Nelson Pérez was appointed by Pope Francis and installed as the new archbishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul on Feb. 18.
Pérez became a priest in 1989 after attending Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania. After becoming a priest, he presided over different churches within the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, which oversees all the parishes in the five counties of Philadelphia and over 141 schools, including St. Joe’s.
Recently, Pérez has worked as a bishop in Cleveland since 2017, until his appointment by the Pope on Jan. 23. He succeeds Charles J. Chaput, who has served as archbishop of the Philadelphia diocese since 2011 and has reached the mandatory retirement age of 75.
At the age of 58, Pérez is the youngest sitting archbishop in the country. He is also the area’s first Hispanic archbishop.
One of the hundreds of people who attended Pérez’s installation, Thomas Dailey, John Cardinal Foley chair of homiletics & social communications at Saint Charles Borromeo, said he believes Pérez’s age will work to his advantage.
“There’s a certain vitality about him, a certain excitement that he generates within people,” Dailey said. “That is not just a function of his age but a function of his personality.”
Pérez has openly spoken out against immigrant deportation in Cleveland, according to James Caccamo, Ph.D., associate professor of theology and religious studies.
“He worked against the [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] ICE raids in Cleveland,” Caccamo said. “He [also] tried to talk to ICE about not deporting a father who was taking care of a severely disabled family member.”
Chaput handled different issues while he was Archbishop. In 2018, a program was enacted to compensate individuals who were victims of sexual abuse by priests. $8.425 million was approved by Chaput to be paid the archdiocese.
Bill Rickle, S.J., St. Joe’s campus minister for Athletics and Student Life, noted that when Chaput was appointed archbishop, the Philadelphia Archdiocese was in the midst of the child sexual abuse scandals.
“He handled a lot of restructuring and financial ground,” Rickle said, “a large part because of the settlements around the sexual abuse cases.”
During his tenure, Chaput also aided in St. Joe’s purchase of the archbishop’s residence in 2012 for $10 million, which is now the Maguire Wolfington Welcome Center. It had been the residence of the city’s archbishops since 1935.
The seminary, Saint Charles Borromeo, is located about 1.4 miles from campus where Pérez will live.
Back in Philadelphia, Pérez will be focused on connecting the Catholic community in Philadelphia, according to Dailey.
“He knows the culture, he knows the places and he has a lived experience of having already been here,” Dailey said.
As a member of the Latinx community, Pérez is able to connect with more than just the Catholic community, according to Rickle.
“When you have a Cuban-American who has been with the Latino community all these years, there’s a sensitivity and a different approach to people,” Rickle said.
Caccamo said he has heard that Pérez likes to be involved and aware of his archdiocese, and expects him to be “engaging people who are in the pews” as well as “engaging in neighborhoods and issues that are going on.”
Dailey said Pérez’s personality and past experience will bring a new presence to Philadelphia.
“His capabilities, his talents, his experience, his background, that’s something I don’t think that Philadelphia has had,” Dailey said. “Certainly not in terms of the archbishop.”
