David Austin Konderla (born June 3, 1960) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church, who was appointed the fourth bishop of the Diocese of Tulsa in Oklahoma on May 13, 2016.
Biography
Early life
David Konderla was born on June 3, 1960, in Bryan, Texas, the second of twelve children of David and Ann Konderla. He graduated from Bryan High School in 1978 and then worked as a machinist for several years.[1][2]
Konderla was ordained a priest at San Jose Church in Austin, Texas, on June 3, 1995, for the Diocese of Austin by Bishop John McCarthy.[4] After his ordination, the diocese assigned Konderla as parochial vicar at the following parishes in Texas:
Konderla left the Catholic Center in 2001 after being appointed vocations director for the diocese. Four years later, he returned to Texas A&M to serve as pastor and director of campus ministry. He would remain in these positions for the next 11 years.[3] Konderla also served the college of consultors, the presbyteral council, and the priest personnel board for the diocese.[3]
In October 2019, Konderla released a list of nine priests and two deacons from the diocese with credible accusations of sexual abuse of children.[6]
Konderla withdrew the diocese from the Oklahoma Conference of Churches in October 2020. The director of the conference, Reverend Shannon Fleck, said that Konderla objected to the inclusion of LGBTQ individuals in a statement against discrimination. However, in November 2020, Konderla said his reason for leaving was that the conference would not address discrimination against "unborn children".[7]
In February 2022, Korderla joined a vigil outside the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester, Oklahoma, to protest the upcoming execution of Gilbert Postelle. He had been convicted of four murders in 2005.[8] Postelle was executed by lethal injection on February 17, 2022.[9]
Konderla's hobbies include carpentry and woodworking.[3]
