Cardinal Justin Francis Rigali is a former archbishop of Philadelphia and St. Louis who once served as head of the Holy See’s diplomatic training academy and as a translator for Pope Paul VI, but faced challenges brought by the sexual abuse crisis late in his career.

Born on April 19, 1935, in Los Angeles, California, Rigali was ordained priest on April 25, 1961, and holds a doctorate in canon law. His ecclesiastical career began in 1964 when he entered the English-language department of the Vatican Secretariat of State. He served as the English translator for Pope Paul VI and accompanied him on various international journeys.

In 1985, Rigali was appointed titular Archbishop of Bolsena (also known as Volsinium) and President of the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy. He went on to hold several important Vatican positions, including Secretary of the Congregation for Bishops and Secretary of the College of Cardinals.

On January 25, 1994, Pope John Paul II appointed Rigali Archbishop of Saint Louis, Missouri. Later, on July 15, 2003, he became the eighth Archbishop of Philadelphia. Pope John Paul II elevated Rigali to the College of Cardinals on October 21, 2003, assigning him the title of Cardinal-Priest of Santa Prisca.

Throughout his career, Rigali served on various committees of the U.S. Bishops’ Conference and participated in the conclaves that elected Pope Benedict XVI in 2005 and Pope Francis in 2013. He was also a member of several Vatican congregations, including the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, and the Congregation for Bishops.

Rigali’s time as Archbishop of Philadelphia was marked by challenges, particularly regarding the handling of sexual abuse cases within the archdiocese. In 2011, following a grand jury report that criticized the archdiocese’s response to abuse allegations, Rigali suspended 21 priests in a single day.

On July 19, 2011, at the age of 76, Benedict XVI accepted Cardinal Rigali’s resignation as Archbishop of Philadelphia in the wake of renewed accusations of the Church’s mishandling of child sex abuse cases, critical grand jury reports, and mounting pressure on the archdiocese to address these issues.

In addition to his ecclesiastical duties, Rigali has been involved in various forms of outreach and communication. He has run a weekly series of Lenten discourses on YouTube and established an official Facebook page in 2010. He is also an honorary council member of Wings of Hope, a St. Louis-based humanitarian organization.