St. Louis Archbishop Raymond Burke lost an election Tuesday for chairman of the committee that advises the nation's bishops on legal issues.He was defeated by Bishop Thomas Paprocki, an auxiliary bishop in Chicago who received 59 percent of the bishops' votes.
The bishops also elected Chicago Cardinal Francis George as president.
George will serve a three-year term as leader of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Burke's defeat surprised some, because he is widely recognized as one of the sharpest legal minds in the Catholic church and is a sitting member of the Vatican's highest judicial authority.
Some bishops, though, have chafed at his strict interpretation of canon law, including his position on denying Holy Communion to Catholic politicians who support abortion rights.
The Rev. Thomas Reese of the Woodstock Theological Center in Washington suggested that bishops didn't elect Burke because they didn't want Catholic politicians and Communion to be a high-profile issue.
Several bishops rejected that idea, saying both Burke and Paprocki are excellent canon lawyers, capable of doing the job.
Boston's Cardinal Sean O'Malley said he did not believe the result of the election was a referendum on Burke's outspoken positions.
"They were both very good candidates," he said.
Bishop Terry Steib of Memphis said he "wouldn't put too much" on the theory that Burke's maverick reputation had lost him the job.
"That didn't influence me," he said of his own vote.
Burke was in Rome and unavailable for comment.
Bishop Gerald Kicanas of Tucson was elected vice president of the conference. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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