Pope about to make his mark in U.S.

Two years into his reign, Pope Benedict XVI is finally poised to make a major mark on American Catholicism with a string of key bishop appointments and important decisions about the future of U.S. seminaries and bishops' involvement in politics.

Benedict's election on April 19, 2005, shook liberals and comforted conservatives who expected a doctrinal hard-liner. So far, they have found an easier hand — and a one that has not made the United States much of a priority.

When Benedict has gained attention, it has mostly been on the world stage, focusing on the re-Christianization of Europe, Islam and mending relations with Orthodox Christians. He also has stressed universal themes of faith and reason.

"The last two years have been much quieter years as far as the papacy is concerned because you have a very different personality" than John Paul II, said Monsignor Robert Wister, chairman of the church history department at Seton Hall University's School of Theology.

"Many Americans were surprised — some happily, some disappointed — that he did not turn into the pit bull of dogma. He is taking a very pastoral approach, and I think people resonate very positively with that."

Yet America's turn may be coming. At the top of the list is a looming generational shift among the nation's bishops, whose decisions at the local level greatly affect Catholics in the pews and can carry national weight. For instance, church leaders recently closed parishes in Boston and New York, while the St. Louis archbishop has clashed with a heavily Polish parish over control of its assets.

Key appointments are expected in New York, Baltimore and Detroit, where cardinals have reached retirement age — 75. And in the next two years appointments are expected in five other smaller dioceses, notes George Weigel, a Catholic theologian and John Paul II biographer.

Then there is the potential ripple effect — if some bishops move to larger cities, then they too must be replaced.

"At the end of these two years, we will see what the enduring impact of this pontificate on the leadership of the U.S. church will be," Weigel said.

So far, Benedict has appointed former Pittsburgh Bishop Donald Wuerl to the prestigious Washington, D.C., archdiocese, and he chose former San Francisco Archbishop William Levada as his successor to head the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the Vatican's doctrinal watchdog. Levada is the highest-ranking American ever at the Vatican.