DENVER — On March 25, Archbishop James Golka was installed as the new archbishop for the Archdiocese of Denver after serving as bishop of the Diocese of Colorado Springs since 2021.
Golka follows in the footsteps of Archbishop Samuel Aquila, who led the archdiocese since 2012 and was appointed by Pope Benedict XVI.
Golka told EWTN News in a sit-down interview that he was “not expecting to come to Denver.”
“I had been in [Colorado] Springs for four and a half years as a bishop and I know many other bishops more qualified than I am, who have served longer than I have. So, I thought I was safe, if you will,” he said. “So when I saw that the nuncio had tried to call me, I said a prayer and called him back and he said, ‘Are you alone? Can we talk?’ And I joked and I said, ‘Your Eminence, we can talk all you want as long as youʼre not going to move me.’ And he laughed and he just right away said, ‘Youʼve been appointed.’
Golka shared that he had two reactions to the news. First, he was sad to be leaving the Diocese of Colorado Springs after falling in love with the parishes, the people, and the pastors. Second, he immediately said “yes” because he believes that “if the Holy Spirit is asking through the Church and the Holy Father, you have to say yes.”
“I also joked that in my last five assignments I would have never chosen any of them myself. So itʼs clear to me God chose them and if God wants it, itʼs going to be great if I let God do it,” he added.
The new appointment comes at a time where the world is still getting to know Pope Leo XIV, which includes analyzing and monitoring the new pope’s appointments. When asked why he believes the Holy Father chose him for Denver, Golka shared that he asked the papal nuncio this very question during their call, which took place on Feb. 7.
“I asked the papal nuncio why I was chosen for Denver and he said, ‘I donʼt really know,’” Golka recalled. “He said that the Holy Father discerns and prays, so we believe the Spirit is leading this choice, so thatʼs first of all it.”
Golka added that he sees Pope Leo as a “very thoughtful, well-considered person,” so if he had to guess why he was chosen, Golka would credit it to the fact that he loves Jesus “immensely.”
“I try to talk about him [Jesus] as much as I can and be a witness to that. I love being a pastor … So, I think the Holy Father wants people who love Our Lord openly, outwardly, and who are pastors who care for the people,” he said.
Born and raised in Grand Island, Nebraska, Golka was the fourth of 10 children. His father, Robert, was a civil engineer and his mother, Patricia, was a Catholic school teacher.
Golka shared that his parents were “experts at passing on the faith.” While they never sat their children down for a lesson on the faith or opened the catechism to teach them from it, the children had the faith instilled in them from young ages because “they just lived it [the faith].”
In second grade, Golka was preparing to receive his first Communion and in one of his workbook activities it asked the children to draw a picture of someone they enjoyed listening to. Golka drew a picture of his parish priest.
“I knew it was in me at a young age,” he said.
When Golka was in eighth grade one of his older brothers entered the seminary. Despite his brother discerning out of the priesthood, Golka thought to himself, “Boy, if he can do it, I can do it.”
“I went up and stayed with him for a week when I was in eighth grade and I thought to myself, ‘This is where Godʼs calling me.’”
Growing up in a large family, Golka dreamt of getting married and having a lot of children. He shared that he “grieved the loss of children I wouldn’t have and the loss of a family.”
However, “God assured me that many people would treat me as father and call me Father for the rest of my life, and heʼs come through on that promise,” he said.
In the weeks leading up to Golka’s installation as archbishop of Denver, both of his parents passed away — his mother in January and his father in March.
“Both of their deaths were not surprising, but both were unexpected and both were incredibly beautiful deaths but painful as heck,” he shared.
He explained that his mother passed away in her sleep right before he was appointed archbishop. Golka’s father was in attendance at the press conference held after the announcement was made and he recalled his father “being the star of the show that day.”
On March 3 — less than a month after the press conference — Golka visited his father in the hospital.
“I went into his hospital room — he was very awake that day, his last day of being lucid — and I walked in the room and … he looked at me and he smiled and I said, ‘What dad, you couldnʼt wait till March 25?’ And he laughed and he said, ‘No, Iʼm going to die tomorrow or the next day, but I can do more for you from heaven that I can from here. So you can trust that,’” Golka recalled.
His father passed away on March 5.
On the day of Golka’s installation, he recalled being extremely tired, lightheaded, and he was worried he was going to pass out.
“I was just so tired, exhausted, and as soon as Archbishop Aquila and [apostolic nuncio] Cardinal [Christophe] Pierre put me in the cathedra and Archbishop Aquila gave me the crozier, immediately my mom was standing right here [on his right side] and my dad right here [on his left side] — like theyʼre tangible,” he shared. “And so it was almost like God told me, ‘Now relax and enjoy this. Weʼll take care of you.’ And my dad said, ‘Weʼre going to stand in front of God and intercede for our family for all of eternity. So, donʼt worry.’ So, at my installation, what a gift to have had that, because without them there that day, I would have passed out.”
He added that he has felt his parents’ presence with him several times already in his new role as archbishop.
As for his top priorities for Denver, Golka said he wants to start by getting to know his priests and their parishes and invest time in supporting them, he wants to continue to work hard to defend life in the state of Colorado, and lastly he wants to “listen more intently” to God’s plans for the archdiocese.
“God has a plan for this archdiocese and he knows why he brought me here and why he brought all of us here. I donʼt know why he made me an archbishop; Iʼm just a guy from Nebraska … But, he has a plan so we need to listen to him intently and trust that he isnʼt hiding the plan from us. He wants to show it to us. So our job then is to learn how to listen and discern.”
