SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Newly elevated Cardinal Robert McElroy has joined his new colleagues in the College of Cardinals and they will spend the next two days discussing various subjects such as reforms to the Vatican Constitution.
"There are so many people in world who are driven out by violence and economic turbulence and war," said McElroy.
"And we in San Diego are a major port of entry, that's why a major element of our Diocese outreach has centered around refugees.”
ABC10News spoke with Cardinal McElroy while in Rome, where he laid out his plans for the Diocese of San Diego, as he transitions into his new role as Cardinal.
McElroy adds he wants to try to constantly focus on the global nature of the church and our society.
Over the weekend, during the Consistory, he received his red hat and presided over his first Mass as Cardinal. He is joined by family, friends, and Priests from San Diego as he takes on a new role as an advisor to the Pope.
McElroy says he will try to uphold the initiatives Pope Francis has implemented in the Catholic Church focusing on inclusion and outreach to people alienated from the Church in the past.
“We can all be focused on looking at the world through an American lens and part of the beautify of catholicism is to be part of a worldwide community where we see a whole of the globe as reflective of God’s grace and faith in our own religious tradition.”
