Archbishop Jose H. Gomez
Posted on 02/28/2011 1:28:23 PM PST by NYer
.- With the retirement of Cardinal Roger M. Mahony, Archbishop Jose H. Gomez has taken over leadership of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, the largest in the United States.
“L.A. is home for me now,” the Mexican-born archbishop told the cardinal and the assembled worshipers at a Mass marking the transition of leadership on Feb. 27. “I pray that I will be worthy of continuing the work that you have begun here.”
Before a crowd of 3,500 faithful at Los Angeles' Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, Cardinal Mahony ceremonially passed on his crozier to Archbishop Gomez, investing him with the traditional staff that symbolizes the leadership of the local bishop. On that same day, his 75th birthday, the cardinal submitted his resignation in a faxed letter to Pope Benedict XVI.
On Sunday, March 6, one week after the transition, Archbishop Gomez will celebrate his inaugural Mass as Archbishop of Los Angeles.
At the transition Mass, Archbishop Gomez graciously thanked the cardinal for his leadership of the archdiocese over the course of 26 years. Cardinal Mahony's legacy, he said, is “a Church that radiates the love of God and the truth of the Gospel.”
“He has shown us what Christ wants his Church to be – a communion of cultures and a communion of saints, one family of God drawn from every country, race, and language.” The archbishop said that Cardinal Mahony “has helped us open our hearts, to love God and to love our brothers and sisters.”
As the largest archdiocese in the country, Los Angeles is home to more than 5 million Catholics, 70 percent of whom are Hispanic. Archbishop Gomez, who was born in the Mexican city of Monterrey and later became a U.S. citizen, will be the first Hispanic Archbishop of Los Angeles.
He told the crowd that he hoped to continue Cardinal Mahony's work by inviting people of all backgrounds to participate in the life of the Church.
“I am inspired by his love for the immigrant, for the strangers in our midst,” Archbishop Gomez said. “I am challenged by his call for us to live the Gospel – to find Christ among the poor, to love the immigrant as our neighbor and our friend.”
Archbishop Gomez also spoke of the centrality of the priesthood to his own life, and the life of the Church.
“Cardinal Mahony knows it. Our brother priests know it,” he reflected. “To be his priests, this becomes the reason why we live. To bring Jesus to people, and to bring people to Jesus.”
“A priest is a priest forever,” Archbishop Gomez pointed out. “And a good bishop never forgets that he is, first of all, a priest.” He told the crowd that Cardinal Mahony was “now able to return to full time priestly ministry.”
“And that is such a beautiful thing – to be a priest,” Los Angeles' new archbishop noted.
While returning to priestly ministry on a smaller scale, Cardinal Mahony will be working on the issue of immigration. He wrote recently that he was “encouraged by the prospects of helping these silent millions in our midst” during his retirement.
2) I was at the 0830 Mass, IIRC. The Deacon did have a very energetic style of preaching.
Oh please. He has to say this stuff, because Mahony is now going off to “minister to the immigrants” and obviously intends to undercut Gomez every step of the way.
This is the usual garbage where a left-wing Northern European American goes off to tell Catholic Spanish Americans how they really shouldn’t believe their religion and it’s really all about getting state benefits. But it’s a scenario very popular with the press.
Gomez is very orthodox. Orthodox Spaniards and Latin Americans are just about the most orthodox people in the Catholic universe.
Thanks for the correction! And yes, now that I think of it, other recent Cardinals of the Chicago Archdiocese have died in office, so this wouldn’t have been an issue.
I read somewhere I think it was UK Telegraph that be was once member of organization Oped dei the organization famous picture in Divinci Code that movie
Be patient. The longer a 'progressive' bishop has served in a particular diocese, the more damage inflicted. Here in the Dioceses of Albany and Rochester, the two bishops (former seminarians) have altered the catholic culture over the span of 30+ years. Any incoming bishop will have to take a gradual approach, so as not to lose the catholic community already in place. The predecessors of these two bishops were also progressive; IOW, future bishops will be confronted with 3 generations educated in that mindset. There is still a healthy body of (underground) catholics waiting for a restoration of orthodox catholicism in our respective dioceses. They have been waiting a long time. Our prayer is that Pope Benedict XVI will still be here to appoint the successors.
“He has shown us what Christ wants his Church to be – a communion of cultures and a communion of saints, one family of God drawn from every country, race, and language.” The archbishop said that Cardinal Mahony “has helped us open our hearts, to love God and to love our brothers and sisters.”
Here's just a little bit of Mahony's legacy:
Deposition paints an unflattering portrait of Mahony [Exchanges show failure to take responsibility]
Mahony blesses L.A.'s rally [pro-(illegal)immigration rally]
Cardinal Mahony speaks on illegal immigration
Gathering calls for 'fair and humane' immigration policies [Catholic Bishops on immigration reform]
(Cardinal) Mahony assaulted near L.A.'s cathedral
SoCal's other wayward bishop [Tod D. Brown makes Cardinal Mahony look like a saint]
Catholic Church abuse settlement, appropriate or unjustified?
Mahony's Tainted Legacy: Many priests’ sex crimes will stay secret, but now some victims can rest
Nobody Would be Happier Than Me to See Cdl. Mahony Go
About $67 per Catholic, more than $1 million per parish [Cost of LA settlement in perspective]
Phony Mahony & the Homosexual Priest Cover-Up
Keeping Secrets: The Laity, the Latin Mass and the LA Settlement
L.A. Archdiocese Finalizes Abuse Settlement in Court
Local Victim Finds Hope In L.A. Archdiocese Case
LA [Archdiocese] Church Settlement Goes to Courtroom
LA cardinal apologies, offers record abuse deal
LA Cardinal Apologizes to Plaintiffs
L.A. Archdiocese to Pay $600M to sex crime Victims
L.A. Catholic Church Abuse Cases Could Yield Half-Billion Dollar Settlement (announcement Monday)
Los Angeles archdiocesan chancery to be sold off
Mahony-Inspired Sanctuary Movement
mahony & the invisible video, again
How to solve a problem like Mahony
MahonyFest 2007 - Jim Wallis a key speaker
the mahony files [what does the Cardinal know, and when did the Cardinal know it?]
State Supreme Court tells cardinal (Mahony) to turn over files
Personnel files show LA archdiocese ignored complaints about priest misconduct for decades
Text of Cardinal Mahony's Deposition
Cardinal Untruths: Mahony’s Testimony in Sex Scandal Clashes with Earlier Statements and Reality
Agreed! Apologies for not including me in my post #25.
Either that, of just blow the thing up... And salt the earth.
That's my point. ;'} The mess Uncle Wally made in the DDR will not be cleaned up entirely by Bp. Di Lorenzo. Similarly, the mess Mahony made in Los Angeles will not be cleaned up entirely by Abp. Gomez.
I would pay good money for a chance to push the big red button.
cardinal morony
Yes, an earlier article said that the new Archbishop is a member of Opus Dei. Still is, presumably, since it’s not something he would need to retire from.
Opus Dei was given the villain’s role in the da Vinci Code because liberals who attack or undermine the Church hate Opus Dei.
So happy for our brothers and sisters in LA! Let the healing begin!!!!
My only plea: let me and some quick-working friends with a cherry picker get those beautiful tapestries out of there! What a beautiful ikonostasis they would make - or in between the Stations of the Cross . . . .
The tapestries are quite beautiful and quite orthodox. I have no idea how they slipped by Mahony...
He’s known to be a member of El Opus (The Work). They’re the good guys. That’s why the liberals hate them.
OHHH Yeah now I remember UK Telegraph carry that story about that YEAH when he appoint as Archbishop of LA
Trust me he going get lot of heat from Lib LA Cathoic community big time
I am hoping when so called big one hit
I hope it nail that church BIG TIME
Great to finally see a real bishop occupy the Taj Mahoney!
Btw, does anyone know the Archbishop’s views on immigration? I have heard conflicting information.
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