Vatican City, Nov 5, 2003 / 22:00 pm
The Holy Father appointed Bishop Kevin John Patrick McDonald of Northampton, England, as the archbishop of Southwark, England.
The archbishop-elect was born in Stoke-on-Trent, England in 1947. After studying at the University of Birmingham, he obtained his B.A. Classic Literature. He then studied moral theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. He was ordained to the priesthood on July 20, 1974, for the Archdiocese of Birmingham.
He has been a professor of moral theology at St. Mary’s College in Oscott; then he became an official of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity at the Vatican. During that period he graduated with a degree in theology from the Pontifical University Angelicum.
Back in England he was appointed pastor of Sparkhill and, in1998, appointed rector of St. Mary’s College in Oscott. He was named Bishop of Northampton on March 29, 2001.
The archbishop-elect is a member of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity.