Pope Leo replaced Cardinal Timothy Dolan as leader of the Catholic Church in New York, the Vatican announced on Thursday, sidelining a prominent U.S. Church figure in a major shake-up of the country's Catholic leadership.

While many New York Catholics may be sad to see Dolan stepping down, the cardinal assured them Pope Leo left them in good hands.

News of Cardinal Timothy Dolan's replacement marked one of the most important appointments from Pope Leo XIV so far, but why did Dolan resign from his position and what sparked the change?

Multiple news reports indicated that Pope Leo XIV had chosen Bishop Ronald Hicks, 58, of the Diocese of Joliet, Illinois — the pontiff's hometown is on the south side of Chicago — to be the next archbishop of New York.

Bishop Ronald Hicks, head of the Diocese of Joliet in Pope Leon’s home state of Illinois, will take over the Archdiocese of New York.

Pope Leo has appointed Bishop Ronald Hicks to replace Cardinal Timothy Dolan, a friend of President Donald Trump who has served in the position since 2009, as New York’s newest archbishop, a major shake-up in the country’s Catholic leadership that appears to continue the pontiff’s pushback against Trump’s aggressive immigration crackdown.

Pope Leo XIV is expected to name Bishop Ronald Hicks of Joliet, Illinois, to succeed retiring Timothy Cardinal Dolan as archbishop of New York, sources briefed on the transition say. The Village of Oswego has passed an ordinance requiring protective barriers after a 2-year-old boy was killed and 13 others were hurt when a car crashed a Portillo's earlier this summer.