Archbishop Coakley, the moderate who is a heresy for the secular press

The reaction to the Archbishop of Oklahoma’s appointment as president of the USCCB has been to label him a “conservative culture warrior”. In reality, he is simply Catholic

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6 min read

In the past 24 hours, breathless accounts in the secular press have heralded the election of Archbishop Paul S. Coakley as president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) as a triumph of arch-conservatism.

The Independent rhapsodised that American bishops have “doubled down on their conservative bent” by choosing Coakley to lead the conference. The Guardian (via the AP) likewise declared a case of “conservative” bishops electing a like-minded leader, dubbing the archbishop a “culture warrior” chosen to steer the flock during President Trump’s term, all of this presumably because of his audacious decision to uphold Catholic morality.

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