By Tom Weber, KWMU
St. Louis, MO – Pope John Paul II on Tuesday named a familiar face to be the new bishop of Belleville, Ill.
Edward Braxton will oversee Catholic parishes and schools in Illinois's 28 southern-most counties. He's currently the bishop of Lake Charles, Louisiana.
The assignment, though, will also be a bit of a homecoming. Braxton was raised and became a priest in Chicago.
He later became an auxiliary bishop in the St. Louis archdiocese before leaving for Louisiana in 2001.
While in St. Louis he was part of talks when Saint Louis University decided to sell its hospital to a for-profit company (Tenet).
(Braxton also played a role in the Angel of Harmony statue that now stands next to the new Cathedral on Lindell. The angel's face is that of Braxton's brother, Lawrence).
Braxton will take over for Wilton Gregory, who recently left the diocese to become Archbishop of Atlanta.