Dolan named archbishop of New York

VATICAN CITY, Feb. 23 (UPI) -- Archbishop Timothy Dolan of Milwaukee will become the new Roman Catholic archbishop of New York, Vatican officials announced Monday.

Dolan, 59, will succeed Cardinal Edward Egan, who has resigned the post. Egan, 76, led the New York archdiocese since 2000 and became a cardinal a year later, CNN reported.

Observers say Dolan's gregarious pastoral style endeared him to Milwaukee's sizable Catholic community at a time when it needed a morale boost. Appointed to the position by Pope John Paul II in 2002, Dolan took steps to improve the archdiocese's financial position and address the consequences from a scandal surrounding his predecessor, Archbishop Rembert Weakland, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel said.

Weakland admitted that he had paid $450,000 in 1998 to a man with whom he'd had "an inappropriate relationship" years earlier. Dolan has since drawn accolades for his support of Catholic schools, priests and seminarians in Milwaukee, the newspaper said.

In taking over the 2.5 million-member New York archdiocese, which many consider the highest-profile position in the U.S. Roman Catholic Church, Dolan is all but ensured an elevation to cardinal, church observers said.