PARKERSBURG — The pastor at St. Francis Xavier Church in Parkersburg Monday was named to a high-ranking post in the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston.

The Rev. John Rice will assume the duties of vicar general and moderator of the curia. The announcement was made Monday by Bishop Mark E. Brennan.

“I am humbled and honored,” Rice said.

He succeeds the late Monsignor Joseph Peterson, who died in September. Peterson, a native of Weirton, among other assignments, was the pastor at St. Margaret Mary in Parkersburg before his appointment as the vicar general in April 2023.

Rice will remain as pastor of St. Francis Xavier and will commute to Wheeling twice a week. The appointment is effective Oct. 22.

He said he is looking forward to serving the bishop and the people of the diocese “as we all seek to grow in faith and bring the gospel alive in this great state.”

The post carries a big responsibility, he said.

“In my book it’s another job that needs to be done,” Rice said. “The bishop is trusting me, and I hope to do a good job.”

The vicar general is the highest-ranking official in the diocese behind the bishop. The vicar has the authority to exercise a degree of episcopal jurisdiction in the bishop’s name, the diocese said on Monday.

Brennan was grateful that Rice accepted the new appointment.

“I have seen Rice’s effective leadership as chair of the Presbyteral Council and he is held in high regard by his brother priests,” Brennan said. “I am confident that those leadership qualities will benefit not only those in our diocesan curia, but also the faithful throughout our diocese. Father John is an experienced priest who, like me, has a great zeal for Catholic education. I look forward to working with him in his new role.”

Rice was born in Braddock, Pa., and was ordained on Jan. 5, 2003, by Bishop Bernard W. Schmitt. He was associate pastor from 2003-2004 at St. Margaret Mary in Parkersburg and from 2004-2005 at St. Joseph the Worker in Weirton.

He has served in Morgantown, Montgomery and Boomer until he was appointed as pastor at St. Francis Xavier and St. Monica Parish in Lubeck since 2013. He also was a chaplain and designated pastor of Parkersburg Catholic High School and the West Virginia Council of the Knights of Columbus as well as the Priests’ Health and Retirement Board.