By Barry Paddock and Bill Hutchinson
New York Daily News
February 23, 2009
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2009/02/22/2009-02-22_milwaukee_archbishop_timothy_dolan_to_re.html
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| The newly appointed New York archbishop Timothy Dolan was introduced at mass Monday morning by Edward Cardinal Egan |
New York's new archbishop turned on the Irish charm Monday as he shmoozed city leaders, met members of his new flock, and dealt with tricky questions like which baseball team he likes best.
"I already feel so much at home," Archbishop Timothy Dolan said after a busy morning that began with morning mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral.
Dolan, 59, even stopped to sample some of the local fare. "I've already learned how to order a hot dog from the cart outside the cathedral," he said.
As he made his rounds, Dolan was accompanied by the man he's replacing, Edward Cardinal Egan, 76. The style difference between the gregarious Milwaukee monsignor and the aloof Egan could not have been clearer.
"My mom told me just be yourself, that's what you're gonna see," a smiling Dolan said as he introduced himself to reporters in the basement of the Cathedral School.
Asked about his priorities, Dolan said he wants to slow the exodus of Catholics from the church, vowed to stop the shuttering of parochial schools - and improve his Spanish.
"The thing I'm good at is preaching about Jesus Christ and preaching the Gospel," he said. "It's going to be a major endeavor."
Dolan, who is from St. Louis, admitted he bleeds Cardinal red and said one of the "best years of my life" was 1964 when the birds beat the Bombers in the World Series.
"Those days are over," he said.
Dolan also said he's looking forward to visiting the new Yankee stadium and added that he's also "fond" of the Mets.
Dolan got a warm welcome from Mayor Bloomberg.
"The Archdiocese of New York and the City of New York are partners in so many areas," Bloomberg said. "I look forward to working with Archbishop Dolan to continue making New York City a place where families of all faiths work together toward common goals and shared dreams."
Bloomberg also had kind words for Egan, whom he praised for leading the nation's most high-profile diocese with "great skill and compassion" for nine years.
Dolan also made a good first impressions with parishioners at morning mass, where he and Egan handed out Communion together.
"He seems to be a very outgoing person," said Roy Fields, 84, of Crestwood, N.Y. "I'm sure he's going to be a great leader. I hope he can convince young people to enter the priesthood."
Dolan steps into a job considered the highest-profile position in the U.S. Catholic Church, leading a flock of 2.5 million Catholics in three boroughs and seven counties.
People familiar with Dolan describe him as less like the lofty Egan and more like the late John Cardinal O'Connor, a charismatic clergyman who often injected himself into burning city issues.
When the talk turned to tougher issues like proposed legislation seeking to reopen old pedophile priest cases, Dolan showed he could also deflect a difficult question.
"It's not something the cardinal and I have talked about at great length," he said. "I don't want to put my foot in my mouth this early on."
Outside, a group advocating on behalf victims of pedophile priests claimed Dolan did not do enough to crack down on clergymen who sexually abused children.
"There (still) are priests and brothers who abused children on the pastoral directory in Milwaukee," said Peter Isely of SNAP (the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests).
Dolan's defenders say he defrocked veteran priests who molested children and publicly named clergymen found to be abusers when he took over in Milwaukee in 2002.
Contact: csiemaszko@nydailynews.com
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