By Cathy Lynn Grossman
USA Today
July 19, 2011
http://www.usatoday.com/news/religion/2011-07-19-pope-philadelphia-archbishop_n.htm
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| Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput puts on a Philadelphia Phillies hat Tuesday after the Vatican named him Cardinal Justin Rigali's successor as Archbishop of Philadelphia. |
His Native American Potawatami tribe calls Kansas-born Charles Chaput a name for "the wind that rustles the trees."
When he served in his first post as a Roman Catholic bishop, in Rapid City, S.D., the Lakota Sioux nicknamed Chaput "Good Eagle."
As archbishop of Denver since 1997, Chaput quickly made his name as an energetic, conservative voice in the national public square.
He is known as a champion on social-justice issues, but he opposes gay marriage and abortion, and he is a scourge of Catholic politicians who don't hew to their church's teachings.
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Now, the Archdiocese of Philadelphia will call Chaput (SHAP-u) their archbishop.
And, likely within a few years, he'll become the first Native American to don the red hat of a cardinal and be eligible to vote for the next pope.
On Tuesday, Pope Benedict XVI accepted the resignation of the current archbishop, Cardinal Justin Rigali, under fire for two scathing grand jury reports in the long-running sexual abuse scandal in Philadelphia, and brought in Chaput, 66.
At the news conference Tuesday where Rigali introduced him, Chaput said he will read the grand jury reports and meet with abuse victims and their families. He pledged that no bishop would "try harder to help people who were hurt by the sins of the past."
Chaput has already received a "red hat": a Phillies cap to go with the Eagles shirt, a gift basket of local treats and an invitation for a Philly cheesesteak when he moves East.
Awaiting him: Deep financial woes that could force parish closings and social issues sure to influence the 2012 elections, says David Gibson, author of several books on American Catholicism.
"Solving the scandal is not the primary reason Benedict sent him here. Chaput doesn't play defense. He plays offense. He won't be looking to make enemies, but he's an outsider looking to shake things up politically," he says.
"He is not the kind of bishop the Democrats want in a swing state like Pennsylvania," says Thomas Reese, a political scientist and Jesuit priest.
During the 2008 presidential election campaign Chaput called then-senator Barack Obama the "most committed 'abortion-rights' presidential candidate … since the Roe v. Wade abortion decision in 1973."
Chaput's book, Render Unto Caesar, spells out how Catholic citizens and politicians should stand by church doctrine in public life.
The brief Vatican announcement Tuesday of 76-year-old Rigali's resignation cited his age. He submitted it on his 75th birthday in April 2010, as required by church law, but the pope did not immediately act on it.
Rigali will continue to administer the archdiocese until Sept. 8, when Chaput will be installed. Rigali will then retire to Knoxville, Tenn.
Chaput told The Denver Post early Tuesday, "I just hope everyone gives me the opportunity to be myself and not define me."
Later, facing a warm welcome in Philadelphia, Chaput named himself once more: "I'm a good eagle that rustles the leaves."
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