Audrys Juozas Bačkis (born 1 February 1937) is a Lithuanian prelate of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, a

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

since 2001. He worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See from 1964 to 1991, when he became Archbishop of Vilnius. He retired in 2013.

Early life

Bačkis was born in

Kaunas Kaunas (; ; also see other names) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the largest city and the centre of a county in the Duchy of Trakai ...

to the family of

Stasys Antanas Bačkis Stasys Antanas Bačkis (born: February 10, 1906 – November 10, 1999) was a Lithuanian diplomat and civil servant who served as an assistant in the Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 1930 until 1938, Head of the Lithuanian Embassy in Pa ...

, a Lithuanian diplomat. In 1938 Bačkis' father was assigned to Paris where the family stayed after the

Soviet occupation During World War II, the Soviet Union occupied and annexed several countries effectively handed over by Nazi Germany in the secret Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of 1939. These included the eastern regions of Poland (incorporated into two different ...

in June 1940. He completed his secondary education at the Institute Saint-Marie-de-Monceau, and studied philosophy at the Seminary of Saint-Sulpice in

Issy-les-Moulineaux Issy-les-Moulineaux () is a commune in the southwestern suburban area of Paris, France, lying on the left bank of the river Seine. Its citizens are called ''Isséens'' in French. It is one of Paris' entrances and is located from Notre-Dame Cath ...

. Bačkis studied at the

Pontifical Gregorian University The Pontifical Gregorian University ( it, Pontificia Università Gregoriana; also known as the Gregorian or Gregoriana,) is a higher education ecclesiastical school ( pontifical university) located in Rome, Italy. The Gregorian originated as ...

Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy The Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy ( la, Pontificia Ecclesiastica Academia, it, Pontificia Accademia Ecclesiastica) is one of the Roman Colleges of the Catholic Church. The academy is dedicated to training priests to serve in the diplomatic c ...

, and

Pontifical Lateran University The Pontifical Lateran University ( it, Pontificia Università Lateranense; la, Pontificia Universitas Lateranensis), also known as Lateranum, is a pontifical university based in Rome. The university also hosts the central session of the Ponti ...

, there Bačkis obtained his

doctorate in canon law Doctor of Canon Law ( la, Juris Canonici Doctor, JCD) is the doctoral-level terminal degree in the studies of canon law of the Roman Catholic Church. It can also be an honorary degree awarded by Anglican colleges. It may also be abbreviated ICD ...

. Bačkis was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...

to the priesthood by

Luigi Traglia Luigi Traglia (3 April 1895 – 22 November 1977) was an Italian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Vicar General of Rome from 1965 to 1968, and Dean of the College of Cardinals from 1974 until his death. Traglia was elevated to ...

on 18 March 1961, in Rome. He then did

pastoral A pastoral lifestyle is that of shepherds herding livestock around open areas of land according to seasons and the changing availability of water and pasture. It lends its name to a genre of literature, art, and music (pastorale) that depicts ...

work among

Lithuanian Americans Lithuanian Americans refers to American citizens and residents who are Lithuanian and were born in Lithuania, or are of Lithuanian descent. New Philadelphia, Pennsylvania has the largest percentage of Lithuanian Americans (20.8%) in the United ...

in the United States, and finished his studies in Rome in 1964.

Service

In 1964 he entered the

diplomatic service Diplomatic service is the body of diplomats and foreign policy officers maintained by the government of a country to communicate with the governments of other countries. Diplomatic personnel obtains diplomatic immunity when they are accredited to ...

of 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 ...

, serving as secretary of the nunciature to the Philippines (1964–1965), to Costa Rica (1965–1967), to Turkey (1967–1970), and to Nigeria (1970–1973). Bačkis was raised to the rank of

Privy Chamberlain of His Holiness A Chaplain of His Holiness is a priest to whom the Pope has granted this title. They are addressed as Monsignor and have certain privileges with respect to ecclesiastical dress and vestments.Secretariat of State in 1973. He was the Vatican's delegate to the United Nations Conference in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

in 1975, and became Vice-Secretary of the Council for the Public Affairs of the Church in 1979. On 5 August 1988, Bačkis was appointed

Pro-Nuncio The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , ''asteriskos'', "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often voc ...

to the Netherlands and

Titular Archbishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

of Meta by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

. He received his

episcopal consecration A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or offic ...

on the following 4 October from Pope John Paul himself, with Cardinal

Achille Silvestrini Achille Silvestrini (25 October 1923 – 29 August 2019) was an Italian cardinal of the Catholic Church. He served in the Vatican diplomatic corps, either in Rome or abroad, from 1953 to 1990, and later as Prefect of the Congregation for the Ori ...

and Bishop Juozas Preikšas serving as

co-consecrators A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churches, ...

, in

St. Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican ( it, Basilica Papale di San Pietro in Vaticano), or simply Saint Peter's Basilica ( la, Basilica Sancti Petri), is a church built in the Renaissance style located in Vatican City, the papal en ...

. He was named Archbishop of Vilnius on 24 December 1991. John Paul II created him

Cardinal Priest A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Col ...

of Natività di Nostro Signore Gesù Cristo a Via Gallia in the

consistory Consistory is the anglicized form of the consistorium, a council of the closest advisors of the Roman emperors. It can also refer to: *A papal consistory, a formal meeting of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church *Consistory ...

of 21 February 2001. Bačkis was one of the

cardinal electors A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Col ...

who participated in the

2005 papal conclave The 2005 papal conclave was convened to elect a new pope following the death of Pope John Paul II on 2 April 2005. After his death, the cardinals of the Catholic Church who were in Rome met and set a date for the beginning of the conclave to elec ...

that selected

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...

as well as in the one in

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

which selected

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

. Since having reached the age of 80, Bačkis is no longer eligible to vote in any future conclaves. Within the Lithuanian

Episcopal Conference An episcopal conference, sometimes called a conference of bishops, is an official assembly of the bishops of the Catholic Church in a given territory. Episcopal conferences have long existed as informal entities. The first assembly of bishops to ...

, he has been president (1993–1999, 2002–2005) and

vice-president A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

(1999–2002, 2005–2011). Besides his native

Lithuanian Lithuanian may refer to: * Lithuanians * Lithuanian language * The country of Lithuania * Grand Duchy of Lithuania * Culture of Lithuania * Lithuanian cuisine * Lithuanian Jews as often called "Lithuanians" (''Lita'im'' or ''Litvaks'') by other Jew ...

, the Cardinal speaks English, French, German, Italian, Polish, and has a limited comprehension of Dutch. He is also known as one of the Catholic hierarchy's better Latin speakers.

Retirement

accepted Bačkis's resignation on 5 April 2013.

named Bačkis as his Special Envoy to celebrations marking the 1,025th anniversary of the Baptism (Conversion) of the

Kievan Rus Kievan Rusʹ, also known as Kyivan Rusʹ ( orv, , Rusĭ, or , , ; Old Norse: ''Garðaríki''), was a state in Eastern and Northern Europe from the late 9th to the mid-13th century.John Channon & Robert Hudson, ''Penguin Historical Atlas of ...

, to be held in

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

, on 17 and 18 August 2013.

Honours

* : Grand Cross of the

Order of Vytautas the Great The Order of Vytautas the Great is the Lithuanian Presidential Award.''Lietuvos Respublikos Konstitucija. 84 straipsnis''. Priimta 1992 It may be conferred on the heads of Lithuania and foreign states, as well as their citizens, for distinguished ...

(3 February 2003)

References

External links

*
"Cardinal Audrys Juozas Bačkis"
Catholic Church in Lithuania {{DEFAULTSORT:Bačkis, Audrys Juozas 20th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Lithuania 1937 births Living people Clergy from Kaunas Lithuanian cardinals Roman Catholic archbishops of Vilnius Pontifical Gregorian University alumni Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy alumni Pontifical Lateran University alumni Cardinals created by Pope John Paul II Members of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications Apostolic Nuncios to the Netherlands Grand Crosses of the Order of Vytautas the Great 21st-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Lithuania Lithuanian expatriates in France Lithuanian expatriates in Italy Lithuanian expatriates in the Philippines Lithuanian expatriates in Coast Rica Lithuanian expatriates in Nigeria