Roger Mahony

Roger Michael Mahony (born February 27, 1936) is an American cardinal and retired prelate of the Catholic Church who served as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles in California from 1985 to 2011. Before his appointment, he served as an auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Fresno from 1975 to 1980 and bishop of the Diocese of Stockton from 1980 to 1985.

Born in Los Angeles and raised in the San Fernando Valley, Mahony was ordained to the priesthood in 1962. He was appointed auxiliary bishop of Fresno in January 1975 and consecrated bishop in March 1975. Mahony was then appointed bishop of Stockton in 1980. In 1985, he was appointed archbishop of Los Angeles by Pope John Paul II, and became the first Los Angeles native to hold the office. The pope created Mahony a cardinal in 1991, and he voted in the papal conclaves that elected Popes Benedict XVI and Francis.

During his tenure as Los Angeles archbishop, Mahony was instrumental in dividing the archdiocese into five administrative subdivisions and in guiding the construction of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, which opened in September 2002. Mahony has also been identified as a key figure in the cover-up of the Catholic Church sexual abuse scandal, where dozens of abusive priests were moved to other churches rather than prosecuted. In 2007, the Archdiocese of Los Angeles apologized for abuses by priests and announced a record-breaking settlement of $660 million for 508 victims.

In 2011, Mahony reached the mandatory retirement age for bishops and was succeeded by Archbishop José Horacio Gómez on March 1. On January 31, 2013, Gómez relieved Mahony of his public and episcopal duties in the archdiocese, following the release of personnel files documenting priests' sexual abuse during Mahony's tenure.

Early life and education
Roger Mahony was born on February 27, 1936, in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles, the son of Victor and Loretta (née Baron) Mahony. He has a twin brother, Louis, and an older brother, Neil. Roger Mahony attended St. Charles Borromeo Grammar School in North Hollywood and Los Angeles College.

Priesthood
After studying at the Our Lady Queen of Angels Seminary and St. John's Seminary, Mahony was ordained to the priesthood for the Diocese of Fresno on May 1, 1962, by Bishop Aloysius Joseph Willinger.

Mahony graduated from Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., in 1964 with a Master of Social Work degree. For the next 13 years, Mahony held pastoral and curial assignments in the Diocese of Monterey-Fresno and the newly formed Diocese of Fresno. He also taught social work at Fresno State University in Fresno, California. Mahony was named a monsignor in February 1967.

Auxiliary Bishop of Fresno
On January 7, 1975, Mahony was appointed as auxiliary bishop of Fresno and titular bishop of Tamascani by Pope Paul VI. He received his episcopal consecration on March 19, 1975, from Bishop Hugh Aloysius Donohoe, with Bishops William Robert Johnson and John Stephen Cummins serving as co-consecrators. That year, former California Governor Jerry Brown appointed Mahony the state's chair of the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board, where he worked with the United Farm Workers and other growers to resolve labor disputes.

Bishop of Stockton
On February 15, 1980, Mahony was appointed bishop of Stockton by Pope John Paul II, as announced by the nuncio, Jean Jadot. Mahony terminated two extern priests for sexual abuse during his tenure at Stockton.

Archbishop of Los Angeles and Cardinal-Priest
On July 16, 1985, Mahony was appointed as archbishop of Los Angeles by John Paul II, becoming the first native Angeleno to hold the office. He was created cardinal-priest of Santi Quattro Coronati by John Paul II in the consistory of June 28, 1991.

After the Cathedral of Saint Vibiana was severely damaged in the 1994 Northridge earthquake and became unusable, Mahony began planning the new Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, which would become one of the largest Catholic churches in the United States. It was dedicated on September 2, 2002.

In 1987, Mahony presided over the controversial auction of an extensive collection of rare books, including a Gutenberg Bible, donated to St. John's Seminary in Camarillo, California, by philanthropist Carrie Estelle Doheny. The auction raised $37.8 million, which was publicly earmarked for an endowment to train new priests. However, by 1996, some $23 to 25 million of these funds had been spent, including $1 million for a renovation of Mahony's living quarters.

In May 1998, Mahony announced he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer. He underwent a prostatectomy on June 15, 1998; doctors said that the surgery was successful.

Mahony was a cardinal elector in the 2005 papal conclave that selected Pope Benedict XVI, as well as in the 2013 papal conclave that selected Pope Francis.

Civic involvement
Mahony served on the board of Catholic University of America. He also served on a number of committees of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), including those on Liturgy, Pro-Life Activities, and Migration & Refugees.

In the Vatican, Mahony was a member of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace (1984–1989) and the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerants (1986–1991). Mahony also served with the Pontifical Council for Social Communications (1989–2000), the Prefecture for the Economic Affairs of the Holy See (2000–2019), and the Congregation for Eastern Churches.

In 1992, Mahony published a pastoral letter Film Makers, Film Viewers on the topic of television news and the entertainment industry.

Mahony spoke out on provisions in the Border Protection, Anti-terrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005 (H.R. 4437), debated by Congress in late 2005 and 2006. He wrote to President George W. Bush that certain measures in the bill would effectively outlaw providing charitable assistance and religious ministry to undocumented immigrants.

In May 2006, Mahony announced that he would order the clergy and laity of the archdiocese to ignore H.R. 4437 if it were to become law. 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 enforcement-only bill that passed the US House of Representatives. Mahony also blamed the US Congress for the illegal immigration crisis, due to their failure to act on the issue in the previous 20 years. He supported instead the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006.

Retirement
On April 6, 2010, Pope Benedict XVI named Archbishop Gómez as the coadjutor archbishop in Los Angeles to assist Mahony. Gómez automatically succeeded Mahony as archbishop on February 28, 2011. The ceremony of transition was held at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, with Mahony's resignation taking canonical effect on March 1, 2011.

In his retirement, Mahony planned to devote more time to advocacy on behalf of immigrants. He was residing at his childhood parish in North Hollywood.

Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels
Many Catholics were upset about the non-traditional design and the amount of money that was spent on the new Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels. The parishes in the archdiocese were not involved in the fund-raising. The archdiocese raised $190 million from charitable foundations and individual donors to build the cathedral. Mahony defended its expense, citing the need for the archdiocese to have a mother church and religious center that unites its people.

Pastoral letter on the Mass
To prepare for the year 2000, Mahony in September 1997 wrote a pastoral letter on the mass entitled "Gather Faithfully Together: A Guide for Sunday Mass". The letter called all parishes to plan and celebrate each Sunday mass in order to deepen the faith-life of all Catholics through the eucharist. The televangelist Mother Angelica commented that "Gather Faithfully Together" was inconsistent with existing official liturgical directives set by the Vatican.

Vocations
The number of priestly vocations in the archdiocese declined during Mahony's tenure while lay ministries grew. Mahony remarked on this: "'What some refer to as a 'vocations crisis' is, rather, one of the many fruits of the Second Vatican Council. It is a sign of God's deep love for the Church, and an invitation to a more creative and effective ordering of gifts and energy in the Body of Christ.'"

Sexual abuse cover-ups
In 1980, shortly after Mahony became Bishop of Stockton, a parent wrote to the diocese accusing the Reverend Oliver O'Grady of molesting his two sons. Mahony in 1982 then transferred O'Grady to another parish. Soon more accusations arose from the new parish. In 1984, the local police closed an investigation into O'Grady after a diocesan lawyer promised to keep him away from children. In December 1984, despite the earlier promise, Mahony transferred O'Grady to another parish. In 1998, Mahony testified in a civil trial against the Diocese of Stockton. A jury later awarded $30 million in damages to two of O'Grady's victims.

On becoming archbishop of Los Angeles in 1985, Mahony was active in addressing sexual abuse cases. In 1988, the Archdiocese adopted a zero-tolerance policy on sexual abuse allegations against clergy. In 1992, at a national meeting of Catholic bishops, Mahony stated that the church needed to do more to combat sexual abuse of minors. In 2002, he ordered the removal of 12 priests in the archdiocese from ministry due to credible accusations of sexual abuse.

In February 2004, the archdiocese issued the Report to the People of God. The report contained an apology from Mahony for the failing of the archdiocese in handling accusations of sexual abuse. It included a detailed list of priests and circumstances in cases of known abuse. It also described the development of diocesan policy related to sexual abuse, and case studies of accused priests. It included details of the most significant cases in the archdiocese's history.

However, Report to the People of God did not include information on 33 priests who were accused of sexual abuse, but whose cases lacked confirmatory evidence. Despite strong criticism from the media, the archdiocese blocked the release of this information.

In 2007, the archdiocese apologized for abuses by priests and announced a legal settlement of $660 million to 508 victims, averaging $1.3 million per plaintiff. Mahony described the abuse as a "terrible sin and crime". The agreement settled all outstanding civil lawsuits at that time against the archdiocese.

In 2013, after Mahony's retirement as archbishop, the archdiocese released memos written by Auxiliary Bishop Thomas John Curry to Mahony in 1986 and 1987, discussing potential legal accountability for priests accused of sexual abuse. Curry recommended that the archdiocese encourage priests seeking therapy to avoid using therapists who might report them to police. At the same time, Mahony wrote the director of a New Mexico treatment center for priests, seeking to prevent their patients from returning to the archdiocese. Mahony cited the need to prevent lawsuits by victims who had been assured these priests would never return to their parishes.

In 2018, a petition drive was launched to remove Mahony from St. Charles Borromeo Parish in North Hollywood, California, where he resided and assisted the pastor. The petition also demanded that authorities press criminal charges against him. On September 16, 2018, a group gathered in front of St. Charles Borromeo to protest Mahony's involvement in the sexual abuse scandal.

In February 2020, Mahony was named as a defendant in a lawsuit where he was accused of shielding convicted ex-priest Michael Baker.

Removal from public duties
On January 31, 2013, in the wake of a court order requiring the archdiocese to release its unredacted files on clergy sexual abuse, Gómez relieved Mahony of all of his remaining public and administrative duties. According to the archdiocese, Mahony remained "a priest in good standing" and may still celebrate Mass, but he may no longer speak publicly or exercise responsibilities ordinarily reserved for bishops, such as administering the sacrament of Confirmation. Critics called Gómez's action "purely symbolic punishment" and "hand-slapping...a nearly meaningless gesture", and noted that Mahony remained "a powerful man" in the church. Three months later, after officiating at a confirmation service, Mahony told a Los Angeles Times reporter that it was "news to him" that he was not to be doing confirmations any longer, and said, "I've been doing them every week and I'm going to be doing them every week... So go home."

Under canon law, as a cardinal, Mahony enjoyed the "privilege of forum", meaning that only the pope was competent to judge and punish him in matters subject to ecclesiastical jurisdiction, and that Gómez could only control Mahony's administrative assignments within the archdiocese. Following the 2013 resignation of Pope Benedict XVI, a number of Catholic groups voiced opposition to Mahony's voting in a papal conclave so soon after his censure; however, Mahony was allowed to participate in the conclave in March 2013.

Child abuse lawsuit
In April 2021, Mahony was accused in a lawsuit of sexually molesting a teenage boy.