Gérald Cyprien Lacroix (; born July 27, 1957) is the

Archbishop of Quebec The archbishop of Quebec is the head of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Quebec, who is responsible for looking after its spiritual and administrative needs. As the archdiocese is the metropolitan see of the ecclesiastical province encompassin ...

and Primate of Canada since his appointment by

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereig ...

on 22 February 2011. He has been a cardinal since 22 February 2014. He was previously Auxiliary Bishop of Quebec.

Early life

Lacroix was born on 27 July 1957 in

Saint-Hilaire-de-Dorset Saint-Hilaire-de-Dorset is a parish municipality in the Beauce-Sartigan Regional County Municipality in the Chaudière-Appalaches region of Quebec, Canada. The municipality is named after Hilary of Poitiers Hilary of Poitiers ( la, Hilarius ...

in the Archdiocese of Quebec and completed his secondary and higher education at Trinity High School in

Manchester, New Hampshire Manchester is a city in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. It is the most populous city in New Hampshire. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 115,644. Manchester is, along with Nashua, one of two seats of New Ha ...

, and

Saint Anselm College Saint Anselm College is a private Benedictine liberal arts college in Goffstown, New Hampshire. Founded in 1889, it is the third-oldest Catholic college in New England. Named for Saint Anselm of Canterbury (Archbishop of Canterbury from 1093 to 1 ...

in the neighbouring town of Goffstown. He then studied for his theological training at

Université Laval Université Laval is a public research university in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The university was founded by royal charter issued by Queen Victoria in 1852, with roots in the founding of the Séminaire de Québec in 1663 by François de Montm ...

, obtaining a Bachelor of Arts degree in

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing th ...

. He continued with a master's degree in

pastoral theology Pastoral theology is the branch of practical theology concerned with the application of the study of religion in the context of regular church ministry. This approach to theology seeks to give practical expression to theology. Normally viewed as a ...

. In 1975 he was accepted at the Pius X Secular Institute and took perpetual vows in 1982.

Priesthood

In 1982 Lacroix became Secretary General of the institute, and since 1985 has been Director of the General Council. From 1985 to 1987 he was appointed general manager of the institute's Christian formation and spiritual centre. He was ordained priest on 8 October 1988 by Archbishop

Maurice Couture Maurice Couture, (November 3, 1926 – January 19, 2018) ...

in the Parish of Notre-Dame-de-la-Récouvrance. From 1990 to 2000 Lacroix worked in Colombia, where he opened new houses of the institute. From 2001 to 2004 he was Director General of the institute, and re-elected for five years from 2005 to 2010.

Episcopacy

Lacroix was appointed

Titular Bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox a ...

of Ilta and Auxiliary Bishop of Quebec on 7 April 2009 and received episcopal consecration on 24 May with Marc Ouellet as principal consecrator, the principal co-consecrators being Maurice Couture and Gilles Lemay. On 22 February 2011 Lacroix was appointed Archbishop of Quebec and Primate of Canada, replacing Marc Ouellet, who had been appointed

Prefect Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect's ...

of the

Congregation for Bishops The Dicastery for Bishops, formerly named Congregation for Bishops (), is the department of the Roman Curia that oversees the selection of most new bishops. Its proposals require papal approval to take effect, but are usually followed. The Dic ...

on 30 June 2010. During the ''

sede vacante ''Sede vacante'' ( in Latin.) is a term for the state of a diocese while without a bishop. In the canon law of the Catholic Church, the term is used to refer to the vacancy of the bishop's or Pope's authority upon his death or resignation. Hi ...

'' after the death of

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

, Lacroix was elected diocesan administrator by the College of Consultors. He is currently one of the co-chairmen of the Committee on Life and Family of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops. After his appointment, Lacroix said that he would continue the work of Ouellet and re-evangelize the province. Lacroix noted that he favours a discussion-based approach. "I'm going to be different. One thing is certain: I will preach the Gospel. If people expect something else, they'll be disappointed", he said. Lacroix received an honorary doctorate in divinity from

at the college's 118th commencement exercises held on 21 May 2011. He was also the commencement speaker. Lacroix received the

pallium The pallium (derived from the Roman ''pallium'' or ''palla'', a woolen cloak; : ''pallia'') is an ecclesiastical vestment in the Catholic Church, originally peculiar to the pope, but for many centuries bestowed by the Holy See upon metropol ...

from Pope Benedict on 29 June 2011, the

Feast of Saints Peter and Paul The Feast of Saints Peter and Paul or Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul is a liturgical feast in honor, of the martyrdom in Rome of the apostles Saint Peter and Saint Paul, which is observed on 29 June. The celebration is of ancient Christ ...

in Rome along with all other

metropolitan archbishop Metropolitan may refer to: * Metropolitan area, a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories * Metropolitan borough, a form of local government district in England * Metropolitan county, a typ ...

s appointed since 2010. He was elevated to the

College of Cardinals The College of Cardinals, or more formally the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. its current membership is , of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Cardinals are app ...

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013 ...

at the

consistory Consistory is the anglicized form of the consistorium, a council of the closest advisors of the Roman emperors. It can also refer to: *A papal consistory, a formal meeting of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church * Consistor ...

on 22 February 2014. In October 2016 Lacroix was appointed a member of the

Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments it, Dicastero per il Culto Divino e la Disciplina dei Sacramenti , type = Dicastery , seal = Coat of arms Holy See.svg , seal_size = 100px , seal_caption = Coat of arms of the Holy See , logo = , p ...

in addition to his other duties.

References

External links

*
Gerald Lacroix

Vaillancourt, Philippe. "Roommates: Quebec cardinal, Anglican bishop shared same roof for a year", Catholic News Service, April 8, 2018
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lacroix, Gerald 1957 births 21st-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Canada Roman Catholic archbishops of Quebec Canadian cardinals Cardinals created by Pope Francis French Quebecers Living people Members of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments Members of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life Members of the Pontifical Council for Culture Members of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue People from Chaudière-Appalaches Saint Anselm College alumni Université Laval alumni Canadian Roman Catholic archbishops

Early life

Priesthood

Episcopacy

See also

References

External links