Cardinal Robert Walter McElroy

His Eminence Cardinal Robert McElroy was born on 5 February 1954 in San Francisco, California, in the archdiocese of the same name. After attending Saint Joseph Minor Seminary, he obtained a bachelor’s degree at Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and a master’s degree in history from Stanford University in Palo Alto, California. After completing his ecclesiastical studies at Saint Patrick Seminary in Menlo Park, he was awarded a doctorate in moral theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, and a doctorate in political sciences from Stanford University. He was ordained a priest on 12 April 1980 for the metropolitan archdiocese of San Francisco. He has held the following offices: parish vicar of Saint Cecilia in San Francisco (1980-1982), personal secretary to the archbishop, and master of ceremonies (1987-1985), parish vicar of Saint Pius in Redwood City (1989-1995), vicar general (1995-1997), parish priest of Saint Gregory in San Mateo and archdiocesan consultor (1997-2010). He was appointed titular bishop of Gemellae in Byzacena and auxiliary of San Francisco on 6 July 2010, and received episcopal consecration on the following 7 September. He was appointed bishop of the diocese of San Diego on 3 March 2015. He was created cardinal by Pope Francis in the consistory of 27 August 2022.