Alfred Xuereb

Last updated


Alfred Xuereb
Apostolic Nuncio to Morocco
Titular Archbishop of Amantia
Alfred Xuereb.jpg
Church Catholic Church
Appointed8 December 2023
Predecessor Osvaldo Padilla
Other post(s) Titular Archbishop of Amantia
Previous post(s)
Orders
Ordination26 May 1984
by  Nikol Joseph Cauchi
Consecration19 March 2018
by  Pope Francis, Pietro Parolin and Fernando Filoni
Personal details
Born
Alfred Xuereb

(1958-10-14) 14 October 1958 (age 65)
Nationality Maltese
Alma mater Pontifical Theological Faculty Teresianum
MottoUt Unum sint
Coat of arms Coat of arms of Alfred Xuereb.svg
Styles of
Alfred Xuereb
Coat of arms of Alfred Xuereb.svg
Reference style
Spoken style Your Excellency
Religious style Archbishop

Alfred Xuereb (born 14 October 1958) is a Maltese prelate of the Catholic Church who works in the diplomatic service of the Holy See. He previously worked in the Roman Curia and was a private secretary to Pope Benedict XVI from 2007 to 2013 and to Pope Francis from 2013 to 2014.

Contents

Biography

Alfred Xuereb was born in Victoria (known also as Rabat) on the Maltese island of Gozo on 14 October 1958. He studied philosophy and Roman Catholic theology in Malta and was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Gozo on 26 May 1984. [1] He then studied at the Pontifical Theological Faculty Teresianum where he earned a doctorate in theology, specialising in spirituality, with a thesis on “The Easter mystery in Christian Life”.

He returned to pastoral service in Malta for several years. In September 1991 he joined the staff of the rector of the Pontifical Lateran University in Rome. He entered the service of the General Affairs Section of the Secretariat of State on 1 September 1995. [2]

In November 2000 he joined the Prefecture of the Papal Household. [1] Pope John Paul II awarded him the papal title of Honorary Prelate on 9 September 2003. [3]

In 2007, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Xuereb his second private secretary, succeeding Mieczysław Mokrzycki as his second private secretary. [4] [5] He accompanied the Pope on his trips. After the election of Pope Francis in 2013, Xuereb became his first private secretary. [6]

On 28 November 2013, Pope Francis appointed him a delegate for the Pontifical Commission investigating the Institute for the Works of Religion (IOR) and for the Pontifical Commission on the Organisation of the Economic-Administrative Structure of the Holy See. He was tasked with keeping the Pope informed of their procedures and initiatives. [7] [8] Continuing to place Xuereb in positions crucial to financial reform, on 3 March 2014, Pope Francis appointed him the first Secretary General of the Secretariat for the Economy, a new department of the Roman Curia. [9]

Diplomatic career

On 26 February 2018, Pope Francis appointed Xuereb titular archbishop of Amantea and apostolic nuncio for both South Korea and Mongolia. [2] Xuereb was consecrated bishop on 19 March 2018 in St. Peter's Basilica by Pope Francis. [10] [11] He chose as his episcopal motto Ut Unum Sint, "that all may be one". [1]

Speaking of the 2018 Trump-Kim summit, Xuereb said that the Korean people and the local Church had been anxiously awaiting “these truly historic events.” He described the summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un as “marking an important page at the beginning of a long and arduous road” [12]

On 8 December 2023, Pope Francis Appointed him as the new Apostolic Nuncio to Morocco. [13]

Personal life

During a meeting with trainee clergy and novices in July 2013, Pope Francis referred with admiration to the fact that Xuereb uses a bicycle for transportation. [14]

Honours

See also

Sources

  1. 1 2 3 "Apostolic Nuncio Alfred Xuereb in Korea and Mongolia to 'build bridges'". The Malta Independent. 3 May 2018. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
  2. 1 2 "Rinunce e nomine, 26.02.2018" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 26 February 2018. Retrieved 6 May 2019. Il Santo Padre ha nominato Nunzio Apostolico in Corea del Sud e in Mongolia il Rev.do Mons. Alfred Xuereb
  3. Annuario Pontificio per l’anno 2008, Città del Vaticano, p. 2370.
  4. "Mgr Alfred Xuereb appointed as secretary to Pope Francis". Gozo News. 18 March 2013.
  5. "Gozitan to become Pope's personal secretary". Times of Malta. 18 March 2013.
  6. "Gozitan Mgr Alfred Xuereb appointed Pope's official secretary". Malta Today. 18 March 2013.
  7. "Rinunce e nomine, 26.02.2018" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 28 November 2013. Retrieved 25 June 2020. l'incarico di vigilare e di tenerLo informato, in collaborazione con la Segreteria di Stato, sulle procedure di lavoro e sulle eventuali iniziative da intraprendere
  8. "The Pope Appoints Msgr. Xuereb as his Delegate in Two Commissions". Vatican News. Archived from the original on 29 March 2016. Retrieved 9 May 2017.
  9. Tornielli, Andrea (3 March 2014). "Francis appoints Fr. Xuereb as secretary general of the Vatican's new economy secretariat". Vatican Insider. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  10. "Mgr Alfred Xuereb ordained bishop; Pope says: no politicking, no high society". The Malta Independent. 20 March 2018. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
  11. Junno Arocho Esteves (1 March 2018). "Pope names two Vatican officials as apostolic nuncios". National Catholic Reporter. Retrieved 2 March 2018.
  12. "Nuncio in Korea: Singapore summit is truly historic". Vatican News. 12 June 2018. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
  13. "Rinunce e Nomine". Vatican News. 8 December 2023. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
  14. "Vaticano - "Mi fa male vedere un prete con un'auto ultimo modello"". Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 9 May 2017.
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by Apostolic Nuncio to Korea and Mongolia
26 February 2018 – 19 June 2023
Succeeded by
Catholic Church titles
Preceded by Personal Papal Secretary
18 March 2013 – 2 March 2014
Succeeded by

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leonardo Sandri</span> Argentine cardinal

Leonardo Sandri is an Argentine prelate of the Catholic Church who has been a cardinal since November 2007 and vice dean of the College of Cardinals since January 2020. He was prefect of the Congregation for the Eastern Churches from 2007 to 2022. He served in the diplomatic service of the Holy See from 1974 to 1991 in several overseas assignments, including as permanent observer of the Holy See before the Organization of American States from 1989 to 1991, and in Rome as Substitute for General Affairs in the Secretariat of State from 1999 to 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alain Paul Lebeaupin</span> French prelate of the Catholic Church (1945–2021)

Alain Paul Charles Lebeaupin was a French prelate of the Catholic Church who joined the diplomatic service of the Holy See in 1979 and was the Apostolic Nuncio to the European Union from 2012 to 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giuseppe Bertello</span> Italian prelate (born 1942)

Giuseppe Bertello is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church, a cardinal since 2012, who was President of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State and President of the Governorate of Vatican City State from October 2011 to October 2021. He worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See from 1971 to 2011; became an archbishop in 1987; held appointments as Nuncio to several countries, including Rwanda, Mexico, and Italy; and was the Holy See's representative to a number of international organizations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul Gallagher (bishop)</span> Roman Catholic archbishop

Paul Richard Gallagher, is a British prelate of the Catholic Church who has been Secretary for Relations with States within the Holy See's Secretariat of State since November 2014. He has worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See since 1984 and has held the rank of archbishop and apostolic nuncio since 2004, serving as nuncio in Burundi, Guatemala, and Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Bryan Wells</span> American prelate of the Catholic Church (born 1963)

Peter Bryan Wells is an American prelate of the Catholic Church who has spent most of his career in the diplomatic service of the Holy See. He has worked in Rome in the administration of the Secretariat of State and in foreign postings. He has been an archbishop and a nuncio since 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eugene Nugent</span> Irish Roman Catholic prelate (born 1959)

Eugene Martin Nugent is an Irish Roman Catholic prelate who has served as Apostolic Nuncio to Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar since January 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edgar Peña Parra</span> Venezuelan Roman Catholic archbishop (born 1960)

Edgar Robinson Peña Parra is a Venezuelan Roman Catholic archbishop. Pope Francis named him Substitute for the Secretariat of State on 15 August 2018, effective 15 October, making him the highest ranking Venezuelan in the Roman Curia. He joined the diplomatic corps of the Holy See in 1993, serving as Apostolic Nuncio to Pakistan from 2011 to 2015 and to Mozambique from 2015 to 2018. He is the first Venezuelan to serve as an Apostolic Nuncio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Santos Abril y Castelló</span> Spanish prelate of the Catholic Church (born 1936)

Santos Abril y Castelló is a Spanish prelate of the Catholic Church. After a career in the diplomatic corps of the Holy See, he held a number of positions in the Roman Curia and from 2011 to 2016 was Archpriest of the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fortunatus Nwachukwu</span> Nigerian prelate of the Catholic Church (born 1960)

Fortunatus Nwachukwu is a Nigerian prelate of the Catholic Church who works in the Roman Curia as secretary of the Section of First Evangelization of the Dicastery for Evangelization. He joined the diplomatic service of the Holy See in 1994 and held the rank of apostolic nuncio from 2012, when he also became an archbishop.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antoine Camilleri (prelate)</span> Maltese prelate of the Catholic Church

Antoine Camilleri is a Maltese prelate of the Catholic Church who served as the Under-Secretary for Relations with States in the Secretariat of State of the Holy See, until he was named an archbishop and given the title of apostolic nuncio in 2019. He joined the diplomatic service of the Holy See in 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beniamino Stella</span> Italian prelate of the Catholic Church (born 1941)

Beniamino Stella is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who was Prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy from 2013 to 2021; he has been a cardinal since 2014. He began working in the diplomatic service of the Holy See in 1970, was made an archbishop in 1987, and served as a nuncio in several countries between 1987 and 2007. He led the Vatican's training program for its diplomats, the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy, from 2007 to 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giampiero Gloder</span> Italian prelate of the Catholic Church (born 1958)

Giampiero Gloder is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who has worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See in 1993. He was named Apostolic Nuncio to Cuba in October 2019 after serving as president of the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy since 2013 and vice Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church since 2014.

The Secretariat for the Economy is a dicastery of the Roman Curia with authority over all economic activities of the Holy See and the Vatican City State.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joseph Spiteri</span> Maltese prelate of the Catholic Church (born 1959)

Joseph Spiteri is a Maltese prelate of the Catholic Church who works in the diplomatic service of the Holy See. He has been Apostolic Nuncio to Lebanon since March 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Luigi Bonazzi</span> Italian prelate of the Catholic Church

Luigi Bonazzi is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who works in the diplomatic service of the Holy See. He has been the apostolic nuncio to Albania since December 2020. He was the apostolic nuncio to Canada from December 2013 to December 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julio Murat</span> Turkish prelate of the Catholic Church (born 1961)

Julio Murat is a Turkish prelate of the Catholic Church who works in the diplomatic service of the Holy See. He has been an archbishop and a papal nuncio since 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giambattista Diquattro</span> Italian archbishop and Vatican diplomat

Giambattista Diquattro is an Italian archbishop and Vatican diplomat. He has been Apostolic Nuncio to Brazil since 2020. He has worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See since 1985 and been a nuncio and archbishop since 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Angelo Acerbi</span> Catholic archbishop

Angelo Acerbi is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church, who has been an archbishop since 1974 and served in the diplomatic service of the Holy See as the Apostolic Nuncio to New Zealand, the Netherlands, Colombia, Hungary, and Moldova.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giovanni d'Aniello</span> Italian nuncio

Giovanni d’Aniello is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who works in the diplomatic service of the Holy See. An archbishop since 2001, he was appointed Apostolic Nuncio to the Russian Federation on 1 June 2020. He has been apostolic nuncio or apostolic delegate to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Thailand, Cambodia, Burma and Laos, and Brazil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piero Pioppo</span> Italian prelate of the Catholic Church (born 1960)

Piero Pioppo is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church, who has been Apostolic Nuncio to Indonesia since 2017.