increase in vocations to the priesthood, with many seminarians being drawn to his more conservative theology. In 2001, John Paul II appointed Myers as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Newark. John Paul II named Auxiliary Bishop Daniel R. Jenky of the Diocese of South Bend-Fort Wayne as the new bishop of Peoria. As bishop, Jenky led the canonization cause of Archbishop Sheen. However, in 2014, citing undocumented verbal agreements, Jenky announced that he would not permit the cause to progress until Sheen's remains were transferred to Peoria from St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City. After three years of litigation by the Diocese of Peoria against the Archdiocese of New York regarding Sheen's wishes, his remains were moved to Peoria in June 2019. On May 11, 2020, Pope Francis named Reverend Louis Tylka of the Archdiocese of Chicago as coadjutor bishop of the diocese. When Jenky retired in 2022, Tylka automatically became the new and current bishop of Peoria. Sexual abuse In August 2013, the Diocese of Peoria settled a sexual abuse lawsuit for $1.35 million. The plaintiff, Andrew Ward, had accused Thomas Maloney, a diocese priest, of molesting him during the 1990's when he was eight years old. The lawsuit claimed that Bishop Myers allowed Maloney to remain in ministry despite evidence of prior sexual abuse. Maloney was later accused of sexual abuse by three more victims. In February 2018, Jenky was sued along with the other Catholic bishops in Illinois. Two of the plaintiffs claimed sexual abuse by priests in the Diocese of Peoria during the 1970's and 1980's. Attorney for the plaintiffs accused Jenky of providing incomplete lists of priests who were considered credibly accused of sexual abuse. The diocese denied the charges. Bishops Bishops of Peoria John Lancaster Spalding (1876–1908) Edmund Michael Dunne (1909–1929) Joseph Henry Leo Schlarman (1930–1951), appointed archbishop ad personam in 1951 William Edward Cousins (1952–1958), appointed archbishop of Milwaukee John Baptist Franz (1959–1971) Edward William O'Rourke (1971–1990) John Joseph Myers (1990–2001; coadjutor 1987-1990), appointed archbishop of Newark Daniel Robert Jenky (2002–2022) Louis Tylka (2022- Present, Coadjutor 2020–2022) Auxiliary bishops Peter Joseph O'Reilly (1900-1923) Other diocesan priests who became bishops Gerald Thomas Bergan, appointed bishop of Des Moines and later archbishop of Omaha Fulton J. Sheen, appointed auxiliary bishop of New York and later bishop of Rochester, and elevated to archbishop (personal title) upon retirement in 1969 Education The diocese has thirty-one elementary