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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Cardinal George of Chicago, formerly of Yakima, dies

Cardinal Francis George listens at Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago during a service on Nov. 17, 2014. (Associated Press)
Rachel Zoll And Don Babwin Associated Press

CHICAGO – Cardinal Francis George, a vigorous defender of Roman Catholic orthodoxy who played a key role in the church’s response to the clergy sex abuse scandal and led the U.S. bishops’ fight against Obamacare, has died after a long fight with cancer. He was 78.

George, who retired as Chicago archbishop in fall 2014, a few months before announcing his treatment for kidney cancer had failed, died late Friday morning, according to the Archdiocese of Chicago.

“Let us heed his example and be a little more brave, a little more steadfast and a lot more loving,” Chicago Archbishop Blase Cupich said during a news conference, describing his predecessor as “a man of great courage.”

Appointed to Chicago in 1997 by Pope John Paul II, the Chicago native became a leading figure of his era in many of the most important events in the American church.

At the height of the abuse crisis in 2002, George led a group of U.S. bishops who persuaded resistant Vatican officials to more quickly oust guilty priests – a policy at the core of reforms meant to restore trust in church leaders. He also oversaw the contentious new English-language translation of the Roman Missal, one of the biggest changes in Catholic worship in generations.

And in his three years as president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, George spearheaded opposition to the Affordable Care Act, arguing that President Barack Obama’s health insurance law would allow taxpayer money to fund abortion. The Chicago archdiocese’s charitable arm helped sue the Obama administration in 2012, over the requirement that employers provide health insurance covering contraception.

George grew up in a working class neighborhood on Chicago’s northwest side, and a five-month bout with polio at age 13 left him with a lifelong limp. He was initially rejected from a high school seminary because he was disabled, but he went on to become an intellectual leader within the church.

He earned two doctorates, spoke Italian, Spanish, French and other languages, and wrote several books. A member of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, he eventually helped lead the religious order as vicar general based in Rome.

He was appointed bishop of Yakima in 1990, and later became archbishop of Portland before being assigned to Chicago.