Salt Lake City’s Bishop Wester appointed Santa Fe archbishop

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Salt Lake City’s Bishop Wester appointed Santa Fe archbishop
The leader of Utah’s 300,000 Catholics is leaving.
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Bishop John C. Wester, who oversees the Catholic Diocese of Salt Lake City has been appointed archbishop of Santa Fe, N.M.
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The Vatican appointment was announced Monday.
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Wester, who has served as bishop in Utah since March 2007, was to further discuss his appointment during a news conference at the Chancery Building, 303 E. S. Temple St., 10 a.m. Tuesday.
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He will be formally installed in his new role Thursday at Santa Fe’s Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi.
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Salt Lake Bishop John Wester headed to Santa Fe
Horcrux:
Wester is considered a moderate in the American hierarchy.

In January, he told Crux he didn’t oppose proposed LGBT non-discrimination laws in Utah.

Wester is to be installed in a Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi in Santa Fe on June 4.
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Oh, so the installation is not in four days, as implied in the SLC article.

Utah bishop John Wester named to head Santa Fe archdiocese
National Schismatic Reporter:
Wester, 64, is a San Francisco native who has since 2007 headed the Salt Lake City diocese, which encompasses the entire state of Utah. He currently is a member of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant Peoples and chairs the U.S. bishops’ Communications Committee.
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Not much fawning over him by the NCR yet. I expect we’ll get plenty more as events progress.
 
McCall1981 said:
Here’s the Whispers in the Loggia post:

whispersintheloggia.blogspot.com/2015/04/and-turquoise-goes-to-utah-pope-lifts.html?m=1
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Whispers in the Loggia:
On another key front, Wester’s employed the church’s helm in one of the nation’s most conservative states to advocate several counter-cultural positions in the local debate. Entering a charged fray at many statehouses in the post-Obamacare era, in an editorial last year, he urged the Utah legislature to support the local expansion of Medicaid, citing the church’s pro-life message. Elsewhere, the diocese joined the LDS leadership in backing the recent landmark state law barring discrimination against gays and lesbians, while Wester blasted Gov. Gary Herbert in March for signing a bill allowing the continued use of firing squads in executions in lieu of lethal injection.

Named an auxiliary of San Francisco in 1997 under then-Archbishop Levada, the archbishop-elect is the second protege of the “godfather” of the US church’s progressive wing – the SF emeritus John Raphael Quinn – to be given a bigger berth in recent months, alongside Bishop Robert McElroy, who was installed as head of the million-member San Diego diocese earlier this month.
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Elizium23:
It also says this, which is encouraging:

“Wester’s elevation to an equal-sized, but more prestigious charge given its pallium… clearly bears the fingerprints of his mentor, Cardinal William Levada, as the onetime archbishop by the Bay-turned-CDF chief approaches his final year on the membership of the Congregation for Bishops…”
 
We lived in the Alb. area for a number of years and have been praying for the man God would send to Santa Fe as there is a contingent of priests there, totally faithful to the Magisterium and dedicated to their own pathway to holiness. May it please the Lord to bless them.
 
Tigg said:
We lived in the Alb. area for a number of years and have been praying for the man God would send to Santa Fe as there is a contingent of priests there, totally faithful to the Magisterium and dedicated to their own pathway to holiness. May it please the Lord to bless them.
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Bishop Wester is a wonderful bishop and many of us here in Utah are sad to hear he is leaving us. His homilies are amazing and he relates beautifully with the youth.

He is also known for his compassion and dedication. I have heard him speak about immigration and concluded he is exceptionally intelligent.

He confirmed our three oldest children and the masses were so beautiful. Santa Fe is gaining a remarkable Bishop. May God Bless Bishop Wester!
 
I’ve been wondering about Santa Fe since last year. I’ve known of Bp. Wester for a while and was so happy to hear the news! 🙂

It also means he’ll be going to Rome to receive his pallium – or will he? I recall there was talk about changing the ceremony. Does anyone have more on that? Info appreciated.
 
lax16 said:
Bishop Wester is a wonderful bishop and many of us here in Utah are sad to hear he is leaving us. His homilies are amazing and he relates beautifully with the youth.

He is also known for his compassion and dedication. I have heard him speak about immigration and concluded he is exceptionally intelligent.

He confirmed our three oldest children and the masses were so beautiful. Santa Fe is gaining a remarkable Bishop. May God Bless Bishop Wester!
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I so appreciate this info. We still stay in touch with our previous pastor, who is also awesomely wonderful! Big, big parish of over 5,000 registered families (and that was years ago) which drew people from all over the city. In fact, I’ve been praying that Monsignor would be appointed to a bishopric…all in God’s time.
 
I’ve had the privilege of meeting Bishop Wester once, and he strikes me as a very pastoral bishop. I’m happy for Santa Fe, and I look forward to knowing who his successor will be in Salt Lake City. 🙂
 
From what I have read and heard this week, Wester seems like a good choice. My speculations were wrong (I’m not the Pope), but I don’t know if Bishops Olmsted (Phoenix) and Farrell (Dallas) were on the “short list”. Dallas is larger than Santa Fe, but Santa Fe is an Archdiocese, and Farrell has a good following with Hispanics. It seems like from what I have read and heard, Wester does too.

The Archdiocese of Santa Fe has recently been sending college seminarians to Holy Trinity Seminary in Dallas, which IMHO is a good place for college seminarians.

The appointment for Wester should be a good “fit”.

I’m now wondering if Bishop Farrell is slated for consideration to another See that could become vacant next year due to a highly visible prelate turning 75. Two other Sees that I am closely watching are Rockville Center (NY), where Bishop Murphy turns 75 in a few months, and Arlington (VA), where Bishop Loverde turns 75 this fall.
 
Here’s a new interview with Archbishop-designate Wester. I think his response to a question on the Synod is somewhat encouraging, as he seems to me to imply his support for working through the annulment process and providing support for people, rather than supporting Card Kasper’s proposal:

vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/inquiries-and-interviews/detail/articolo/santa-fe-40803/

One thing the pope has been doing is hosting the two synods on the family. I know the synod is something Archbishop Quinn has written and spoken about. In your role as a diocesan bishop, how do you see the synod affecting your ministry or the lives of people in your diocese?

"…And you can see, looking over those responses, that people are hurting. People are wondering what to do. They want to be good Catholics. They’re struggling sometimes with the annulment process and other processes that can sometimes become difficult. They’re very important processes, but are there ways we can look at to help people even more through them?

These are all possible avenues that we’re looking to to be able to support people. I’m sure we’re going to be very greatly blessed by the results of those synods."
 
Yes, I’ve been wondering about Bp. Murphy as well.

Praying continually for our bishops!
 
Yes, I’ve been wondering about Bp. Murphy as well.

Praying continually for our bishops!
 
What’s nice about the appointment is that Bishop Wester was Archbishop Sheehan’s first choice for successor. 🙂
 
Here’s a Youtube link of the news conference announcing the appointment:

Video: Archbishop for Santa Fe News Conference (c. 39 minutes)
youtube.com/watch?v=5ed6rzDfwzg

amsjj 🙂

+++
Jesus, God and man,
imprisoned by love in Thy most holy Sacrament,
have mercy upon us.
  • Blessed John Henry Newman, December 22, 1851
Tú y yo sabemos por la fe que oculto en las especies sacramentales está Cristo,
ese Cristo con su Cuerpo, con su Sangre, con su Alma, y con su Divinidad,
prisonero de amor.
  • San Josemaría Escrivá, 1 junio 1974
God loves to be resisted in His displeasure, and to be restrained by the humble from inflicting punishment… One saint will often save a nation; so true is it that humble souls are the hinges on which God moves the world.
  • Abp. W. B. Ullathorne, The Groundwork of the Christian Virtues, 1882.
 
amsjj said:
Here’s a Youtube link of the news conference announcing the appointment:

Video: Archbishop for Santa Fe News Conference (c. 39 minutes)
youtube.com/watch?v=5ed6rzDfwzg

amsjj 🙂

+++
Jesus, God and man,
imprisoned by love in Thy most holy Sacrament,
have mercy upon us.
  • Blessed John Henry Newman, December 22, 1851
Tú y yo sabemos por la fe que oculto en las especies sacramentales está Cristo,
ese Cristo con su Cuerpo, con su Sangre, con su Alma, y con su Divinidad,
prisonero de amor.
  • San Josemaría Escrivá, 1 junio 1974
God loves to be resisted in His displeasure, and to be restrained by the humble from inflicting punishment… One saint will often save a nation; so true is it that humble souls are the hinges on which God moves the world.
  • Abp. W. B. Ullathorne, The Groundwork of the Christian Virtues, 1882.
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Thank you! 😃
 
hwriggles4 said:
From what I have read and heard this week, Wester seems like a good choice. My speculations were wrong (I’m not the Pope), but I don’t know if Bishops Olmsted (Phoenix) and Farrell (Dallas) were on the “short list”. Dallas is larger than Santa Fe, but Santa Fe is an Archdiocese, and Farrell has a good following with Hispanics. It seems like from what I have read and heard, Wester does too.

The Archdiocese of Santa Fe has recently been sending college seminarians to Holy Trinity Seminary in Dallas, which IMHO is a good place for college seminarians.

The appointment for Wester should be a good “fit”.

I’m now wondering if Bishop Farrell is slated for consideration to another See that could become vacant next year due to a highly visible prelate turning 75. Two other Sees that I am closely watching are Rockville Center (NY), where Bishop Murphy turns 75 in a few months, and Arlington (VA), where Bishop Loverde turns 75 this fall.
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I’m not Pope Francis I, but Bishop Murphy turned 75 recently. I don’t know who is being considered, but I hope it is someone strong for the Diocese of Rockville Center.

I am also wondering if Bishop Farrell is on the “short list” for the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. He was an auxiliary there for many years prior to coming to Dallas, and Farrell does serve on some USCCB committees. That would be an elevation for him when Donald Cardinal Wuerl submits his retirement papers. Wuerl turns 75 later this year - I’m not Pope Francis I, but my perception is that Pope Francis I will ask Wuerl to stay on for a while.
 
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