Pope Picks Spanish Speaker As Oakland Bishop, Matthai Kuruvila, San Francisco Chronicle, March 24, 2009

Pope Picks Spanish Speaker As Oakland Bishop

By Matthai Kuruvila
San Francisco Chronicle
March 24, 2009

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/03/23/BAOF16LIBE.DTL

Salvatore Joseph Cordileone, a California native who is currently auxiliary bishop of San Diego, will lead 550,000 Catholics as the new bishop of the Diocese of Oakland.
Photo by Mark Costantini

Pope Benedict XVI on Monday named a Spanish-speaking theological conservative from San Diego as the bishop of Oakland, the principal voice of morality for some 550,000 Catholics in Alameda and Contra Costa counties.

Salvatore Joseph Cordileone's roots run deep in California. He has been the auxiliary bishop for the Diocese of San Diego, the diocese in which he was born, attended church as a child, went to seminary and served as a parish priest. He also served as a parish priest in Calexico, the Imperial County border town.

He inherits a diocese that is rapidly changing, particularly along demographic lines, yet is striving to knit itself together as a cohesive community. People in the diocese attend Mass in 13 languages in places as diverse as Danville, Pittsburg and Berkeley. It has bet $180 million that the heart of the community will be its new cathedral in downtown Oakland - a bold challenge at a time when urban parishes are withering. One of Cordileone's principal goals will be to raise the remaining $42 million in costs.

"Erase that debt and he's a rock star," said the Rev. Jayson Landeza, rector of St. Columba in North Oakland.

Bishop Salvatore Cordileone, new Bishop of Oakland meets office staff at Cathedral of Christ church the Light in Oakland.
Photo by Mark Costantini

Oakland's troubles have been dramatically on display after the weekend slaying of four police officers. Cordileone said the violence highlighted the need for the church and its work.

"In so many ways, we live in a deeply wounded culture in need of much healing, but we are not without hope," Cordileone said in reference to the shootings. "Let us work and pray together so that God's light can guide us to the peace and reconciliation we so need and desire."

Cordileone bridges one of the church's largest divides by speaking Spanish fluently - the first Oakland bishop to have the skill in the diocese's 47-year history even though Hispanics now account for half the diocese.

Bishop Salvatore Cordileone, new Bishop of Oakland, pauses while speaking at Cathedral of Christ church the Light in Oakland about the recent shootings in Oakland that left Okalnd Police officers dead.
Photo by Mark Costantini

Cordileone's affinity for - and respect from - the Latino community is not based on language alone, said Hector Medina, the diocesan director of Latino ministry. Cordileone's four years as a parish priest in Calexico gave him familiarity with the struggles of poor immigrants, Medina said.

"We are so close to the experience of the migrant people, especially here in California," Medina said.

Cordileone has a reputation for reaching out to many ethnic groups and participating in the rites particular to their communities, said Landeza, who served as the representative to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops for six years and worked closely with Cordileone during that time.

"He appreciates diversity," Landeza said.

Cordileone also has a reputation for being theologically conservative.

A trained canon lawyer, Cordileone spent considerable time in Rome for theological studies and served for seven years as an assistant at the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura, the Vatican's highest judicial court.

"He is a loyal son of the church," said Landeza.

Bishop Salvatore Cordileone, new Bishop of Oakland speaks at Cathedral of Christ church the Light in Oakland.
Photo by Mark Costantini

Cordileone has consistently taken a statewide role on issues of marriage, most recently during the campaign for Proposition 8, which eliminated the right of same-sex couples to get married. He reaffirmed those views Monday morning.

"Only one idea of marriage can stand," he said, saying that marriage has been limited to heterosexuals in every society throughout history. Cordileone said people have to stand up for that definition. "If that's going to be considered bigoted, we're going to see our rights being taken away - as is already happening."

E-mail Matthai Kuruvila at mkuruvila@sfchronicle.com