Giovanni Battista Morandini (born 30 June 1937) is an Italian

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...

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 ...

who spent his career in the diplomatic service 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 ...

. He became an archbishop in 1983 and from then until his retirement in 2008 served terms as Apostolic Nuncio to Rwanda, Guatemala, Korea, Mongolia, and Syria.

Biography

Giovanni Battista Morandini was born in

Bienno Bienno ( Camunian: ) is an Italian ''comune'' in Val Camonica, province of Brescia, Lombardy, classed as one of the five most beautiful villages of Italy by the Council of Tourism of the Association of Italian Municipalities (ANCI). Geography ...

on 30 June 1937. He was ordained a priest on 22 July 1962 and went immediately to Rome to complete his studies. He entered the diplomatic service of the Holy See in 1966. His first posting was in Bolivia from 1966 to 1970, followed by stints in Belgium and Brazil. From 1979 to 1983 he worked in Rome at the

Section for Relations with States The Section for Relations with States or Second Section of the Secretariat of State is the body within the Roman Curia charged with dealing with matters that involve relations with civil governments. It has been part of the Vatican Secretariat o ...

of the Secretariat of State. While serving in that last post he was reported to have told the family of

Emanuela Orlandi Emanuela Orlandi (born 14 January 1968) was a Vatican teenager who mysteriously disappeared while returning home from a flute lesson in Rome on 22 June 1983. Sightings of Orlandi in various places have been reported over the years, including ins ...

, a teenager who disappeared in Rome on 22 June 1983, that the Vatican wanted to minimize publicity in the case, a remark that has fueled the family’s belief of Vatican involvement in closing the investigation into her disappearance. On 30 August 1983,

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 ...

named him

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 Numida and Apostolic Nuncio to Rwanda. He received his episcopal consecration from Cardinal

Agostino Casaroli Agostino Casaroli (24 November 1914 – 9 June 1998) was an Italian Catholic priest and diplomat for the Holy See, who became Cardinal Secretary of State. He was the most important figure behind the Vatican's efforts to deal with the persecuti ...

on 8 October 1983. John Paul appointed him Nuncio to Guatemala on 12 September 1990, to both Korea and Mongolia on 23 April 1997, and to Syria on 6 March 2004. He retired on 21 September 2008.

References

External links

Catholic Hierarchy: Archbishop Giovanni Battista Morandini
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morandini, Giovanni Battista Living people 1937 births Apostolic Nuncios to Rwanda Apostolic Nuncios to Guatemala Apostolic Nuncios to South Korea Apostolic Nuncios to Mongolia Apostolic Nuncios to Syria

Biography

See also

References

External links