Cardinal Timothy Dolan transferred the reins of power over the New York Archdiocese Friday — and it started with three knocks on the doors of St. Patrick’s Cathedral.
New Archbishop Ronald Hicks, 58, showed up about 3 minutes early outside the famed Manhattan cathedral’s massive bronze entry dressed in his traditional red, gold and white vestments for the ceremony in which he officially takes over one of America’s largest collections of Roman Catholics.
New York Archbishop Ronald Hicks ceremoniously knocks on the front bronze doors of St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Manhattan on Friday before the Mass to install him in his powerful new role. Getty Images
At 2 p.m., he knocked on one of the cathedral’s doors three times with a small bronze-colored hammer and was invited inside by Dolan — as is church tradition signifying him being welcomed officially into his new role leading the archdiocese.
Onlookers were thrilled to see the new Archbishop — the archdiocese’s first since 2009 — arrive to start leading the flock.
“Honestly, I’m just a huge fan,’’ said Alex Barnes, 37, one of dozens of onlookers outside the packed cathedral to watch the ceremony from across the street, of Hicks.
“I love what the guy stands for. I think he’s really going to help people fall back in love with the church, getting back to core Catholic values,” Barnes added.
“It’s not very often you get to witness a new archbishop on their first day! I wish I was inside but this is still better than watching at home.”
Hicks, who was born just blocks from Pope Leo XIV in Ill., is replacing the charismatic larger-than-life Dolan, who took the reins of the archdiocese in 2009.
The new archbishop, who spent five years administering to the poor and overseeing an orphanage in El Salvador, is fluent in Spanish, and part of Friday’s Mass was expected to be said in Spanish.
The new archbishop showed up several minutes early outside the cathedral. Andrew H. Walker/Shutterstock
Cardinal Timothy Dolan hands over the reins of the archdiocese to Hicks on Friday. POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Hicks greets congregants. AFP via Getty Images
The ceremony is filled with plenty of religious pomp. Getty Images
A member of the faithful prays for the new archbishop. AP
Hicks is heralded by fans outside church. Stephen Lovekin/Shutterstock
Dolan received a standing ovation from the crowd, including from Hicks, at the start.
It also was announced that it was Dolan’s birthday — he turned 76 on Friday — and the crowd began signing an impromptu “Happy Birthday.”
A letter from the pope was then read announcing Hicks’ appointment.
The archdiocese includes Manhattan, The Bronx and Staten Island as well as parts north of the city — and with an estimated 2.5 million Catholics, is among the largest in the country.