NEW YORK – Moments after stating that he has no present plans to meet with President Donald Trump, emphasizing what he stressed is the intrinsically pastoral and not political role of the Archbishop of Washington, Cardinal Robert McElroy revealed that he recently held a “lengthy” call with former President Joe Biden.

“I’m going to Washington as the Archbishop of Washington, which is a pastoral role,” McElroy said. “That is, my role is the leadership of the Catholic community of Washington and all that brings with it,” he said, noting that the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is the Church’s primary government liaison.

Yet moments later, McElroy said that he “had a lengthy call with President Biden the other day.” He didn’t reveal what was discussed on the call, other than saying that Biden asked about Pope Francis’s health and said he has been praying for the pontiff.

Some may see the contrast between spurning Trump while chatting casually with Biden as consistent with McElroy’s reputation, seen as a close ally of Pope Francis and one of the nation’s more progressive prelates.

McElroy made the comments at a Feb. 27 news conference, scheduled as his final one as bishop of the Diocese of San Diego before he departs for the nation’s capital in just a few weeks. McElroy worried out loud about the nation “being turned upside down,” but by and large focused on Pope Francis and his time in San Diego, while looking ahead to Washington.

On Pope Francis’s health, McElroy acknowledged that the situation looks better, and that the pontiff may be able to recover. He said given Pope Francis’s attentiveness to situations of turmoil and hardship, it’s apropos that so many people around the world are raising their voices in prayer for his health and recovery.

“I know that so many people have looked upon this pope as a man who has brought a sense of real pastoral commitment and depth to the life of the Church, and putting the outreach of the Church to everyone, inviting everyone into the life of the Church, especially those who are poor and vulnerable and marginalized and who are suffering in any form,” McElroy said. “[So, many hope] that this pope may continue to be the leader of the Church for some time to come.”

McElroy called Pope Francis a “very strong-willed man” with a vision for the Church.

“He wants to lead in that vision and thinks God is asking him to take a role in leading in that and my guess is that’s partly why he’s fighting through this illness because he still has things to do, and he’s hoping God gives him the opportunity to do that,” McElroy said.

“My guess is that’s partly why he’s fighting through this illness is because he still has things to do, and he’s hoping God gives him the opportunity to do that,” he said.

Later in the news conference, McElroy highlighted that the Church’s role in society isn’t to solve political or policy problems, but instead to comment on policies and the direction of society from a moral perspective. In that sense, he noted that “we’re in a moment of great turmoil” without providing context as to what he meant by that phrase.

“We are at a turning point in the history of our country, and so the Church’s desire is to make sure that in that discussion and in that formation of policy and direction, the witness of the gospel is present there,” McElroy explained.

He also said the Trump administration’s immigration actions are “dehumanizing,” and a “moral falsity.”

On the move to Washington, McElroy said that his first priority will be meeting the clergy and laity, while mentioning “the added pastoral challenge” of ministering to the thousands of federal workers who are losing their jobs – a comment about the actions of the new Department of Government Efficiency.

McElroy called his decade in San Diego “tremendously joyous,” highlighting the vibrant community.

“It has been a great grace for me being here, and part of my heart will always be here in San Diego when I’m in Washington, or wherever I am,” McElroy said.

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