Cardinal Wilton Gregory, archbishop emeritus of Washington, delivers opening remarks at the Installation Mass of Cardinal Robert McElroy on March 11, 2025 at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. (Catholic Standard photo by Mihoko Owada)

Mercy and compassion must be our first impulse when confronted with sin and human failure,' said the cardinal, who will fill the seat vacated by Cardinal Wilton Gregory, who retired at the beginning of this year.

Cardinal Robert McElroy was installed March 11 as the eighth archbishop of the Archdiocese of Washington, during a nearly two-hour liturgy in which he encouraged the faithful of his new archdiocese to be "pilgrims of hope in a wounded world."

Thousands gathered at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Northeast, D.C. Tuesday to watch the installation of the new archbishop.