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Boston's Cardinal O'Malley, major U.S. ally of Pope Francis, retires

Pope Francis on Monday called a brand-new leader for the Catholic Church in Boston, succeeding the retiring archbishop, Cardinal Sean O'Malley, who has long been among the pontiff's key U.S. advisors and a lead Vatican authorities on clergy sexual assault problems.

In a daily press bulletin, the Vatican said Francis had appointed Bishop Richard Henning as Boston's new archbishop. Henning, aged 59 and initially from New York, had actually led the Church in Providence, Rhode Island, considering that last summer.

The Boston archdiocese stated it will host an interview later Monday to reveal additional information. Henning, the archdiocese stated, will be officially installed into the brand-new function on Oct. 31.

Henning is fairly brand-new amongst U.S. bishops. He was first appointed as an auxiliary bishop of Rockville Centre, New York City by Francis in 2018. He was made bishop of Providence, the capital of the nation's tiniest state, in 2023.

O'Malley turned 80, the common retirement age for Church service, on June 29. While he was named the archbishop of Boston by Pope John Paul II in 2003 and was made a cardinal by Pope Benedict XVI in 2006, Francis had considerably elevated his public profile, and treated him as a close ally.

In his very first year as pope in 2013, Francis appointed O'Malley as a member of his prominent kitchen cabinet of high Church officials, referred to as the Council of Cardinals. In 2014, Francis also tasked O'Malley with leading the Vatican's very first official commission on clergy sexual assault.

The task force, officially called the Pontifical Commission for the Defense of Minors, was roiled last year by the shock resignation of among its members, a worldwide understood abuse prevention specialist.

At the time, O'Malley stated he had been shocked by the resignation and disagreed with the individual's decision.

The Vatican did not instantly say when O'Malley would step down from his Vatican functions, however, according to age limitations on Church service, would be expected to do so soon.

The Boston archdiocese is the fourth-largest Catholic archdiocese in the U.S., and includes an approximated 1.8 million Catholics, according to its site.

(source: Reuters)