Cardinal Donald William Wuerl, turns 80 years old. Prior to becoming a cardinal, the American prelate served as Auxiliary Bishop of Seattle and Bishop of Pittsburgh.
In 2006 he was appointed Archbishop of Washington and proclaimed Cardinal by Benedict XVI in the Consistory of 20 November 2010.
In 2018 however, the cardinal had been facing pressure to resign since he was criticized for his handling of cases of abusive priests after the Pennsylvania Grand Jury report was released.
On Oct. 12, 2018, Pope Francis accepted his resignation as Archbishop of Washington. Wuerl remained in charge of the archdiocese as its apostolic admistrator until Pope Francis appointed his successor.
During his years as bishop, he faced the challenge of governing U.S. dioceses in an increasingly secularized world.
CARD. DONALD WUERL
Archbishop of Washington, DC (2012)
“I think being a follower of Jesus is not easy in this secular world, but it is joyful! We may have many hurtles, but we can be at peace as we face those hurtles, if we believe, if we know that Christ is with us.”
As he turns 80 years old, he is still part of the 219 members of the College of Cardinals. However, he is no longer one of the 119 electors.
Christian Campos
