Bishop Mahony Will Head L.A. Archdiocese

Bishop Roger M. Mahony of Stockton, a Los Angeles native fluent in Spanish and known as a liberal-to-moderate on social issues, was named by Pope John Paul II on Tuesday to replace Cardinal Timothy Manning, who is retiring after a 15-year tenure.

Manning submitted his resignation as head of the nation’s largest Roman Catholic archdiocese last October when he turned 75, now the mandatory age for Roman Catholic prelates to retire.

The announcement ended months of speculation in which Mahony, 49, was prominently mentioned because of his bilingual ability, his close association with Manning and--in keeping with recent appointments by the Pope--his willingness to address publicly a range of moral-political issues.

‘Record Has Been Positive’

A few Latino bishops were thought to be possible choices for the post because as many as two-thirds of the Catholics in the archdiocese are of Latino heritage. But the Vatican has been also naming non-Latino bishops to dioceses with large Spanish-speaking populations if the men are bilingual and have identified with Latino community concerns.

“Bishop Mahony’s record has been very positive for Hispanic concerns,” said Father Roland Lozano, pastor of an East Los Angeles parish. Latino Catholics once made the naming of Latino bishops a high priority, but Lozano said that now “people are more interested in the strength of commitment and openness rather than ethnic background.”

In contrast to Manning’s low-key, mission-oriented style in Los Angeles, which he has called “the rim of the Western world,” Mahony has frequently addressed publicly debated issues. He was the first chairman of the state’s Agricultural Labor Relations Board and has spoken out for the rights of farm workers, immigrants and for nuclear disarmament.

Of recent papal appointees in major U.S. cities, Mahony is compared more to the liberal-to-moderate Cardinal Joseph Bernardin of Chicago, appointed in 1982, than to the more conservative Cardinals John O’Connor and Bernard Law named subsequently in New York and Boston.

The Los Angeles archdiocese includes 2,561,602 Catholics in Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties--about 200,000 more than Chicago, the next-largest archdiocese. Los Angeles passed Chicago in numbers three years ago.

Manning, who succeeded Cardinal James F. McIntyre in 1970, will remain a cardinal. He previously has expressed a desire to assist his successor in pastoral duties just as McIntyre did before he became too ill. McIntyre died at age 93, exactly six years ago Tuesday.

Like McIntyre, Manning was born in Ireland. He was a staunch defender of traditional church practices and values, but his willingness to listen calmed the archdiocese during the early 1970s when the reforms initiated by the Second Vatican Council still led to conflicts in the church.

Manning, elevated to cardinal in 1973, was rarely prominent in U.S. Catholic affairs but did attain some visibility in the international church when he was named by the Pope to be a co-presider of the 1983 Synod of Bishops in Rome.

Mahony, made an archbishop with his appointment to Los Angeles, would eventually be in line to become a cardinal.

A spokesman for the Stockton diocese said the bishop expects to move into archdiocesan offices in September, although the appointment is effective immediately.

Though relatively young to be designated head of a major archdiocese, Mahony said he suspects that the fact he has had 10 years’ experience as a bishop “may have balanced out my younger age.” He was named an auxiliary bishop in Fresno in 1975 and was appointed in 1980 as head of the Stockton diocese, which has 135,000 Catholics.

Mahony has been close to Manning since the late 1960s when Manning was bishop of Fresno and Mahony served as diocesan director of charities and social work there. Mahony also has been a frequent speaker in the Los Angeles archdiocese, most recently on the implications of the U.S. Catholic Bishops’ pastoral letter on nuclear weapons and peace.

“I’ve issued about one or two pastoral letters a year since I’ve been in Stockton,” Mahony said. “I feel the role of teacher in a diocese is an important one.”

The church announcement in Rome and Washington said Mahony “is known for his interest in the needs of Hispanics and other Spanish-speaking persons, immigration reform and the problems of farm laborers and migrant workers.”

Dan Saenz, president of the United Neighborhoods Organization, praised Manning for his backing of UNO’s efforts to combat crime and drug trafficking in East Los Angeles.

Saenz said some people may be disappointed that a Latino bishop was not selected for Los Angeles, “but Bishop Mahony has espoused the causes of Hispanics. He is proficient in Spanish and understands the needs of the community.”

“We think he is the right person at the right time because of changes in the archdiocese,” Saenz said, referring to the Central American, Mexican, Asian and other ethnic influx into the county.

Manning declined to make any statements Tuesday, but he will join Mahony in a news conference this morning in Los Angeles.