J. Mark Spalding

Joseph Mark Spalding, D.D., J.C.L. (born January 13, 1965) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of Nashville in Tennessee since 2017.

Early life
Joseph Spalding was born on January 13, 1965, in Lebanon, Kentucky and grew up on the family farm in Washington County, Kentucky. His family has roots in the earliest Catholic presence west of the Appalachian Mountains. His ancestors include Archbishop Martin Spalding, John Lancaster Spalding and Mother Catherine Spalding. Joseph Spalding graduated from Bethlehem High School in Bardstown, Kentucky in 1983.

After finishing high school, Spalding decided to become a priest. He enter the Saint Meinrad Seminary and School of Theology in St. Meinrad, Indiana, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history in 1987. Spalding then traveled to the Catholic University of Louvain in Leuven, Belgium; he earned a master's degree and a Bachelor of Sacred Theology degree there in 1990.

Priesthood
Spalding was ordained to the priesthood on August 3, 1991, for the Archdiocese of Louisville at the Basilica of St. Joseph Proto-Cathedral by Archbishop Thomas C. Kelly. After his ordination, Spalding returned to Louvain to study for a Licentiate in Canon Law.

After Spalding came back to Louisville in 1992, the archdiocese assigned him as associate pastor at the Basilica. He also became chaplain at Bethlehem High School, The next year, he was also named as a part-time judge for the metropolitan tribunal and in 1995 as adjutant judicial vicar. In 1996, the archdiocese transferred Spalding from the Basilica to St. Augustine Parish in Lebanon to serve as associate pastor.

In 1998, Archbishop Thomas Kelly appointed Spalding to additional positions judicial vicar and director of the metropolitan tribunal. He was also moved from St. Augustine to a part-time position as associate pastor at St. Margaret Mary Parish in Louisville. In 1999, Spalding became pastor of Immaculate Conception Parish in La Grange, Kentucky. He would remain at Immaculate Conception for the next 12 years.

Bishop Joseph Kurtz in 2011 appointed Spalding as vicar general and pastor of Holy Trinity Parish in Louisville that year. Spalding gave up his roles as judicial vicar and pastor of Immaculate Conception. In 2016, the archdiocese additionally assigned him as pastor of Holy Name Parish in Louisville.

Bishop of Nashville
Pope Francis appointed Spalding on November 21, 2017, as the twelfth bishop of Nashville. He was consecrated on February 2, 2018. by Archbishop Joseph Edward Kurtz, with Archbishop Christophe Pierre and Cardinal Justin Rigali serving as co-consecrators.

In November 2018, Spalding released a list of 13 diocesan clerics with credible accusations of sexual abuse of minors who served in Kentucky from the 1940s through the 1990s.

Spalding in January 2024 removed Reverend Juan Carlos Garcia from his position at St. Philip Parish in Franklin, Kentucky, pending investigation. A teenager in November 2023 had accused Garcia of inappropriate touching.