New York - The absence of Mayor Zohran Mamdani from the installation ceremony of the new Archbishop of New York has fuelled an intense debate in the United States. On Friday, at St Patrick’s Cathedral, Archbishop Ronald Hicks, 58, took canonical possession of the Archdiocese, receiving the crosier from Cardinal Timothy Dolan in a solemn, well-attended celebration marked by a ritual which, in the city’s history - as everywhere - has always carried an unmistakable civic as well as ecclesial significance.
One of the established practices linked to such events - documented at least since 1939, when Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia attended the installation of Cardinal Francis Spellman - is the presence of the sitting mayor. This year, that tradition was broken: Mamdani did not attend. His only public comment came in a post on X, in which he wrote: “I know Archbishop Hicks and I share a deep and enduring commitment to the dignity of every human being, and I look forward to working together to build a more just and compassionate city, where every New Yorker can thrive.”
The issue, however, is not merely his physical absence. It is the perception - including within the Catholic community - of seeing the mayor, who is himself religious as a Muslim, failing to give priority to an event of such importance.
Moreover, the mayor’s public schedule included an interfaith prayer breakfast at 10.00 and a press conference on severe weather at 16.00, while the ceremony at St Patrick’s began at 14.00. It is therefore clear that the day could have been organised differently: rather than delegating the Cathedral event to the deputy mayor, the city’s representation could have been assigned to the other institutional engagements.
On the political front, one of the strongest criticisms came from Bill Cunningham, former communications director and adviser to Michael Bloomberg, who attended Dolan’s installation in 2009. In his view, the mayor’s absence was a “mistake” and a “missed opportunity” to show attentiveness to every part of the city. Cunningham also points to a recurring feature in New York’s institutional history: the installation of a new archbishop has often transcended the personal affiliations of mayors. Bloomberg and Ed Koch, both Jewish, attended such ceremonies during their respective terms; Koch was present in 1984 for Cardinal John O’Connor. Rudy Giuliani, a Catholic, attended in 2000 for the installation of Cardinal Edward Egan.
The controversy touches on the relationship between civil institutions and a community that, within the Archdiocese of New York - encompassing Manhattan, the Bronx, Staten Island and several counties north of the city - includes around 2.5 million Catholics. In a pluralistic metropolis, the mayor is expected to recognise the public significance of certain institutional moments: the installation of the new shepherd of one of the country’s largest religious communities clearly falls within that category.
There is hope that Zohran Mamdani may remedy this misstep by arranging an institutional meeting at City Hall as soon as possible - for instance, by inviting the archbishop for a working breakfast.
fr.F.C.
Silere non possum