NEW ARCHBISHOP

Auckland Star, Volume LXXIV, Issue 304, 23 December 1943, Page 5

NEW ARCHBISHOP

Pope Appoints Successor To Cardinal Hinsley SURPRISE CAUSED IN LONDON Rec. 10 a.m. LONDON, Dec. 22. The Pope has appointed as Archbishop of Westminster the Right Reverend Bernard Griffin, who succeeds the late Cardinal Hinsley. Dr. Griffin, who is 44 years of age, is Auxiliary Bishop to Archbishop Williams, of Birmingham. Dr. Griffin is the son of a former Birmingham councillor and was born in Birmingham. He went to school in Staffordshire. In the last war he served in the Navy and Air Force and then went to the English College in Rome, where he was ordained in 1924. On his return to England he became secretary to two successive Archbishops of Birmingham and in 1938 was made auxiliary bishop. He has been described as a born administrator, a brilliant scholar and an eloquent preacher. The Press Association says the appointment has surprised Roman Catholic circles in London. Dr. Griffin was not regarded as one of the likely candidates and his appointment was quite unexpected. The Exchange Telegraph Company says Dr. Griffin's appointment has been most favourably received among the Catholic clergy of Westminster. It is the first appointment made through the Apostolic Delegation which was set up in London to represent the Vatican in Britain during the war. Dr. Griffin is probably the first red-haired man to take over the Archdiocese of Westminster and also the youngest with the exception of the late Cardinal Bourne.