By Stephanie Innes
Arizona Daily Star
October 27, 2009
http://www.azstarnet.com/allheadlines/314934
 |
| Bishop Gerald Kicanas |
Catholic blog says Tucson bishop a finalist for Milwaukee archbishop
There's talk that Tucson Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas may be moving to Milwaukee.
Respected and prolific Catholic blogger Rocco Palmo, known for his connections to the Vatican hierarchy, has named Kicanas as one of four finalists to fill the position of archbishop for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee in Wisconsin. The diocese has been without an archbishop since Feb. 23 when Timothy M. Dolan was named archbishop of New York.
Bishops do not choose their assignments, and the ultimate decision on who replaces Dolan rests with Pope Benedict XVI. But high-ranking church clerics offer recommendations.
"When Tucson emerged from (Chapter 11) bankruptcy, a lot of credibility was restored. Kicanas is the closest thing among the bishops the American church has to a Mr. Transparency," said Palmo, whose blog, "Whispers in the Loggia" has earned him both national and international attention. Palmo is also a former U.S. correspondent for the London-based international Catholic weekly The Tablet.
"Kicanas also speaks Spanish, and there's an emerging Hispanic presence in the Milwaukee archdiocese," Palmo said on Monday.
Kicanas, 68, was in Salt Lake City on Monday, giving the keynote address and workshop at a meeting of the National Catholic Education Association, and was unavailable for comment, diocese spokesman Fred Allison said. Allison declined comment on the rumor.
Palmo's blog says the four finalists to take Dolan's place are Kicanas; Bishop Blase Cupich of the Diocese of Rapid City, S.D.; Bishop Jerome Listecki of the Diocese of La Crosse, Wis.; and Milwaukee auxiliary bishop William P. Callahan. Callahan has been acting as administrator of the Wisconsin archdiocese since Dolan's departure.
Julie Wolf, director of communications for the archdiocese, said Monday that she could neither confirm nor deny Palmo's blog item and stressed that the pope has the final say.
The Milwaukee archdiocese includes 644,000 registered Catholics, though Palmo estimates the actual number is closer to 700,000.
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Tucson includes about 350,000 Catholics in nine Arizona counties. Kicanas has been bishop since 2003, when Bishop Manuel D. Moreno took early retirement for health reasons. Moreno died in 2006.
Kicanas, a native of Chicago, first came to Tucson in 2002 as a coadjutor bishop with Moreno. As vice president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and in line to be the group's president next year, Kicanas is well-known among Catholic leaders across the country. He's also chairman of the board for the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University and from 1984 to 1995 served as rector of Mundelein Seminary at the University of St. Mary of the Lake in Mundelein, Ill. The seminary is the principal training ground for priests in the Archdiocese of Chicago.
In Tucson, Kicanas stepped into a maelstrom of anger and hurt over sexual abuse of children by priests, most of it during the 1960s, '70s and '80s. In 2002, Kicanas became one of the first bishops in the country to make a public list of clergy dating back to the 1950s with "credible" accusations of sexual abuse against them.
Since 2002, four priests who at one time worked in the Tucson diocese have been sent to prison for sexually abusing children.
Another priest, the Rev. Fernando Manzo, disappeared after he was told of an investigation of alleged sexual misconduct. Until then, Manzo had been pastor of San Felipe De Jesus Parish in Nogales, Ariz.
Facing expensive litigation over lawsuits that had been filed in connection with the sexual abuse, the diocese under Kicanas' leadership, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in September 2004.
Kicanas earned praise from all sides of the case, including victims and their attorneys, when the diocese emerged from bankruptcy a year later along with a $22 million settlement pool for those who had been abused.
The Milwaukee job is not the first time Kicanas' name has come up in connection with a possible move from Tucson.
In 2003, media in Phoenix named Kicanas as a possible leader for that diocese, which at the time was reeling from the resignation of Bishop Thomas J. O'Brien, who was involved in a fatal accident.
And last month, SeattlePI.com named Kicanas as a possibility to fill one of two prominent Washington state Catholic positions — archbishop of Seattle and bishop of the Diocese of Spokane.
Palmo said there is a short list for the Milwaukee post and stands by his reporting.
"My batting average has been better than most," he said. "But until the Vatican announces it, nothing is official. The process can take some wild turns. There are rumblings about an announcement in the next two weeks, but anything can change."
Contact reporter Stephanie Innes at 573-4134 or sinnes@azstarnet.com. Follow Stephanie Innes on Twitter at twitter.com/stephanieinnes
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.