Rafael Morales (bishop)

Rafael Luis Morales Maldonado is the seventh Bishop of Puerto Rico in The Episcopal Church.

Biography
He was born in Toa Alta, Puerto Rico into the Roman Catholic Church, then Catholic Deacon Morales was received by Bishop David Andrés Alvarez-Velázquez into the Anglican faith, which would allow him, a married man, to be ordained into the priesthood.

Prior to being consecrated as a bishop, Morales' roles included serving as a parish priest in Toa Baja, a suburb of Puerto Rico's capital city of San Juan, and as head of the Episcopal Cathedral School.

He was chosen on December 10, 2016 among four candidates, including a female priest, by the Diocesan Assembly to succeed David Alvarez as the Diocesan Bishop and take over the reins of the church from Bishop Wilfrido Ramos-Orench, who served as provisional diocesan bishop for approximately 3 years after Alvarez' retirement upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 72.

Bishop Morales currently also serves as the provisional bishop for the Episcopal Diocese of Cuba and Bishop advisor to the Episcopal Diocese of the Virgin Islands.