PRAYERS NEEDED: Cardinal George Readmitted to Loyola Hospital

Last updated on: March 29, 2015 at 5:10 am by Kathy Schiffer

PRAYERS NEEDED: Cardinal George Readmitted to Loyola Hospital 2015-03-29T05:10:57-05:00 Kathy Schiffer

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CARDINAL FRANCIS GEORGE

Could you take a few minutes to say a prayer for Cardinal George?

For the second time this month, Cardinal Francis George, retired archbishop of Chicago, has returned to Loyola Hospital–this time for pain management and hydration issues. The 78-year-old cardinal, who has been facing recurrent cancer in his liver and kidney, returned to the hospital on Saturday, March 27. The cancer, which was discovered in August 2012, has been described by his doctors as “very painful.”

Cardinal George, who had survived polio as a young boy, underwent radical surgery in July 2006 to remove his cancerous bladder, prostate and part of his right ureter. That surgery had been deemed successful until the recurrence in 2012.

Cardinal George had been participating in a clinical trial of a new drug to combat cancer, but discontinued treatment in December 2014. At that time the Archdiocese of Chicago released a statement which said:

“Recent scans showed that this experimental drug has not been effective in his case, but the physicians and others who are overseeing this trial assured him that the information that they had gathered during his course of treatment will be of benefit to others.”

When Cardinal George revealed last year that he was undergoing chemotherapy, he admitted that he expected the cancer to be the cause of his death. “We are putting it in the hands of God–as we all are in some fashion,” he said in January, admitting that the doctors seemed to have “run out of tricks in the bag” to treat the cancer.

“…This particular disease in my case has not been following the usual pattern in the past. It probably won’t follow the usual pattern in the future.”

Cardinal George was the eighth archbishop of Chicago, and served before that as Bishop of Yakima (1990-96) and Archbishop of Portland, Oregon (1996-97). A member of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, he served as president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in 2007-2010.

He retired in November, and was succeeded as archbishop of Chicago by Archbishop Blase Cupich. With this most recent hospitalization, it’s become apparent that Cardinal George will not be attending Easter services at Holy Name Cathedral.

Cardinal George is the author of two books: The Difference God Makes: A Catholic Vision of Faith, Communion, and Culture (2009, Crossroad Publishing Company), a collection of essays exploring our relationship with God, the responsibility of communion and the transformation of culture; and God in Action: How Faith in God Can Address the Challenges of the World (2011, Doubleday Religion), a collection of essays on the significance of religious faith in the public sphere and the unique contributions of religion to the common good.

Chicago’s NBC affiliate reports that when his health allows it, Cardinal George continues to work on a book he has been writing. The topic of the book has not been revealed, but many believe the content is philosophical rather than personal, as the cardinal has a doctorate degree in philosophy.

A statement from the Archdiocese says that Cardinal George “asks and is very grateful for your continued prayers.”

Photo credit: By Photobra Adam Bielawski (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons

Cardinal George

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