New Catholic archbishop of New York wants a church that 'shows respect for all' and builds unity

Ronald Hicks was installed Friday as the 11th archbishop of New York in a ceremony at the revered St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Manhattan, calling on Catholics to spread the faith while respecting all people and helping the vulnerable.

With a few thousand people in the cathedral and hundreds more packing the streets outside, Hicks officially succeeded the retiring Cardinal Timothy Dolan in an elaborate Mass that included choir singing, prayers and readings from the Gospel.

“We are called to be a missionary church, a church that catechizes, evangelizes and puts our faith into action," Hicks said. "A church made up of missionary disciples who go out and make disciples, passing the faith on from one generation to the next. A church that takes care of the poor and the vulnerable. A church that defends, respects and upholds life, from conception to a natural death.”

The change in leadership represents a significant new chapter for the U.S. Catholic Church, which is forging a new era with the Chicago-born Pope Leo XIV as the first American pontiff. Leo and the U.S. hierarchy have already shown willingness to challenge the Trump administration on immigration and other issues, and Hicks is seen as very much a Leo-style bishop.

Hicks, 58, was most recently bishop of Joliet, Illinois. He now leads one of the largest archdioceses in the nation that serves roughly 2.5 million Catholics in Manhattan, the Bronx and Staten Island in New York City, as well as seven counties to the north.

Paying homage to New York, Hicks read a mashup he made from lines from famous songs about the city. “So start spreading the news. I'm starting today,” he declared, playing on the lyrics of Frank Sinatra's “New York, New York.”

The pope chose Hicks in December to replace Dolan, a prominent conservative figure in the U.S. Catholic hierarchy. Dolan had submitted his resignation in February 2025, as required when he turned 75. Friday was Dolan's 76th birthday.

Hicks’ appointment came shortly after Dolan finalized a plan to establish a $300 million fund to compensate victims of sexual abuse who had sued the archdiocese.

Hicks called for a church that “cares for creation, builds bridges, listens and … protects children, promotes healing for survivors and all those who have been wounded by the church. A church that shows respect for all, building unity across cultures and generations.”

The ceremony began when Hicks stood outside the cathedral in his red robe and white mitre and knocked on the front doors three times with a small mallet. He was welcomed into the building by Dolan and received loud applause from the crowd inside.

Cardinal Christophe Pierre, the apostolic nuncio to the United States, read the official letter from the pope declaring Hicks as the new archbishop of New York. Hicks then showed the letter to those in attendance before being led by Dolan and Pierre to the cathedra, the archbishop's chair. Hicks officially became the archbishop when he sat down in the cathedra.

Among the attendees were Catholic Church leaders and laity, and representatives from other faiths, government, business, labor, education, the arts and first responders. Some of Hicks' relatives attended, while his parents watched a livestream from their home.

Hicks made some of his remarks in Spanish, acknowledging the city’s large Hispanic population.

Frieda Cabreja, a Queens resident, was among the crowd outside the cathedral cheering Hicks.

“I feel incredible because this is a memorable and historic day,” she said. “I do believe he brings peace and humanity. This country, right now, especially most of New York and in the states, there is a very big crisis of humanity. Right now, we are considered not being an American, even if we are citizens.”

Hicks grew up in South Holland, Illinois, a short distance from the suburban Chicago childhood home of Leo, the former Robert Prevost. Like Prevost, who spent 20 years as a missionary in Peru, Hicks worked for five years in El Salvador heading a church-run orphanage program that operated in nine Latin American and Caribbean countries.

He served as a parish priest in Chicago and dean of training at Mundelein Seminary before Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich made him vicar general of the archdiocese in 2015. Three years later, Hicks was made an auxiliary bishop, and in 2020 Pope Francis named him bishop of Joliet, serving around 520,000 Catholics in seven counties.

Hicks referenced Leo several times and noted the pope's own calls for a missionary purpose, saying: “We exist to follow Jesus, who fed the hungry, healed those ill in body and spirit, rejected hatred and proclaimed love."

Archbishop Ronald Hicks says the Eucharistic prayer during his Mass of Installation at St. Patrick's Cathedral, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Archbishop Ronald Hicks shows the apostolic letter to the congregation after receiving it from Cardinal Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States, during the Mass of Installation at St. Patrick's Cathedral, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah)

Archbishop Ronald Hicks gives a blessing after his Mass of Installation at St. Patrick's Cathedral, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah, Pool)

New York Archbishop-designate Ronald A. Hicks, who is taking over from Cardinal Timothy Dolan, leaves after his Installation Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral in the Manhattan borough of New York on Friday, Feb. 6, 2026. (Angelina Katsanis/ Pool Reuters via AP)

Archbishop-designate Ronald Hicks talks to reporters during a news conference at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Archbishop-designate Ronald Hicks talks to reporters during a news conference at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Archbishop-designate Ronald Hicks talks to reporters during a news conference at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Archbishop-designate Ronald Hicks greets journalists before a news conference at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Archbishop-designate Ronald Hicks laughs during a news conference at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Thousands of Catholic devotees commemorated Good Friday across Latin America with processions and ceremonies re-enacting the crucifixion of Jesus.

In Antigua, a colonial-era city in southern Guatemala, dozens dressed in purple and white robes and made their way under the early morning sun, many of them penitents known as “cucuruchos.” Others carried centuries-old images of Jesus through cobblestone streets.

The city hosts more than a dozen processions throughout Holy Week, set against a backdrop of volcanoes.

Marcos Bautista, 63, said he has attended the Good Friday observances since his father brought him along as a baby in his arms.

“To describe Holy Week in Antigua, there are no words that can capture what it feels like," Bautista said. “It’s a feeling that, just by speaking about what Jesus has done in our lives, moves me deeply.”

In Bolivia, President Rodrigo Paz traveled to the southern city of Tarija to participate in Good Friday ceremonies.

The country is a secular state under its constitution and its leaders refrained from engaging in any religious events between 2006 and 2025. But Paz — who took office last November — broke with precedent by attending Palm Sunday Mass carrying a palm frond.

In the capital city of La Paz, government authorities and military bands accompanied Good Friday processions, in which hooded penitents carried the Holy Sepulcher through the streets.

Bolivia remains a predominantly Catholic country, alongside strong Indigenous spiritual traditions. In some households, it is customary to eat only fish on Good Friday and prepare up to 12 dishes representing the apostles of Jesus, a tradition that has declined in recent years amid an economic crisis.

In Ecuador, where about 80% of the population identifies as Catholic, processions were held across major cities.

In Guayaquil, roughly half a million faithful attended the “Cristo del Consuelo” procession. Amid displays of devotion, some participants walked barefoot, while others wore thorn crowns or dragged crosses.

In the capital, Quito, the “Jesús del Gran Poder” procession drew more than 150,000 faithful, who filled the historic center’s streets with chants and prayers as they accompanied an image of Jesus carrying the cross.

Thousands more climbed the Monserrate Hill in neighboring Colombia. At more than 10,200 feet (3,100 meters) above sea level, they reached the summit in the capital city of Bogotá to attend Mass at the basilica. Similar observances, including reenactments of the Stations of the Cross, were held in other parts of the country, including Medellín.

While the share of Catholics in Latin America has declined over the past decade, the faith remains the region’s largest religion.

In several countries, including Mexico, Peru and Argentina, more than 60% of adults still identify as Catholic, according to 2024 surveys by the Pew Research Center and Latinobarómetro.

AP journalists Moisés Castillo in Antigua, Guatemala; Carlos Valdez in La Paz, Bolivia; Gonzalo Solano and Gabriela Molina, in Quito, Ecuador, contributed to this report.

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

Penitents from the Nazareno brotherhood carry a statue of Jesus down the steps of the Cathedral Basilica of St. James the Apostle for a Good Friday procession during Holy Week in Tunja, Colombia, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)

A hooded penitent from the Nazareno brotherhood waits for the Good Friday procession inside the Cathedral Basilica of St. James the Apostle during Holy Week in Tunja, Colombia, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)

Young women and girls carry jeweled hearts representing the Virgin Mary at a Good Friday procession during Holy Week in La Paz, Bolivia, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)

Hooded penitents participate in a Good Friday procession during Holy Week in La Paz, Bolivia, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)

A statue of Jesus Christ with a cross makes its way past electric cables at La Merced church's Good Friday procession during Holy Week in Antigua, Guatemala, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

Women carry children dressed as penitents knows as "cucuruchos" on the sidelines of La Merced church's Good Friday procession during Holy Week in Antigua, Guatemala, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

Penitents carry statues of Jesus Christ representing the Stations of the Cross at a Good Friday procession by La Merced church during Holy Week in Antigua, Guatemala, just before sunrise Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

Musicians dressed as Roman soldiers take part in La Merced church's Good Friday procession during Holy Week in Antigua, Guatemala, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)