Cardinal Francis George, the first Chicago native to serve as the local archbishop, has died at age 78 after a long struggle with cancer.
The death of Cardinal Francis George was confirmed by an Archdiocese source, and a local parish sent a message regarding his death on social media. Archbishop Blasé Cupich is expected to make an announcement at 2 p.m. at Holy Name Cathedral.
Cardinal Francis George had been on home care in his Gold Coast residence since April 3, 2015 after being hospitalized late March 2015 for medical issues related to hydration and pain management.
Cardinal George was born on January 16, 1937 and grew up in St. Pascal’s parish on Chicago’s Northwest Side. Cardinal George survived polio at the age of 13. He didn’t attend seminary in Chicago, but attended St. Henry Preparatory Seminary in Belleville, Illinois. He joined the Catholic religious order, the Oblates of Mary Immaculate in August of 1957. He studied theology in Ottawa, Canada and was ordained a priest at St. Pascal’s Church on December 21, 1963.
Pope John Paul II had appointed Cardinal George Bishop of Yakima, Washington in 1990 and Archbishop of Portland in 1996. Cardinal George was installed as the eighth Archbishop of Chicago in May of 1997. In January of 1998, Pope John Paul II announced Archbishop George’s elevation to the College of Cardinals. At the Consistory in Rome that February, Cardinal George was assigned San Bartolomeo all’Isola in Rome as his titular church.
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