1. Roger Michael Mahony was born on February 27,1936 and is an American Catholic retired prelate who served as Archbishop of Los Angeles from 1985 to 2011.
37 Facts About Roger Mahony
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Roger Mahony previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Fresno from 1975 to 1980 and Bishop of Stockton from 1980 to 1985.
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Roger Mahony was appointed auxiliary bishop of Fresno in January 1975 and consecrated bishop in March 1975.
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In 2011, Mahony reached the mandatory retirement age for bishops and was succeeded by Archbishop Jose H Gomez on March 1.
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Roger Mahony was born on February 27,1936, in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles, the son of Victor and Loretta Mahony.
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Roger Mahony has a twin brother, Louis, and an older brother, Neil.
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Roger Mahony graduated from Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, in 1964 with a Master of Social Work degree.
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Roger Mahony taught social work at Fresno State University in Fresno, California.
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On January 7,1975, Roger Mahony was appointed as auxiliary bishop of Fresno and titular bishop of Tamascani by Pope Paul VI.
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Roger Mahony received his episcopal consecration on March 19,1975, in Fresno from Bishop Hugh A Donohoe, with Bishops William R Johnson and John S Cummins serving as co-consecrators.
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On February 15,1980, Roger Mahony was appointed Bishop of Stockton by Pope John Paul II, as announced by the nuncio, Jean Jadot.
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In 1980, shortly after Roger Mahony became Bishop of Stockton, a parent wrote to the diocese accusing the Fr Oliver O'Grady of molesting his two sons.
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In December 1984, despite the earlier promise, Roger Mahony transferred O'Grady to another parish.
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On July 16,1985, Roger Mahony was appointed as Archbishop of Los Angeles by John Paul II, becoming the first native Angeleno to hold that office.
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Roger Mahony was created cardinal-priest of the Basilica dei Santi Quattro Coronati in Rome by John Paul II in the consistory of June 28,1991.
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Roger Mahony then began planning the new $190 million Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels.
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Roger Mahony said that the archdiocese needed a mother church and religious center to unite its people.
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In 1987, Roger Mahony announced the auction of the Doheny rare book collection at St John's Seminary in Camarillo, California.
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Roger Mahony cited the financial needs of the archdiocese and the high cost of insuring the collection as the reasons for its sale.
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In May 1998, Roger Mahony announced he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer.
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Roger Mahony underwent a prostatectomy on June 15,1998; doctors said that the surgery was successful.
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Roger Mahony was a cardinal elector in the 2005 papal conclave that selected Pope Benedict XVI.
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The formal ceremony of transition was held at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, with Roger Mahony's resignation taking canonical effect on March 1,2011.
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Roger Mahony took up residence at the rectory in St Charles Borromeo Church in North Hollywood.
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Roger Mahony remained "a priest in good standing" and could still celebrate mass, but could no longer speak publicly or exercise a bishop's responsibilities.
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However, Roger Mahony participated in the conclave in March 2013 that elected Pope Francis.
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In May 2013, after officiating at a confirmation service, Roger Mahony told a Los Angeles Times reporter that the ban on confirmations was "news to him".
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In 1992, Roger Mahony published a pastoral letter Film Makers, Film Viewers on the topic of television news and the entertainment industry.
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Roger Mahony told US President George W Bush that the bill would effectively prevent the Catholic Church from providing charitable assistance and religious ministry to undocumented immigrants.
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In May 2006, Roger Mahony announced that he would order his clergy and lay people to ignore the law if it were passed.
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Roger Mahony personally lobbied the US senators from California, Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein, to have the US Senate consider a comprehensive immigration reform bill, rather than the House bill.
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Roger Mahony blamed the US Congress for the illegal immigration crisis, due to its failure to act on the issue over the previous 20 years.
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Roger Mahony supported instead the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006.
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Roger Mahony described the abuse as a "terrible sin and crime".
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Roger Mahony wanted to prevent any of his priests at the center from returning to Los Angeles.
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Roger Mahony cited possible lawsuits by their victims, whom the archdiocese had been assured that the priests would never return.
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In February 2020, Roger Mahony was named as a defendant in a lawsuit where he was accused of shielding convicted ex-priest Michael Baker.