The

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of Rome ...

established what has evolved into its Apostolic Nunciature to the Nordic Countries on 16 March 1960 under the title Apostolic Delegation to Scandinavia with responsibility for representing the interests of the pope and the Catholic Church in

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

, and

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

. It was originally located in

Vedbæk Vedbæk is a wealthy suburban neighbourhood on the coast north of Copenhagen, Denmark. It belongs to Rudersdal Municipality and has merged with the town of Hørsholm to the north. The area has been inhabited for at least 7,000 years, as evidenced ...

, Denmark; since 2002 its office has been in

Djursholm Djursholm () is one of four suburban districts in, and the seat of Danderyd Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden. Djursholm is included in the multi-municipal Stockholm urban area. Djursholm is divided into a number of different areas: Djursh ...

, Sweden, a suburb of Stockholm. The Holy See now has diplomatic relations with each of those countries and the Holy See appoints a nuncio, to date always the same person, to each of them. The representative of the Holy See holds an ecclesiastical office, but the title varies according to the office's relationship to governments. The original title "Delegate" is used for an envoy whose relationship to the government has not received diplomatic statues. It usually evolves to Pro-Nuncio and then Nuncio as diplomatic relations are established and a formal agreement is reached between the Holy See and its counterpart. In the case of the Nordic Countries, the first Apostolic Delegate was appointed on 7 March 1960, though he had by then already, under the title "Apostolic Visitor", visited the reigning monarchs of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, and announced plans to visit the president of Finland. The delegate received the additional titles Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to Finland on 16 February 1966 and Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to Iceland on 8 October 1976. On 2 October 1982 the Delegation was reorganized into country-specific nunciatures in anticipation of the establishment of diplomatic relations with each of them. All were first led by a Pro-Nuncio. Since 1959, all the titles associated with the Nordic Countries, whatever their number, have been held by a single Vatican diplomat, though at times his appointment to all these offices have not occurred at the same time, as diplomatic assignments required the approval of the host country.

List of papal representatives

Martin Lucas Martin Lucas (16 October 1894 – 3 March 1969) was a Catholic Church, Catholic archbishop and diplomat of the Holy See. Biography Lucas was born in Haarlem, Netherlands, on 16 October 1894. He was ordained a priest of the Society of the Divine W ...

(7 March 1960 – October 1961) ** Apostolic Delegate to Scandinavia * Bruno Bernard Heim (9 November 1961 – 7 May 1969) **Apostolic Delegate to Scandinavia **first Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to Finland as of 16 February 1966 * Josip Žabkar (17 May 1969 – 27 October 1981) **Apostolic Delegate to Scandinavia and Pro-Nuncio to Finland **first Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to Iceland as of 8 October 1976 * Luigi Bellotti (27 October 1981 – 2 October 1982) **originally Delegate to Scandinavia and Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to Finland and to Iceland **named Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to Denmark, Norway and Sweden on 2 October 1982 * Henri Lemaître (31 October 1985 – 28 March 1992) **named Apostolic Nuncio to all five countries simultaneously *

Giovanni Ceirano Giovanni Ceirano ( Cuneo, 1865 - Turin, March 30, 1948) was an Italian industrialist and automotive pioneer. He cofounded 'Junior Fabbrica Automobili Torinese' in 1905, 'Società Ceirano Automobili Torino' in 1906, 'Fabbrica Automobili Ceirano' in ...

(20 August 1992 – 27 February 1999) **named Apostolic Nuncio to all five countries simultaneously *

Piero Biggio Piero Biggio (29 June 1937 – 18 April 2007) was an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See. Biography Piero Biggio was born on 29 June 1937 in Calasetta, Province of Carbonia-Iglesias, Sard ...

(27 February 1999 – 16 October 2004) **named Apostolic Nuncio to all five countries simultaneously *

Giovanni Tonucci Giovanni Tonucci (born 4 December 1941 in Fano, PU, Italy) is an Italian archbishop of the Catholic Church. He worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See from 1971 until his retirement in 2017. Diplomatic career From 1971 till the end of ...

(16 October 2004 – 18 October 2007) **named Apostolic Nuncio to all five countries simultaneously *

Emil Paul Tscherrig Emil Paul Tscherrig (born 3 February 1947) is a Swiss prelate of the Catholic Church who has spent his career in the diplomatic service of the Holy See. He became an archbishop in 1996 and has since held assignments as Apostolic Nuncio to sever ...

(26 January 2008 – 5 January 2012) **named Apostolic Nuncio to all five countries simultaneously *

Henryk Józef Nowacki Henryk Józef Nowacki (born 11 August 1946) is a Polish prelate of the Catholic Church who has spent his career in the diplomatic service of the Holy See. Biography Nowacki was born on 11 August 1946 in Gunzenhausen. He was ordained a priest ...

** Apostolic Nuncio to Iceland and Sweden (28 June 2012 – 20 February 2017) ** Apostolic Nuncio to Denmark, Finland, and Norway (6 October 2012 – 20 February 2017) * James Patrick Green ** Apostolic Nuncio to Iceland and Sweden (6 April 2017 – 30 April 2022) ** Apostolic Nuncio to Denmark (13 June 2017 – 30 April 2022) ** Apostolic Nuncio to Finland (12 October 2017 – 30 April 2022) ** Apostolic Nuncio to Norway (18 October 2017 – 30 April 2022) *

Julio Murat Julio Murat (born on 18 August 1961 in Izmir, Turkey) is a Turkish prelate of the Catholic Church who works in the diplomatic service of the Holy See. Biography Julio Murat began his preparation for the priesthood in Rome, where on 25 May 1 ...

** Apostolic Nuncio to Iceland and Sweden (9 November 2022 – present) ** Apostolic Nuncio to Denmark (25 January 2023 – present) ** Apostolic Nuncio to Finland (7 March 2023 – present) ** Apostolic Nuncio to Norway (16 March 2023 – present)

Notes

References

External links

* {{Subject bar , portal1= Catholicism , portal2= Denmark , portal3= Finland , portal4= Iceland , portal5= Norway , portal6= Sweden

Nordic Countries The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; literal translation, lit. 'the North') are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe and the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It includes the sovereign states of Denmar ...