Pope Benedict XVI has named Mexican-born Archbishop Jose Gomez of San Antonio to succeed Cardinal Roger Mahony as archbishop of Los Angeles in what the Associated Press calls "the Holy See's most significant acknowledgment to date of the growing importance of Latinos in the American church."
AP correspondent Nicole Winfield writes that the appointment is also evidence that Benedict wants a strong defender of orthodoxy leading the largest diocese in the United States: Gomez, 58, is an archbishop of Opus Dei, the conservative movement favored by the Vatican.
Gomez was named coadjutor for Los Angeles, which means he will take over the archdiocese when Mahony retires next Feb. 27, his 75th birthday. More from the AP: