Abp. Aymond: Pope Francis returned our native son
Published on Tuesday, 17 March 2015 18:03 | 
Written by Archbishop Gregory M. Aymond
Written by Archbishop Gregory M. Aymond 
I’m truly grateful to Pope Francis for appointing Father Ferd Cheri, a native son and a Franciscan priest, as auxiliary bishop of New Orleans.
Since Bishop-elect Cheri was born and raised here, he certainly will not need any coaching regarding our deep faith, our culture, our traditions, our food, our music and our many celebrations of life.
He has a real love for liturgy and for liturgical music. He’s also very committed to the new evangelization and to preaching. These are some of the many gifts he will bring to us in the archdiocese.
It’s important to remember that this year we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the ordination of Bishop Harold Perry, who was the first African-American bishop in the United States in modern times. Bishop Perry was a religious priest of the Society of the Divine Word. He was a man of great faith and courage. Bishop Cheri has a different personality, but in many ways he walks in the footsteps of Bishop Perry, who gave of himself in such an admirable way in serving and leading the people of the archdiocese.
I’m also extremely grateful to the Cheri family, especially Bishop-elect Cheri’s mom, Gladys, and his late father, Fernand Cheri Jr. I’m also thankful for the Catholic African-American community in New Orleans because through the years, they have helped form him into the priest and bishop that he is today. I’m grateful for their loving care.
I have not heard Bishop-elect Cheri preach recently, but I did see him at a recent Archbishop Lyke catechetical conference, and I know he is a very good preacher and music person.
We are still prayerfully discussing how we will restructure the curia regarding various responsibilities. We’re still working on specifics, but as auxiliary bishop he will have some administrative responsibilities, and he will represent the archdiocese at many events and also celebrate confirmations. There are about 85 to 90 confirmations in the archdiocese each year, so his presence will be a tremendous help. He also will serve on the Presbyteral Council, the Ministerial Council and the Administrative Council.
He plans to live at the Incarnate Word rectory, not far from the archdiocesan chancery building, which is where Bishop Morin and Bishop Fabre lived when they were auxiliary bishops.
Wonderful reviews
I’ve heard so many positive comments about Bishop-elect Cheri from those who have worked with him in campus ministry and from his Franciscan superior. They say he has a true gift of working with young people and young adults.
Many have asked about the process that led to his appointment. The bishops of Louisiana meet periodically to prayerfully discuss the names of possible candidates for the episcopacy. Those names are forwarded to the papal nuncio in Washington, D.C., who is the representative of Pope Francis in the United States.
When there is a specific vacancy – such as when Auxiliary Bishop Shelton Fabre left New Orleans to become bishop of Houma-Thibodaux in 2013 – the bishops are also asked to submit the names of possible candidates for that particular ministry. All of that information goes to the papal nuncio, who does a very thorough inquiry process, asking clergy, religious and laity – in a confidential way – to give their honest assessment of whether or not they believe the person could serve as a bishop of the church. The inquiry process is called the “pontifical seal,” because those who are asked about various candidates pledge not to reveal they were involved in the process.
All of that information is sent to the nuncio once again, and he decides on a list of three names. That’s called the “terna,” a Latin word meaning three. Those names are submitted to the Congregation for Bishops in Rome, and that congregation discusses the candidates and makes a recommendation to the pope. The pope may or may not agree with the congregation’s recommendation. He can accept the congregation’s recommendation or he has the right to pick someone else who might be on the list.
Great collaboration ahead
I am looking forward to collaborating in ministry with Bishop-elect Cheri. I believe he will work well with the priests, with those in consecrated life and with the laity. I will be in conversation with him in the near future about his specific responsibilities. He’ll be able to make some recommendations to me about how he believes his gifts can be utilized to their fullest extent.
Bishop-elect Cheri’s episcopal motto is “God is My Strength.” That Scripture comes from Psalm 28:7. The full text of the verse reads: “The LORD is my strength and my shield, in whom my heart trusts. I am helped, so my heart rejoices; with my song I praise him.”
I pray that the Lord, who placed a song in the heart and on the lips of Bishop-elect Cheri, will bless his new ministry and strengthen all of us in the Archdiocese of New Orleans.
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