Ralph Walker Nickless is the Roman Catholic Bishop

Bishop

A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...

 of Sioux City

Roman Catholic Diocese of Sioux City

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Sioux City is the Roman Catholic diocese for the northwestern quarter of the state of Iowa, US The diocese comprises 24 counties in northwestern Iowa, and it covers an area of ....

.

Biography

Nickless was born in Denver, Colorado

Denver, Colorado

The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...

, one of ten children born to R. Walker Nickless, Sr. and E. Margaret (McGovern) Nickless. He has four brothers and five sisters. Nickless was ordained a priest for the Denver Archdiocese

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Denver

The Archdiocese of Denver is the Roman Catholic Archdiocese for Denver, Colorado and the Colorado counties of Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Broomfield, Denver, Jefferson, Larimer, Logan and Weld in the northern part of the state. The Archdiocese's home is at the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate...

 on August 4, 1973.

Nickless was appointed as the seventh Bishop of Sioux City on November 10, 2005 by Pope

Pope

The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...

 Benedict XVI. He was formally ordained and installed as bishop on January 20, 2006 in a ceremony at the Church of the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ in Sioux City. Archbishop

Archbishop

An archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...

 Jerome Hanus

Jerome Hanus

-References:...

 of the Archdiocese of Dubuque

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dubuque

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dubuque is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the northeastern quarter of the state of Iowa in the United States. It includes all the Iowa counties north of Polk, Jasper, Poweshiek, Iowa, Johnson, Cedar, and Clinton counties. ...

 was the principal consecrator as the Dubuque Archdiocese is the metropolitan see for the state. The co-consecrators were Archbishop Charles Joseph Chaput of Denver and Bishop Thomas Joseph Tobin

Thomas Joseph Tobin

Thomas Joseph Tobin is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He serves as the eighth and current Bishop of Providence.-Early life and ordination:...

 of Providence, Rhode Island

Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence is a diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States. The diocese was erected by Pope Pius IX on February 17, 1872 and originally comprised the entire state of Rhode Island and the counties of Bristol, Barnstable, Dukes and Nantucket in the state...

. His mother died in early 2006, shortly after his episcopal ordination.

In a 2009 letter, Bishop Nickless stated his opposition to the Obama health care legislation on the grounds that it could provide free abortion

Abortion

Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...

coverage.