NEW YORK (OSV News) ─ A day before his installation as the 11th archbishop of New York, Archbishop Ronald A. Hicks gathered with the press in St. Patrick's Cathedral, a place known as "America's parish church," to share the message that he is on a mission from God -─ and it involves everyone.
"I love Jesus, I love the Church, I love people, and out of that relationship I strive to love my neighbor," said Archbishop Hicks, formerly the bishop of Joliet, Illinois, echoing remarks he made earlier to the press Dec. 18, following Pope Leo XIV's appointment of him as the successor of Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, now retiring from leading the archdiocese in accord with canon law age mandates.
At the Feb. 5 media briefing, he stood inside the cathedral near the main entrance, with the cathedra ─ the episcopal throne he will formally occupy at his 2 p.m. installation Mass ─ far behind him in the sanctuary. Archbishop Hicks shared that New Yorkers have warmly accepted him, stopping him on the street and letting him know they respect his unswerving loyalty to the Chicago Cubs.
He joked that his sports team preference occasioned his first controversial statement in New York, but said New Yorkers have applauded him for not being "a fair-weather fan."
They have, however, debated his loyalty to Chicago-style deep-dish pizza, he admitted.
"Some have just stopped me and said, 'Hey, it's more like a lasagna, it's not really a pizza,'" said Archbishop Hicks, adding that he never saw a pizza he didn't like, and that he looked forward to continuing the culinary debate.
The archbishop also alerted media he would reference fellow Chicagoan Pope Leo XIV "a number of times," stressing, "I will strive always to be obedient and respectful to him and also collaborate with his vision."
That includes building on his basic messages of "a Church that's engaged in the world, that builds bridges, that has a living faith, that is strong," he said.
The archbishop also said he wants to follow Pope Leo's model of listening "more than he talks."
"I want to listen to what he says, understand it, reflect on it, pray about it, and then say, 'How am I going to help lead and interpret this for the people of God here in the Archdiocese of New York?'" said the archbishop.
In his opening remarks, Archbishop Hicks said the Feb. 5 vespers service anticipating the Feb. 6 installation Mass is first and foremost about prayer, asking God's blessing, and not about any particular agenda or vision setting. But at the installation Mass, he said, his homily will emphasize both gratitude and the Church's mission.
"I'm going to talk just about being a Church made up of missionary disciples, who want to go out and make disciples and also to pass our faith on to the next generations," he said.
"I'm going to talk about a Church that builds bridges, goes out to the peripheries, engages the world and lives for a mission, a missionary Church," he said, noting that he will be emphasizing many themes shared by Pope Leo.
In response to a question from The Good Newsroom, the Archdiocese of New York's media outlet, Archbishop Hicks underscored evangelization, emphasizing that out of all the important issues he expects to face, that of faith is top of mind for him.
"God has to be in the center of everything," he said.
"One of my focuses is going to be evangelization: How do we actually be disciples who make disciples?" he said. "People who have been a part of the Church, but maybe not so much: How do we reengage? How do we pass the faith on to the next generation? How do we be a Church that is relevant and thriving and beautiful, sharing our faith together?"
In response to another reporter's question, the archbishop said he also sees preaching, especially from St. Patrick's -- which serves not only New Yorkers, but pilgrims and people who watch its televised Masses -- as a core part of his ministry.
"I enjoy preaching," he said. "And I hope as I develop my voice here in New York, that it's going to be one that reflects the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and his mission that he's given to us."
The archbishop answered additional questions from the media about his time serving the Diocese of Joliet since 2020, and what it will mean for him to take the helm of the second largest archdiocese in the U.S., which has 2.5 million Catholics, five times the 520,000 in Joliet.
He also responded to queries about the pastoral and spiritual challenge of being New York's shepherd, and how he would minister to a city with both the poor and the world's wealthiest. Here the archbishop emphasized "the power of Jesus."
"He loves, knows and reaches out to everyone. He wants to reach out to everyone," he told a Fox News reporter.
"We notice a spiritual poverty ─ and that needs to be filled also. Jesus is the light in the darkness, he is the answer. And the beauty of the Catholic Church is we need everyone working together.
"It's not that one or another, this group or that group ─ he calls all of us, and he calls us all to this great mission," he added.
During the media briefing, Archbishop Hicks directed reporters' attention to the recently completed mural within the cathedral's front entrance, a work honoring New York's holy men and women, its immigrants over the decades, and its beloved first responders.
The archbishop said the piece by Brooklyn artist Adam Cvijanovic "reminded me of my own family, immigrants who came here from Germany and from Ireland and from Poland. And it also reminded me of people I've met along the way during my time in missionary work in Latin America," he said. "People still look to that golden door for hope and for opportunity here in the United States."
Ordained to the priesthood in 1994 for the Archdiocese of Chicago, then-Father Hicks obtained permission from Cardinal Francis E. George to relocate to El Salvador, where he served a five-year term as regional director of Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos, a home dedicated to caring for more than 3,400 orphaned and abandoned children in nine Latin American and Caribbean countries.
"I left my heart there in Central America," said Archbishop Hicks.
Speaking in Spanish, he said, "My message to everyone is one of peace and goodwill," adding that "amid fear and problems," the way to "resolve all conflicts" is "to put our faith in God" so that "we can move forward, but also with true hope.
"And we can also be examples of how to treat one another, as true brothers and sisters," he added in Spanish. "Because that is how we should treat everyone, not just one side or the other, but all brothers and sisters together."
Explaining his approach to bilingual preaching, the archbishop -- who noted his installation Mass will be celebrated in English and Spanish -- said the use of Spanish intends to "communicate to the world that the Hispanic community is very important in the life of the Catholic Church. And it's also a way to give my respect, my dignity and my love for the Latino community."
Archbishop Hicks' installation comes at a time of national turmoil over large-scale federal immigrant enforcement operations in major U.S. cities, including New York. Asked by the National Catholic Reporter if he had a message to immigrants, including those who are Catholic, Archbishop Hicks said, "My response comes from a clear understanding in the Catholic Church and our social justice of what is human dignity.
"My message is how do we treat each other with respect? How simply do we see each other as brothers and sisters and use that as a foundation for everything else?" he said.
Asked if he had a message for Spanish communities, he said, "I love you very much. It has been an honor to walk with all of you. And in this archdiocese, we are going to continue to walk together as brothers and sisters."
Archbishop Hicks also highlighted the diverse array of attendees for the liturgical celebrations of his installation.
The celebrations will draw Catholic hierarchy, clergy, religious and laity, as well as "many representatives" from other faith traditions and from government, business and social sectors, he said.
"In other words, who's going to be there? Everyone," said Archbishop Hicks, quoting Pope Francis' invitation to welcome "todos, todos, todos" ("everyone, all") to the Catholic Church.
"This is good because New York is a place where the whole world lives and calls home," said the archbishop. "And the Catholic Church is universal, gathering and engaging everyone."
Archbishop Hicks, in response to a question from an EWTN News reporter, said he wants to be seen as a shepherd, not a CEO, in New York.
"I'm called here to be a pastor, to be a shepherd, and my desire is to be a good shepherd," he said.
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Peter Jesserer Smith is the national news and features editor for OSV News. Gina Christian, multimedia reporter for OSV News, contributed to this report.
