DENVER — More than 600,000 Catholics in Colorado's largest diocese will soon have a new leader after Pope Leo XIV appointed Bishop James R. Golka to become the next Archbishop of Denver.
Archbishop-designate Golka is the current Bishop of the Diocese of Colorado Springs and will succeed Archbishop Samuel J. Aquila.
Archbishop Aquila submitted his request to retire to Pope Leo in September 2025 upon his 75th birthday, which is required under canon law.
Archbishop Aquila served as the leader of the Archdiocese of Denver for 14 years.
During a press conference Saturday morning, Golka outlined his vision for leading Denver's Catholic community and addressed questions about his leadership approach following Pope Leo's election.
"The best thing we can do is to be a happy, involved Catholic, and others are going to see that light and want it. But if we're complaining, divisive, judgmental, nobody's going to want that," said Golka, who is fluent in Spanish.
When asked about the direction he plans to take the church, Golka emphasized faithfulness over political labels.
"Some people see Pope Leo as a rupture from Pope Francis. And again, I think it's faithfulness, like God provides for the church what the church needs at the time. I'm going to trust that," Golka said.
The bishop also took questions about immigration, calling it "a very difficult time right now for our country."
"Our faith teaches us some basic beginning points. Every country has a right to guard their border. Every people have a right to seek safer, better land if they're not receiving it in their homeland. And as Catholics, what is charity? If someone's at my door in need, I help them," Golka said.
Catholics attending Saturday Mass at Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in downtown Denver expressed support for the appointment. Chandra Schubert, who went to Mass with her family, said Golka is what the church needs right now.
"He's very big on stewardship. He's very big on the Latino community," said Schubert. "Really just jovial, light-hearted, kind, gentle, and just really on track for what the church needs."
Rachel Martinez, who attended Mass on Saturday, said she admired Archbishop Aquila as a leader of Denver Catholics.
"He did a lot of our confirmations for my kids," she said. "He was always pleasant. He was always nice. Like, you know, I was almost afraid to talk to him because I thought, you know, he was too holy."
She said she hopes Golka will prioritize people over politics, while Schubert said she wants him to focus on bringing back traditional Catholic values.
"I think you're seeing more and more young Catholics come back to the church and come back to the church in more traditional manner, which is beautiful. And we've lost tradition a little bit," said Schubert. "We always say, if there aren't any babies in the church crying, the church is dying, right? So you know, the younger the people coming in, the more our church is growing."
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