Fernando Vérgez Alzaga
L.C. (born 1 March 1945) is a
Spanish Catholic prelate who served as
President of the Pontifical Commission and Governorate for Vatican City State from 2021 to 2025. He was Secretary General of the Governorate of Vatican City State from 2013 to 2021, and before that, director of the Vatican City State Telecommunications Directorate.
He has worked in the
Roman Curia
The Roman Curia () comprises the administrative institutions of the Holy See and the central body through which the affairs of the Catholic Church are conducted. The Roman Curia is the institution of which the Roman Pontiff ordinarily makes use ...
since 1972. He was made a bishop in 2013 and given the personal title of archbishop in 2021. Pope Francis made him a
cardinal
Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to
* Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds
**''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae
***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...
on 27 August 2022. He is the first member of the
Legionaries of Christ
The Legionaries of Christ (in , abbreviated L.C.) is a Roman Catholic religious congregation of pontifical right founded on January 3, 1941, by the Mexican Catholic priest Marcial Maciel. It belongs constitutively to the spiritual family of Regn ...
to become a cardinal. He is a member of the
Council of Cardinals
The Council of Cardinals (, , ; also called C9 because it contained nine cardinal members for a time) or Council of Cardinal Advisers is a group of cardinals of the Catholic Church appointed by Pope Francis to serve as his advisers. The counci ...
.
Life
Vérgez was born in
Salamanca
Salamanca () is a Municipality of Spain, municipality and city in Spain, capital of the Province of Salamanca, province of the same name, located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is located in the Campo Charro comarca, in the ...
on 1 March 1945. On 25 December 1965 he made a profession of faith with the clerical congregation of the
Legion of Christ
The Legionaries of Christ (in , abbreviated L.C.) is a Catholic Church, Roman Catholic religious congregation of pontifical right founded on January 3, 1941, by the Mexican Catholic priest Marcial Maciel. It belongs constitutively to the spiritua ...
, and on 26 November 1969 was ordained as a priest by Cardinal
Ildebrando Antoniutti. Vérgez studied at the
Pontifical Gregorian University
Pontifical Gregorian University (; also known as the Gregorian or Gregoriana), is a private university, private pontifical university in Rome, Italy.
The Gregorian originated as a part of the Roman College, founded in 1551 by Ignatius of Loyo ...
in Rome, earning degrees in philosophy and theology, and then a diploma as an archivist from the
Vatican Secret Archives.
[
In 1972 he entered the service of the ]Roman Curia
The Roman Curia () comprises the administrative institutions of the Holy See and the central body through which the affairs of the Catholic Church are conducted. The Roman Curia is the institution of which the Roman Pontiff ordinarily makes use ...
as an assistant in the . In April 1984 he moved to the Pontifical Council for the Laity
The Pontifical Council for the Laity was a pontifical council of the Roman Catholic Curia from 1967 to 2016. It had the responsibility of assisting the Pope in his dealings with the laity in lay ecclesial movements or individually, and their ...
. He was appointed head of the ordinary section of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See
The Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See (APSA; ) is the office of the Roman Curia that deals with the "provisions owned by the Holy See in order to provide the funds necessary for the Roman Curia to function". It was established ...
and in June 2004 became head of the Internet Office of the Holy See. On 1 February 2008, Pope Benedict XVI
Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...
appointed Vérgez as Telecommunications Director of the Vatican City, with the Poste Vaticane
Poste Vaticane is the organization responsible for the mail, postal service in Vatican City. The organization is part of the Post and Telegraphy Service.
History
The use of stamps was introduced in the Vatican in 1852.
Poste Vaticane was crea ...
. On 30 August 2013, Pope Francis
Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...
promoted him to be Secretary General of the Governorate of Vatican City State, succeeding Bishop Giuseppe Sciacca.titular bishop
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 Villamagna in Proconsulari, and on 15 November, in St Peter's Basilica
The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican (), or simply St. Peter's Basilica (; ), is a church of the Italian Renaissance architecture, Italian High Renaissance located in Vatican City, an independent microstate enclaved within the cit ...
, he was consecrated as a bishop by the pope, assisted by Cardinal Giuseppe Bertello
Giuseppe Bertello (born 1 October 1942) is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church, a cardinal since 2012, who was President of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State and President of the Governorate of Vatican City State from Octob ...
and Bishop Brian Farrell.
On 5 October 2020, Pope Francis appointed him to the five-member commission for reserved matters, a financial oversight board responsible for monitoring contracts that fall outside normal procedures and which for security reasons are not made public.
On 8 September 2021, Pope Francis appointed him to succeed Cardinal Giuseppe Bertello
Giuseppe Bertello (born 1 October 1942) is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church, a cardinal since 2012, who was President of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State and President of the Governorate of Vatican City State from Octob ...
as President of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State
The Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State (, ) is the legislative body of Vatican City. It consists of a president, who also holds the title of President of the Governorate and deputizes as the head of government of Vatican City, as well ...
and President of the Governorate of Vatican City State
Vatican City, officially the Vatican City State (; ), is a Landlocked country, landlocked sovereign state and city-state; it is enclaved within Rome, the capital city of Italy and Bishop of Rome, seat of the Catholic Church. It became inde ...
, effective 1 October 2021. He was also given the personal title of archbishop.
On 27 August 2022, Pope Francis made him a cardinal deacon
A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. As titular members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome, they serve as advisors to the pope, who is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. C ...
, assigning him the deaconry .
See also
* Cardinals created by Pope Francis
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vérgez Alzaga Fernando
1945 births
Living people
Spanish Roman Catholic titular archbishops
Pontifical Gregorian University alumni
Legionaries of Christ
People from Salamanca
Officials of the Roman Curia
21st-century Spanish cardinals
Cardinals created by Pope Francis
Presidents of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State