Office for Externs

The Office for Externs and International Priests oversees the entry and placement of diocesan externs and international priests. The office anticipates priests’ arrival and finds a suitable placement, and the office also facilitates the granting of faculties.

The office meets with diocesan externs and international priests to discuss their plans while in the archdiocese and to advise the recently arrived priest of his responsibilities while serving in the Archdiocese of Chicago.

Archbishop’s Delegate
The archbishop’s delegate for externs and international priests’ position was created in 1999 in response to Cardinal George’s call for more international priests to assist in ministering to the diverse ethnic parishes in Chicago. The Archbishop appoints the delegate, an archdiocesan priest, to oversee the entry and placement of international priests.

Acceptance or Denial
A priest cannot be granted an assignment or a residence in the Archdiocese of Chicago unless the proper background checks, approval, and permission by the sending bishop or superior have been granted, as well as the granting of faculties by the Archbishop of Chicago. There have been cases when the international priest arrived in the United States prior to the archdiocese receiving all of the necessary approvals and have not been accommodated.