Piergiuseppe Vacchelli (born 4 February 1937) is the current Adjunct Secretary Emeritus of the

Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples A congregation is a large gathering of people, often for the purpose of worship. Congregation may also refer to: *Church (congregation), a Christian organization meeting in a particular place for worship *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administra ...

and President of the Pontifical Missionary Societies since his retirement was accepted by

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 sovereig ...

on 26 June 2012. He previously served as Under-Secretary of the Italian Episcopal Conference and Chairman of its Charitable Assistance for the Third World.

Early life

Vacchelli was born in Longardore di Sospiro in 1937. From 1948 to 1961 he attended the minor and then the major seminary of the

Diocese of Cremona The Diocese of Cremona ( la, Dioecesis Cremonensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in northern Italy. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Mila ...

, into which he was incardinated as a cleric. His

priestly ordination Priestly is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Miranda Priestly, a character in ''The Devil Wears Prada'' * Paul Priestly, a character in ''EastEnders'' See also * Priestley (disambiguation) * Priestly source, one of the propos ...

was on 27 May 1961. From late 1961 to autumn 1963, he exercised his priestly ministry in the Parish of St. John Cross. He was sent to Rome in 1963 for studies in

Canon Law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is t ...

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 ...

. He was awarded the JCL and returned to his diocese in 1967. In that year he was appointed to the pastoral service of the Parish of St. Peter in Cremona. In 1973 he was appointed secretary of the Bishop and, from 1975, also

chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

, a post he held until 1986. In 1986 he was appointed Pro-

Vicar General A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop ...

of the diocese. From 1990 to 1993 he acted as Secretary General of the Diocesan Synod. In 1993 he was appointed parish priest and

canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western ca ...

of the Cathedral of Cremona.

Adjunct Secretary

Over the years he taught canon law and religion in the diocesan seminary at the School of Science and Letters Institute. From October 1996 he held the office of Undersecretary of the Italian Episcopal Conference and Chairman of its committee for charitable aid for developing countries. He was appointed adjunct secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples in 2008 and at the same time

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 ''Minturnae'', receiving episcopal ordination on 3 July from

Cardinal Secretary of State The Secretary of State of His Holiness (Latin: Secretarius Status Sanctitatis Suae, it, Segretario di Stato di Sua Santità), commonly known as the Cardinal Secretary of State, presides over the Holy See's Secretariat of State, which is the ...

Tarcisio Bertone Tarcisio Pietro Evasio Bertone (born 2 December 1934) is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church and a Vatican diplomat. A cardinal, he served as Archbishop of Vercelli from 1991 to 1995, as Secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine o ...

, S.D.B. He knows French, Spanish and English.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vacchelli, Piergiuseppe Living people 1937 births Pontifical Gregorian University alumni 21st-century Italian Roman Catholic titular archbishops Members of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples