at the University of Washington in 1981 and received an MA in counseling and community mental health in 1983. In 1986 he earned a PhD in history, specializing in Pacific Northwest mission history.
Thomas became chancellor and vicar general of Seattle in 1987, and its Apostolic Administrator following the death of Archbishop Thomas Murphy in 1997. He held the positions of chancellor and vicar general until 2004.Episcopal career
Auxiliary Bishop of Seattle
On November 19, 1999, Thomas was named an auxiliary bishop of Seattle and the titular Bishop of Vagrauta by Pope John Paul II. He received his episcopal consecration on January 28, 2000 from Archbishop Alexander Brunett, with Bishops William S. Skylstad and Carlos Sevilla, SJ, serving as co-consecrators.Thomas was named the tenth Bishop of Helena on March 23, 2004 and installed on June 4, 2004.On February 28, 2018, Thomas was appointed Bishop of Las Vegas by Pope Francis. He succeeded the retiring bishop, Joseph A. Pepe.
