Francis Cardinal George
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Francis Eugene Cardinal George, O.M.I. (born January 16, 1937 in Chicago, Illinois) is a Roman Catholic bishop and member of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, a French religious order of the Roman Catholic Church. He currently serves as the Archbishop of Chicago and was elevated to Cardinal Priest by Pope John Paul II. By virtue of his dignity as a prince of the Church, Cardinal George is formally addressed as His Eminence.
Cardinal George also served as the Bishop of Yakima and the Archbishop of Portland. He speaks English, French, Italian, Spanish and German.
Early years
Born in Chicago to Francis J. and Julia R. McCarthy George, he attended St. Pascal Grade School on the city's northwest side. Cardinal George then enrolled at St. Henry Preparatory Seminary in Belleville, Illinois before joining the religious order of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate on August 14, 1957. He was sent to the University of Ottawa in Canada to study theology before being ordained to the priesthood on December 21, 1963. Ordination took place at his home parish of St. Pascal Church by Bishop Raymond Hillinger. Cardinal George has been afflicted with polio for many years; recently, he was taken to a hospital for a heart-related concern and was soon released.
Father of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate
Father George's religious order sent him to Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. where he earned a master's degree in philosophy in 1965 and where he is now a member of the Board of Trustees. He then attended classes at Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana where he obtained a doctorate in American philosophy in 1970. Father George then returned to the University of Ottawa to obtain a master's degree in theology in 1971.
While studying for college, Father George at the same time taught philosophy at Oblate Seminary in Pass Christian, Mississippi from 1964 to 1969, at Tulane in 1968 and at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska from 1969 to 1973.
Upon his departure from Creighton, Father George served as Provincial Superior of the Midwestern Province for the Oblates in St. Paul, Minnesota for a year. He was then elected Vicar General of the Oblates and served in Rome through 1986. It was in Rome that Father George obtained his Doctorate of Sacred Theology from the Pontifical Urban University in 1988.
Early episcopate
Pope John Paul II appointed Father George the fifth Bishop of Yakima in Washington state on July 10, 1990. He was ordained and installed on September 21 in St. Paul Cathedral. He served Yakima for five and a half years.
Pope John Paul II appointed Bishop George to become the ninth Archbishop of Portland in Oregon on April 30, 1996. He was installed in a ceremony on May 27.
Archbishop of Chicago
On April 8, 1997, Pope John Paul II appointed Archbishop George to become the eighth Archbishop of Chicago to fill a vacancy left by the death of the much beloved Joseph Cardinal Bernardin on November 14, 1996. On May 7 after his appointment, the Apostolic Pro-Nuncio Agostino Cacciavillan installed Archbishop George in Holy Name Cathedral. On January 18, 1998, Pope John Paul II announced Archbishop George's elevation to the Sacred College of Cardinals with the title of Cardinal Priest of San Bartolomeo all'Isola. Newly named Cardinal George was awarded the privileges of the scarlet vestments and biretta in consistory at the Vatican on February 21.
George was one of the cardinal electors who participated in the 2005 papal conclave that selected Pope Benedict XVI. He will be eligible to participate in any future papal conclaves that occur before January 16, 2017 when he will reach his 80th birthday. Cardinal George publishes a locally well-read column weekly in the Chicago archdiocesan newspaper, The Catholic New World, called The Cardinal's Column. As Cardinal Bernardin referred to himself as "Joseph your brother", George refers to himself as "Francis your neighbor". At the conclave, he, like Cardinal Rigali of Philadelphia, was known as a 'conservative' supporter of Benedict- saying afterward in a press conference, "It was a choice that was apparent almost immediately."
Clergy Abuse Scandals
The Archdiocese of Chicago has not been immune from the clergy abuse scandals that have rocked the church in recent years. Prior to the election of Benedict XVI, George had spoken with then Cardinal Ratzinger and asked for his assistance in the matter. After the election of Benedict XVI, the new Pope told Cardinal George that he remembered their previous conversation and that he would attend to the matter.While George has had to deal with the fallout from clergy sexual abuse cases from many years ago, he has come under fire for his actions duing a recent abuse case. George acknowledged that he had made mistakes in the case of Rev. Daniel McCormack, who was charged with two counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse on January 21, 2006. It is alleged that McCormack had abused two boys repeatedly from 2001 to 2005. George has faced criticism for allowing McCormack to remain at his post after allegations first surfaced in August of 2005. At the time prosecutors were not able to move forward because there was not enough evidence. Instead McCormack was told to not have any unsupervised contact with minors and had a personal monitor assigned to him. George has since indicated that had he known several months ago what he knew now that he would've removed McCormack from his duties right away. George took some responsibility for the matter, saying, "The sins of priests and bishops destroy the church, and I think that's what we're seeing here."[link]. Following this incident, the procedures for reporting abuse in Chicago were reportedly reevaluated by a panel and their importance was stressed, as one would expect following the matter.
References
1. Associated Press: George admits errors handling recent sexual-abuse charges. [Article] from the Dubuque Telegraph Herald [web site]. Date Accessed: January 29, 2006. 2006: The Associated Press.Duties in the Roman Curia
Pope John Paul II appointed Cardinal George to several offices of the Roman Curia:
- Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments
- Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and for Societies of Apostolic Life
- Pontifical Council
- Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples
- Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Heritage of the Church
- Congregation for Oriental Churches
- Pontifical Council for Culture.
Episcopal Succession
| Episcopal Lineage | |
| Consecrated by: | Agostino Cardinal Cacciavillan |
| Date of consecration: | September 21 1990 |
External links
- [Cardinal George Fanclub] - News Coverage, Commentary & Resources
- [Archdiocese of Chicago] - official site
- [Catholic New World Newspaper]
- [Parish Directory]
- [Schools Directory]
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