U.S. Bishops elect Cardinal Francis George as president as expected

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Comments: 8

Cardinal Francis George

, Nov 13, 2007 / 11:58 am (CNA).- This morning in Baltimore, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) elected Cardinal Francis George as their new president as was anticipated. Cardinal George gained the presidency handily winning 85% of the vote in the first round of voting.

Commenting immediately after Cardinal George’s selection the outgoing president Bishop William Skylstad said, “I think that our applause speaks louder than any words could, congratulations, profound congratulations.”

Once Cardinal George was elected, the bishops moved on to choose the vice president from the remaining field of candidates. According to the rules for voting, the vice president must be chosen by a maximum of three votes, which it came down to.

On the final vote, Bishop Gerald Kicanas of Tuscon was tapped to be the vice president by a 55% to 45% margin over Bishop Timothy Dolan of Milwaukee. Kicanas’ election to the number two slot means that barring any unforeseen circumstances, he will become the president in three years.

Unlike past USCCB elections, the prospect of Cardinal George as president has raised some controversy because of comments he made about legislation being proposed for sex abuse cases.

The legislature of Illinois has proposed the suspension of the statute of limitations for clerical sex abuse cases which the cardinal wrote was “not about the safety of children as the sponsor claims, and is clearly, to me at least, about money.” Cardinal George’s remarks echo those made earlier this year by the Vatican’s Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone.

Comments: 8

Subscriber comments:

Published by: pam brown
antioch il. usa 04/28/2009 02:57 PM EST

I AM ASKING THAT YOU ALLOW FATHER DEAN SEMNER TO REMAIN AT ST. PETER PARRISH IN ANTIOCH IL. HE AS BEEN A GREAT ASSET TO OUR COMMUNITY AND WOULD BE A GREAT LOSS. THANK YOU FOR THIS CONSIDERATION.

Published by: Roger Anthony
Cleveland/Ohio/US 06/05/2008 07:49 AM EST

Pfleger is just another example of corruption enabled and/or promoted by Vatican II, which council's aftermath seeks to minimize the Catholic faith and practice not the least of which is the true Mass. St. Sabina "catholics" are a perfect example of catholics in name only following a false shepherd as Christ said there would be many of. There is only one Catholic Church and Catholic faith and Pfleger does not represent either.

Published by: Bob
Livonia, Michigan 05/30/2008 01:20 PM EST

Cardinal George, I urge you to take immediate action against this militant Michael Pfleger. I cannot refer to him as a reverend, since he defies the qualities of that title. He promotes racism against whites, he invites pro abortion people such as Sharpton into St Sabina. He stands and supports Hussein Obama who is a pro abortionist. Pfleger is a man who uses the priesthood position to promote his fame. Please remove him now. I cannot tell you how much harm he has caused the Catholic people who now are being joked at for allowing idiots like him to continue as a priest.

Published by: Louis A. Martinez
Houston,Tx. USA 05/30/2008 12:30 AM EST

What is going on with this idiot Fr. Pfleger? I have seen his comments with regards to white people and criticizing Sen. Clinton and this guy is way out of line!! This idiot can't be a priest and if the church continues to support his type then they have lost my support. I also feel this way about illegal immigration and only support legal immigration. The country cannot continue to support MEXICO's populace and the church should not encourage these people to break the law. This is wrong..If the church continues to act in this manner, then I will have no choice but to leave the church and find a church that has more traditional conservative values.

Sincerely,

Louis A. Martinez

Published by: lisa kretzmon
buffalo, new york, usa 04/03/2008 09:48 PM EST

Could you please tell us what you are going to do about the sistuation in Chicago What is Archbishop George going to do . After watching Fox.news, For any one in the Church to Dam God is unexplainable , furthermore , to Dam God on the alter is enough reason for Phleager?( not sure of correct name spelling) to be removed. Do not sit back and think this will go away, get rid of this crazed and unholy man.
ThankYou

Published by: C Greene
Saint Louis/MO/USA 11/14/2007 09:00 AM EST

I suppose to can't see resume or background because we are not the ones voting for him. Visit the Vatican site for a background of the bishop, however.

Published by: Tom Kramer
Lemoore, CA 11/13/2007 07:04 PM EST

We sent this letter to our Bishop asking him to consider this before the Bishop's meeting this month.

I am sending the enclosed proposal to you and ask if you would present it to the Bishop’s Conference at the meeting in November. We think games, TV, and Internet should be included in it. The morals of this country are deteriorating so quickly that something must be done. We would also like to ask for your support for Our Lady of America. More than ever, we need Our Blessed Mother’s help in the United States. There is no more crucial time than now, than to take action.

Remember when the Legion of Decency was recited during Mass on a yearly basis. It sure made the family think about which movies they were going to see. The morals of the United States are going in a downward spiral. Televison, movies, and the internet are full of objectionable material. Now is the time to stand up and ask your Bishop to discuss these issues at the Bishop's Conference in November. We need their leadership and guidance now.

Published by: K Ryan
TX 11/13/2007 01:33 PM EST

Why can't we see resume or background of the new President of USCCB?
Thanks

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