Prayer service held for New York's Archbishop-designate Ronald Hicks at St. Patrick's Cathedral

Bishop Ronald Hicks from Illinois will become the newest archbishop of New York Friday, marked by two key events. A prayer service took place Thursday evening, and Hicks will be formally installed at a service at 2 p.m. Friday. 

Watch the prayer service

Both are held at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Midtown Manhattan.   

CBS News New York streamed the vespers service live on our YouTube Channel, and we will stream the full installation Mass Friday afternoon with special coverage starting at 1:30 p.m.

Among the luminaries joining Hicks at vespers Thursday were Rep. Jerry Nadler, Staten Island Borough President Vito Fossella, Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal, along with a number of City Council members. 

"I am called here to be a pastor, to be a shepherd. My desire is to be a good one," Hicks said Thursday at his first solo news conference about his new role in the second largest diocese in the country. "New York is a place where the whole world lives and calls home, and the Catholic Church is universal, gathering and engaging everyone. I'm excited and I'm humbled."

At his meeting with the media, he greeted each reporter with a handshake, including CBS News New York's Tony Aiello.

Hicks' gentle humor was on display during his homily as he spoke of people asking him how he feels about the immense responsibilities of the new job.

"They simply begin listing emotions, and they'll say something like this – they'll say, 'Do you feel excited? Do you feel nervous? Do you feel anxious? Do you feel happy? Do you feel unsure? Do you feel peaceful? Do you feel blessed?'" he said. "When I finally answer them, I simply say, 'Yes.'"

He mentioned the famous statue of Atlas across from the cathedral, struggling with the world on his back, contrasting it with one inside St. Patrick's of the Christ Child holding the world in his hand.

"Atlas shows us what happens when we try to carry everything on our own," Hicks said. "On this side, in the church, Christ invites us to place our trust in him."

Similarities between Hicks and Pope Leo

The 58-year-old archbishop-designate comes to New York from suburban Chicago, where he was born. He lived just 14 blocks from where Pope Leo XIV grew up. 

There are a number of similarities between the two, besides Illinois. They are both fluent Spanish speakers, and ministered in South America for years. 

"It is kind of a 'Mini-me' of the pope," Fordham University's David Gibson said. 

Experts believe Hicks will bring a new sense of community to the Catholic Church. 

"They come from almost the same neighborhood in suburban Chicago, and they spent those years as missionaries in Latin America, gave them a whole new perspective, a shared perspective on what the church needs to do," Gibson said.  

The pontiff named Hicks to succeed retiring Cardinal Timothy Dolan, who has held the highest local religious position since 2009. Dolan retired at age 75 in accordance with church law. 

"God has a plan for all of us," Hicks said Thursday. "My job is to trust him, to continue to trust him. Simply trust, surrender, put my life in his hands." 

Hicks visited New York 10 times in his life and said he's enjoyed it every time, but earlier Thursday, he had a little fun, saying he isn't giving up his love of Chicago. 

"New Yorkers have stopped me and basically have accepted my loyalty to the Cubs," he said. "They've said, if you're a fan, you're a fan. You're not a fair weather fan, you're loyal. That's good."

What is vespers?

Vespers is a formal evening prayer service, which is usually around sunset. It includes psalms, hymns, scripture readings and prayers.

"Inside, you could feel the good, the goodwill emanating from the faithful in the pews as people prayed for Archbishop-designate Hicks. They prayed for the Holy Spirit to guide him," CBS News New York's Tony Aiello reported. 

At a news conference Thursday morning, Hicks said the ceremony isn't a time to set an agenda or vision - it would be a time for him to ask God for his blessing.

Hicks' installation was accompanied by the prayer-focused ceremony before the main installation Mass. This gave other clergy and religious people a way to pray for the new archbishop and the diocese. 

The archbishop-designate's oldest nephew read on Thursday night. His brother, sister-in-law, cousin and her husband will be bringing up the gifts at Mass Friday.

What to expect at the installation Mass

The longer-than-normal Mass will have a large attendance with many religious figures such as bishops, priests, deacons and other guests.

"There will be many representatives from the New York faith traditions, plus we'll have people from government, business, labor, service, education, first responders, the arts," Hicks said.

There are many important symbols that will be part of the installation Mass. Hicks will be formally appointed as the official document from the pope is read. Then, he will sit in the cathedra, which is the bishop's chair. This symbolizes his new authority over the archdiocese.

Like a typical Catholic Mass, scriptures, psalms and gospels will be read and the Holy Communion will be given. 

He said some of the ceremony will also be in Spanish because it's important to include the Latino community. 

"I'm excited, and I'm humbled to be installed as the 11th archbishop of the Archdiocese of New York," he said. 

About Archbishop-designate Hicks

His parents, Ron and Roselee, were both school teachers. They have watched with pride as Hicks has risen through the ranks of the Catholic Church.

"My mom is so proud of me, and she only wants the best for me," Hicks previously said. "She's a mom as well, so protecting me, she wants to make sure that New York doesn't crush me. I'm coming here with her blessing." 

Hicks graduated from the seminary in 1985 before studying philosophy at Loyola University Chicago. He also has a master's in divinity from the University of St. Mary of the Lake. He was ordained in 1994. 

He lived in El Salvador for five years, starting in 2005. There, he worked as a regional director of an organization dedicated to caring for orphaned and abandoned children.

In 2020, he was named the sixth bishop of the Diocese of Joliet, Illinois.