Archbishop-elect Perez’s Mass of Installation will take place on Tuesday, February 18, 2020
in the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul at 2:00 p.m
Today at a news conference, Most Reverend Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M. Cap. announced that Pope Francis has named Most Reverend Nelson J. Perez as the 14th Bishop and 10th Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Archbishop-elect Perez’s Mass of Installation will take place on Tuesday, February 18, 2020 at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul at 2:00 p.m.
Archbishop Chaput said, “This is a moment of great satisfaction and joy for the clergy and people of the Archdiocese, and for me personally. When I first spoke with the nuncio about my retirement and this transition last May, I asked for a successor who would care for and guide our people, speak the truth with conviction, and live a faithful witness to Jesus Christ. Archbishop Perez is a man who already knows and loves the Church in Philadelphia, and is already known and loved by our priests and people.”
Archbishop-elect Perez, 58, was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia in 1989. He served here for many years at the parish level with a keen focus on ministry to Hispanic Catholics before being named an Auxiliary Bishop for the Diocese of Rockville Centre in 2012. In July 2017, Pope Francis appointed him to serve as the 11th Bishop of the Diocese of Cleveland.
In reaction today’s announcement, Archbishop-elect Perez said, “I am deeply grateful to the Holy Father for this appointment and his confidence in me. It is with great joy tinged with a sense of sadness that I accept the appointment — joy that I will be returning to serve the Archdiocese in which I was ordained to the priesthood, where I served as the pastor of two parishes and where I held several leadership positions within the Archdiocese, and sadness that I will be leaving an area and the incredible people in Northeast Ohio I have come to love deeply,”
He went on to say, “I will never forget the kindness and hospitality of the people of the Diocese of Cleveland. They will remain in my heart and prayers always. As change is an ever-present part of life, I now turn my attention southeastward as I look forward to my return to Pennsylvania to shepherd the people of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.”
The Holy Father has appointed Archbishop Chaput to serve as the Apostolic Administrator of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia until the Installation of Archbishop-elect Perez on Tuesday, February 18th.
Two photos of Archbishop-elect Perez, along with a brief biography, are attached courtesy of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.
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Editor’s Note: For more information about the Diocese of Cleveland, please visit https://www.dioceseofcleveland.org/.
Follow Bishop Perez on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/BishopNPerez/ and Twitter at https://twitter.com/BishopNPerez.
Contact:Contact: Kenneth A. Gavin
Chief Communications Officer
215-587-3747 (office)