Pope Leo XIV Appoints Bishop Hicks New York Archbishop

Pope Leo XIV appointed Bishop Ronald Hicks of Joliet, Illinois, as the next archbishop of New York on Thursday, selecting a fellow Chicago native to lead one of the largest Catholic archdioceses in the United States. The move replaces Cardinal Timothy Dolan, who has served in the role for 16 years and recently turned 75, the age at which bishops are required to submit resignation letters to the Vatican.

Hicks, 58, brings a background deeply rooted in the Chicago area and international church service. Born on August 4, 1967, in Harvey, Illinois, and raised in nearby South Holland, he attended St. Jude the Apostle Parish and later graduated from Quigley Preparatory Seminary South in 1985. He earned a bachelor's degree in philosophy from Loyola University Chicago and advanced degrees in divinity from the University of St. Mary of the Lake in Mundelein. Ordained as a priest for the Archdiocese of Chicago in 1994, Hicks served as an associate pastor at parishes including Our Lady of Mercy in Chicago and St. Elizabeth Seton in Orland Hills. From 1999 to 2005, he ministered at St. Joseph College Seminary in Chicago.

In 2005, Hicks spent five years in El Salvador as regional director...