Get Ready: Traditional October Pilgrimage to Rome again this year, with Mass in Saint Peter’s

 The Mass inside Saint Peter’s Basilica is assured this year once again.

Schedule of the Pilgrimage Ad Petri Sedem which will take place in Rome from October 23 to 25, 2026 (registration is not necessary to participate in the pilgrimage) Friday October 23, 2026

Why, oh why, is 77-year-old Arch-Modernist Cupich still in charge in Chicago?

Cardinal DiNardo, of Galveston-Houston, was born in 1949. He retired and was replaced by his coadjutor, named by Francis, in 2025.

Cardinal Dolan, of New York, was born in 1950. He was replaced by Leo XIV very shortly after turning 75, in 2025.

There is one American Cardinal who is older than both of them, and who is still in charge. And not just any cardinal: a horrible administrator, a lousy shepherd, and an ideological nightmare, who, though a native of Nebraska, has been the Archbishop of the pope's own birthplace: Chicago. A formerly exemplary American Catholic town, whose diocese is falling apart.

One would think this useless bishop of nefarious influence would have been retired immediately. But Francis knew his presence irked his imagined "enemies" in America, so he kept him. With Leo XIV, it's different. He knows he's lousy. He is aware. Why has he kept him?... Our contributor Serre Verweij tries to understand it.

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Why Is Cupich Still in Office?

by Serre Verweij

for Rorate Caeli