Mitja Leskovar

Last updated

Mitja Leskovar
Apostolic Nuncio to Democratic Republic of the Congo
Titular Archbishop of Beneventum
Church Roman Catholic Church
Appointed16 April 2024
Predecessor Ettore Balestrero
Other post(s) Titular Archbishop of Beneventum
Previous post(s)
Orders
Ordination29 June 1995
by mgr Alojzij Šuštar
Consecration8 August 2020
by  Franc Rodé, Stanislav Zore and Jean-Marie Speich
Personal details
Born (1970-01-03) 3 January 1970 (age 54)
Nationality Slovenian
Alma mater Pontifical Gregorian University
MottoCrux Lignum Vitae
Coat of arms Coat of arms of Mitja Leskovar.svg
Styles of
Mitja Leskovar
Coat of arms of Mitja Leskovar.svg
Reference style
Spoken style Your Excellency
Religious style Archbishop

Mitja Leskovar (born 3 January 1970) is a Slovenian priest of the Catholic Church who works in the diplomatic service of the Holy See.

Contents

Biography

Mitja Leskovar was born in Kranj, Slovenia, on 3 January 1970 and grew up in Kokrica. He entered the seminary in Ljubljana in 1989, where he earned a degree in theology. He was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Ljubljana on 29 June 1995 from archbishop Alojzij Šuštar. [1] [2] After two years of pastoral work in Domžale, he continued his studies in Rome. He completed his master's degree in 1999 and earned a doctorate in canon law at the Pontifical Gregorian University. [1]

Diplomatic career

He joined the diplomatic service of the Holy See on 1 July 2001. His early assignments included stints in Bangladesh from 2001 to 2003, the General Affairs Section of the Secretariat of State in Rome from 2003 to 2014, Germany from 2015 to 2018, and India from 2018 to 2020. [1] [2]

While working in Rome in 2012, he was tasked with reforming Vatican security procedures after Pope Benedict XVI's butler was arrested for allegedly leaking documents to an Italian journalist. This included adding enhanced security features to employee badges, new restrictions on physical access, and managing the handling of sensitive documents. [3]

On 1 May 2020, Pope Francis appointed him titular archbishop of Beneventum and Apostolic Nuncio to Iraq. [2] He is one of three Slovenians active in the Vatican's diplomatic corps. [4]

The date of his consecration as bishop was unscheduled because of the COVID-19 pandemic [1] until 8 August 2020. He was consecrated by Cardinal Franc Rodé, co-consecrators the archbishop Stanislav Zore and the archbishop Jean-Marie Antoine Joseph Speich.

On 16 April 2024, Pope Francis appointed him as nuncio to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. [5]

Honours

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patrick Coveney</span> Irish prelate of the Catholic Church (1934–2022)

Patrick Coveney was an Irish prelate of the Catholic Church who worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See from 1966 to 2009. He became an archbishop in 1985 and fulfilled several assignments as Apostolic Nuncio, including stints in Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, New Zealand, and Greece.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edward Cassidy</span> Australian Roman Catholic cardinal (1924–2021)

Edward Idris Cassidy AC was an Australian prelate of the Catholic Church who was president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity from 1989 to 2001. He headed the Commission of the Holy See for Religious Relations with the Jews. He spent most of his career in the diplomatic service of the Holy See both in Rome and overseas. He was made a cardinal in 1991.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giuseppe Lazzarotto</span> Italian prelate

Giuseppe Lazzarotto KC*HS is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See from 1971 to 2017, with the rank of apostolic nuncio and an archbishop since 1994.

<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">Gabriele Giordano Caccia</span> Italian prelate of the Catholic Church

Gabriele Giordano Caccia is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who works in the diplomatic service of the Holy See. He has worked in the offices of the Secretariat of State and served as Apostolic Nuncio in Lebanon and the Philippines. He was named Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations in 2019.

<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">Adolfo Tito Yllana</span> Philippine prelate

Adolfo Tito Camacho Yllana is a Philippine prelate of the Catholic Church who works in the diplomatic service of the Holy See. He has been an archbishop and apostolic nuncio since 2001, the Apostolic Nuncio to Israel as well as Apostolic Delegate to Jerusalem and Palestine since June 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ivan Jurkovič</span> Slovenian prelate of the Catholic Church (born 1952)

Ivan Jurkovič is a Slovenian prelate of the Catholic Church who has been the Apostolic Nuncio to Canada since June 2021. He has worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See since 1984 and previously served as the Nuncio to Belarus, Ukraine, Russia and Uzbekistan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Gullickson</span> American Catholic archbishop

Thomas Edward Gullickson is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He has served as an apostolic nuncio in the Holy See diplomatic corps since 2004. Gullickson was posted to Switzerland and Liechtenstein from 2015 until his retirement at the end of 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Novatus Rugambwa</span> Tanzanian Catholic prelate, Holy See diplomat

Novatus Rugambwa is a Tanzanian prelate of the Catholic Church and diplomat of the Holy See.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles John Brown</span> American bishop and Vatican nuncio

Charles John Brown is an American prelate of the Catholic Church who has been serving as an apostolic nuncio since 2012. He is currently the apostolic nuncio to the Philippines. Before entering the diplomatic service of the Holy See, Brown worked at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alfred Xuereb</span> Maltese prelate of the Catholic Church (born 1958)

Alfred Xuereb 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edward Joseph Adams</span> American prelate of the Catholic Church

Edward Joseph Adams is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has served in the diplomatic service of the Holy See since 1976. He was the apostolic nuncio to Great Britain from 2017 to 2020 and held earlier postings in Greece, Asia, Africa and Central America.

<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">Michael Banach</span> American prelate of the Catholic Church

Michael Wallace Banach is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See since 1994. He has been apostolic nuncio to Hungary since May 2022. He has served as an observer at a United Nations agency and as apostolic nuncio to several nations in Asia and Africa.

Edmond Farhat was a Lebanese prelate of the Catholic Church who spent his career in the diplomatic service of the Holy See.

<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">Paul Fitzpatrick Russell</span> American Catholic archbishop (born 1959)

Paul Fitzpatrick Russell is an American prelate of the Catholic Church who was appointed auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Detroit in May 2022. He previously served as the apostolic nuncio to Turkey, Turkmenistan, and Azerbaijan and the head of the diplomatic mission to Taiwan. In accordance with those roles, he has the personal title of archbishop.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ante Jozić</span> Croatian prelate of the Catholic Church (born 1967)

Ante Jozić is a Croatian prelate of the Catholic Church. He has worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See since 1999. Though appointed as apostolic nuncio and titular archbishop in 2019, injuries suffered in a traffic accident prevented him from being consecrated and taking up his post. His episcopal consecration was postponed a second time because of the COVID-19 pandemic. He was finally consecrated on 16 September 2020.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Msgr. dr. Mitja Leskovar imenovan za nadškofa in apostolskega nuncija v Iraku". Katoliška Cerkev (in Slovenian). 1 May 2020. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 "Rinunce e Nomine, 01.05.2020" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 1 May 2020. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  3. Grenoble, Ryan (12 October 2012). "Mitja Leskovar, 'Monsignor 007,' To Introduce New Protocols For Pope's Security, Confidential Documents". Huffington Post. Retrieved 2 May 2020.
  4. Leskovar, Mitja (4 November 2018). "Med Hindujske Bogove Dodati Še Kipce Jezusa in Marijo jim ne Predstavlja Posebnih Težav" (Interview) (in Slovenian). Interviewed by Marta Jerebič. Radio Ognjisce. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  5. "Resignations and Appointments, 16.04.2024" . Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  6. Linder, Walter J. [@AmbLinderIndia] (25 July 2019). "Great honour bestowing the Officer's Cross of the Order of Merit of the FedRepGER upon Prelat Dr. Mitja Leskovar, DepHeadMission, Holy See Apostolic Nuntiature in India and Nepal, for outstanding Services on his last posting in Berlin" (Tweet). Retrieved 2 May 2020 via Twitter.
Catholic Church titles
Preceded by Apostolic Nuncio to the Democratic Republic of the Congo
16 April 2024–present
Succeeded by
-
Preceded by Apostolic Nuncio to Iraq
1 May 2020–16 April 2024
Succeeded by
vacant
Preceded by Titular bishop of Beneventum
1 May 2020–current
Succeeded by
-