Action News reporter Sharrie Williams sat down with Perez in Cleveland last week for a wide-ranging conversation.
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Shari said he greeted her with a hug and welcomed her into his Cleveland office with the love of God.
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Bishop Perez has been away from the Delaware Valley for the last seven years but he said, at heart, he's a Philadelphia priest.
Of course, he was ordained in Philadelphia and spent 28 years here.
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So when the Vatican called and said he would return as Archbishop he was caught off-guard, especially since he was with Pope Francis just a few weeks prior and Francis gave him no indication about the major appointment that was in store.
"Did you think you would be returning to Philadelphia did you see this coming?" Sharrie asked.
"Absolutely not. God is a God of surprises and this is a surprise I never saw in my wildest imagination," said Perez.
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Perez's Mass of Installation will be held on Tuesday, February 18 at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul at 2 p.m.
Watch the rest of Sharrie's conversation with Perez in the video above.
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Sharrie reports during Action News at 5 p.m.
Sharrie Williams travels to Cleveland to visit Philadelphia's new archbishop