Lewis Jerome Zeigler
Lewis Jerome Zeigler (4 January 1944 – 12 August 2022) was a Liberian Roman Catholic prelate who served as the Archbishop of Monrovia since 2011 until 2021. Zeigler was born in Harrisburg in 1944 and was ordained in 1974 before he was appointed in 2002 as the Bishop of Gbarnga. He was later named as the Coadjutor Archbishop of Monrovia in 2009 and ascended to head the diocese in 2011 after his predecessor died in office. Zeigler was a conservative prelate who opposed same-sex marriage and abortion in Liberia.[1][2][3]
Lewis Jerome Zeigler | |
|---|---|
| Archbishop of Monrovia | |
| Church | Roman Catholic Church |
| Archdiocese | Monrovia |
| See | Monrovia |
| Appointed | 12 February 2011 |
| Term ended | 7 June 2021 |
| Predecessor | Michael Kpakala Francis |
| Successor | Sede vacante |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 22 December 1974 |
| Consecration | 9 November 2002 by Michael Kpakala Francis |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 4 January 1944 Harrisburg, Liberia |
| Died | 12 August 2022 (aged 78) Monrovia, Liberia |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Previous post(s) |
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Ordination history of Lewis Jerome Zeigler | |||||||||||||||||
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Life
Lewis Jerome Zeigler was born in 1944 in Harrisburg in Liberia. He was ordained to the priesthood in Monrovia on 22 December 1974 and was incardinated in the Gbarnga diocese just over a decade later on 17 November 1986. Pope John Paul II appointed Zeigler as the Bishop of Gbarnga and Zeigler received his episcopal consecration on 9 November 2002 from Michael Kpakala Francis at the Gbarnga Cathedral.
He later was transferred to Monrovia in 2009 after Pope Benedict XVI appointed him as the coadjutor bishop to Francis which also meant he would succeed Francis at once following the latter's resignation or death. In 2011 he became the Archbishop of Monrovia after Francis resigned and he was installed at some point after. On 11 June 2018 he made his first "ad limina apostolorum" visit to Pope Francis.
Positions
Priesthood
In 2015 at the Chrism Mass the archbishop called on priests to desist from activities that distract them from their ecclesial duties and said that most priests seemed to chase wealth and material goods involved with the world rather than focusing their lives on the Church. Zeigler said: "It is my appeal to all of you, my fellow priests, to serve and not to chase things of the world like iPhones, iPads and whatever".[1]
Zeigler also called on the faithful to pray for their pastors whenever they do wrong since it would "help to strengthen and put them on the right path".[1]
Corruption
Zeigler has referred to corruption as the major foe to nation building in Liberia and has said that corruption hinders national progress. The archbishop said that "our society is sick" due to greed and selfishness which has swallowed the nation. He also called on Liberians to fight against corruption by focusing on defeating individual greed.[2]
Homosexuality
In an address at an official service at the Providence Baptist Church as a guest speaker on 11 April 2014, the archbishop spoke against homosexuality and same-sex marriage, observing that Liberian culture was being denigrated by calamity due to Liberians "ignoring their creator" and entering into "unwholesome activities that continue to annoy God".[3] Zeigler also said that such national crises such as the Ebola outbreak came about due to the dissolute ways Liberians lived that displeased God.
Zeigler further referred to same-sex marriage as an "abomination".[3][4]
References
- Zoquay Beysolow (3 April 2015). "Catholic Archbishop Criticizes Priests". The Bush Chicken. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
- Alfred Gezaye. "Liberia's sick, corruption is the illness". Insight Newspaper. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
- "Archbishop Condemns Homosexuality". Liberian Observer. 20 April 2014. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
- "Catholic Archbishop: Ebola is punishment from God for homosexuality". 4 November 2014. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
External links
- "Lewis Jerome Zeigler". Catholic-Hierarchy.org. David M. Cheney.