Former bishop of Spokane to be among conclave selecting Pope Francis’ successor

The Inland Northwest is more than 5,500 miles from Vatican City.

Yet Spokane will have some representation in the room as the College of Cardinals meets in the Sistine Chapel next week to select Pope Francis’ successor.

Cardinal Blase Cupich, who served as bishop of Spokane from 2010 to 2014, will be among the 135 cardinals to cast a vote in the conclave. Cupich was tapped by Francis to become Archbishop of Chicago in 2014, and was elevated to the role of cardinal by the pontiff two years later.

While Spokane’s faithful have held out hope he could be in the running for the role, Cupich, 76, told the Chicago Sun-Times last week that he does not expect the college to select a faith leader from the United States.

“We’re talking about a country that has political, economic, military power in the world, and so I think it’s, it’s a stretch to say that it’s prudent to go ahead and have someone who is from that country,” Cupich said. “I’m not going to handicap anybody in terms of their chances. But I think that’d be a stretch.”

The conclave will be Cupich’s first, and he told several Chicago media outlets he plans to approach the conclave with humility. The cardinal was among the large crowds that descended upon the Vatican this week for Francis’ funeral.

“I’m a neophyte, and I’m going to go in there and listen,” Cupich told the Sun-Times.

Cupich did not publicly discuss what he was looking for in the next pope, citing a need for time to grieve Francis’ death. He hopes, however, that whoever is selected upholds Francis’ legacy.

“He felt strongly in making sure the church would be a servant, to be a field hospital,” Cupich told the Tribune. “He was very close to people who were in some way wounded, who were hurting. If you look at the Gospels, the first thing about Jesus is he’s known as a healer. The pope was very attuned to that. He wanted to make sure we were attentive to the suffering.”

Before he was named archbishop of Chicago, the third-largest Catholic diocese in the United States, Cupich was called to Spokane to fix a diocese struggling with the aftermath of bankruptcy brought about by lawsuits filed after decades of child sex abuse by clergy.

He moved quickly, reviewing what he saw as a flawed and controversial settlement with victims that left churches exposed to future litigation and parishioners disgusted by the actions of church leaders and the roughly $50 million used to pay victims, lawyers and other bills.

Cupich was ordained in 1975, and has long been considered one of the church’s thought leaders in responding to crisis and preserving mission. His reputation is one of a pragmatist. He chooses words and strategy carefully and has made decisions that have earned him the reputation of a moderate among Catholic leaders.

Before he came to Spokane in 2010, he was the bishop for 12 years in Rapid City, South Dakota.