Tuesday, September 20, 2005
REPLACING BISHOPS
From an entry at Papa Ratzi Post:
For nearly 25 years, Benedict, as the former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, played an advisory role in the appointment of bishops. When he was elected pope last April, he inherited the papacy's absolute authority to select suitable leaders for the world's 2,700 dioceses - 197 of which are in the United States.
Benedict faces his first major American test in choosing a new archbishop of San Francisco to succeed Archbishop William J. Levada. In May, Benedict called Levada to Rome to fill his former job as head of the church's doctrine office.
Besides his new responsibilities as prefect of the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith, Levada, who has close ties with Benedict, will probably play a similar "kingmaker" role in the bishop-making process that Cardinal Ratzinger played for John Paul II.
So...who do we have to thank for our current crop of bishops? Apparently, in part, we can thank our current Pope who has chosen the supporter of United Religions Initiative to play his former role in defending the faith and choosing bishops.
Meanwhile, the faith continues to erode...
