Edinburgh welcomes new Archbishop

Archbishop Cushley

The Episcopal Ordination of Archbishop Leo Cushley took place in a crowded service at St Mary's Cathedral, Edinburgh on Saturday, 21 September. Archbishop Cushley was appointed new Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh by Pope Francis on 24 July. He replaces Cardinal Keith O'Brien, who stood down in February, and is the eighth Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh since the restoration of the Catholic Hierarchy in 1878.

Archbishop Chushley, 52, was consecrated by Cardinal James Harvey, the principal consecrator and principal celebrant of the Mass of Episcopal Ordination, with Archbishop Antonio Mennini, Apostolic Nuncio to Great Britain, and Most Rev Philip Tartaglia, Archbishop of Glasgow, in his capacity as Apostolic Administrator of the Archdiocese of St Andrews and Edinburgh. Cardinal Harvey was Mgr Cushleys first superior in the Secretariat of State and was a long-time colleague in the diplomatic service. Cardinal Harvey, who comes from Wisconsin, USA, also worked as a deacon in a parish Edinburgh in the summer of 1974.

Among the guests were Rt Hon Alex Salmond, the First Minister, the Moderator of the General Assembly, Dr Lorna Hood, Bishop John Armes Episcopal Bishop of Edinburgh, the British Ambassador to the Holy See, Nigel Baker, together with the Catholic Bishops of Scotland and other civic and religious dignitaries.

During the Mass, Archbishop Cushley told the clergy: "As you may know, a couple of weeks ago the Holy Father called me in to see him. He wanted to know about all of you and to hear what I could tell him about my plans and priorities, and he listened and commented at length, with the sympathy and understanding of a man who had been an archbishop in a big capital city for many years - Buenos Aires. One of the things he communicated then and in the coming days was the idea that I should be merciful in my ministry here."

He continued: "But he explained that being merciful doesn't mean being soft. It means being gentle but also firm at the same time. This is what the Pope asked me to be for all of you. It is also Pope Francis' proposal for the way we priests ought to be with each other: firmly resolved to be merciful, to forgive, to be humble, to rebuild, to dialogue."

Archbishop Cushley was born in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, and ordained a priest in Uddingston, South Lanarkshire. He was until recently head of the English language section of the Vatican's secretariat of state and accompanied the Pope on visits to English-speaking countries. Fluent in Italian, French, Spanish and Portuguese, he has been a close collaborator of both Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis, and has been regularly involved in the visits of heads of state and other important guests to the Holy See.

Source: SCMO/VIS