A Michigan native was named Monday to replace Cardinal Adam Maida, who led the Detroit area's 1.4 million Roman Catholics for nearly two decades and forged a close bond with a former pope.
Pope Benedict XVI named Bishop Allen H. Vigneron, 60, who has been serving in California, as the new archbishop of Detroit.
Maida, selected to lead the Archdiocese of Detroit in 1990, submitted his resignation in 2005 when he turned 75 as required by church law, but the pope had invited him to continue. Maida's resignation now has been accepted.
Maida said his shared Polish heritage helped him develop a special relationship with Pope John Paul II, who died in April 2005. Maida said in 2000, "I am his Polish-American cardinal."
Maida was among the 100-plus men who selected Pope Benedict, the former German Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger.
Maida introduced Vigneron at a news conference Monday morning in Detroit. His installation has been scheduled for Jan. 28.
Vigneron said he was "absolutely flabbergasted" when he learned of his appointment a few days before Christmas.
He said he was familiar with the character and the culture of the Detroit archdiocese, but offered no specific ideas or proposals for his new job.
"I've been away six years," Vigneron said. "I need to be briefed about what life has been like in the last six years" in the Detroit area.
Vigneron was an auxiliary bishop for the Detroit archdiocese before being named bishop of Oakland, Calif., in 2003. He was born in Mount Clemens, and his background includes assignments at Detroit's Sacred Heart Major Seminary.