Father Michael L. Thompson, SSJ

Father Michael L. Thompson, SSJ, is the Superior General of the Society of St. Joseph of the Sacred Heart. He is the second African American selected to serve as the superior general for the Josephites. He was elected in 2015 and his term runs for four years.

Father Thompson comes from Sacred Heart Church, Port Arthur, Texas, formerly staffed by the Josephites.  In 2004, he was ordained a priest. His first assignment was as parochial vicar at Corpus Christi /Epiphany Church, New Orleans, LA. Following the Hurricane Katrina disaster, Fr. Thompson served three months as the interim pastor at Our Mother of Mercy Church in Beaumont, Texas, the very church of his priestly ordination just thirteen months earlier.

Fr. Thompson was then assigned to St. Theresa Church in Crowley, LA and assisted at the Post-Katrina Recovery Office, which the Josephites had recently set up in Breaux Bridge, LA.

When the recovery office was closed, Fr. Thompson was appointed pastor of St. Francis Xavier Church in Baton Rouge, LA, where he was serving at the time of his appointment as Vicar General.  

As Superior General, Father Thompson said he would emphasize the Society’s history and its unique charism. He said he has shared the Josephite history during his visits to aspiring candidates in Nigeria who are considering joining the Josephites.  The new superior general plans to draw more attention to justice and peace.