1981, by Archbishop Patrick Flores, with Bishops Morkovsky and Rafael Ayala y Ayala serving as co-consecrators. Bishop of Las Cruces On August 17, 1982, John Paul II appointed Ramírez as the first bishop of the Diocese of Las Cruces . He was installed on October 18. 1982 at the Pan American Center in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Ramírez had to build the new diocese, creating a small diocesan office with one manual typewriter and the diocese's tribunal; and appointing his priest councilors. Within the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), Ramirez sat on the International Policy Committee, the Committee on the Liturgy, and the Committee on Hispanic Affairs. He formerly chaired the Committee on the Church in Latin America and the Catholic Campaign for Human Development. He was also a member of the Advisory Committee of the Catholic Common Ground Initiative. Ramirez was appointed as a member of the US State Department's Advisory Committee on Religious Freedom Abroad. He also served on the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, traveling to China, Egypt and other parts of Africa. Retirement On January 10, 2013, Ramírez's resignation as bishop of the Diocese of Las Cruces was accepted by Pope Benedict XVI, to be succeeded by Bishop Oscar Cantú. Ramirez retired in Las Cruces. In 2016, Ramirez published his book Power from the Margins: The Emergence of the Latino in the Church and in Society. See also Catholic Church hierarchy Catholic Church in the United States Historical list of the Catholic bishops of the United States List of Catholic bishops of the United States Lists of patriarchs, archbishops, and bishops References External links Roman Catholic Diocese of Las Cruces Official Site Catholic-Hierarchy Diocese of Las Cruces Episcopal succession 1936 births Living people People from Bay City, Texas 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Members of Catholic orders and societies University of Detroit Mercy alumni University of St. Thomas (Texas) alumni Congregation of St. Basil American people of Mexican descent Catholics from Texas 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States