Jan Vokal (born 25 September 1958) is the current

Bishop of Hradec Králové A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy 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 and administration of di ...

since his installation on 14 May 2011. He had previously served as an official in the Secretariat of State. Vokál was born in 1958 at

Hlinsko Hlinsko () is a town in Chrudim District in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 9,600 inhabitants. The local part of Betlém is well preserved example of folk architecture and is protected as a Cultural monument (Czech Republi ...

(

Pardubice Region Pardubice Region () is an administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located mainly in the eastern part of its historical region of Bohemia, with a small part in northwestern Moravia. It is named after its capital Pardubice. As an administrat ...

). He earned a degree in Engineering Cybernetics at the Technical University in Prague. In 1983 he was admitted to the College of Saint John Nepomuk in Rome and studied philosophy and theology at the

Pontifical Lateran University The Pontifical Lateran University (; ), also known as Lateranum, is a pontifical university based in Rome. The university also hosts the central session of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family. The university ...

. He was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

28 May 1989 for the diocese of Hradec Králové. He continued his education in the United States at St. Thomas University and worked as assistant priest in the Diocese of Peoria, in the United States. In 1991 he began his service at the Secretariat of State (Section for General Affairs). From 1992 to 2005 he was personal secretary of Cardinal

Corrado Bafile Corrado Bafile (4 July 1903 – 3 February 2005) was an Italian cardinal of the Catholic Church who served as Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints from 1975 to 1980, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1976. At the time of hi ...

, Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. In 2008 he obtained a doctorate in utroque iure, i.e. in both civil and canon law, from the

and in the following year a doctorate in civil law at the

Charles University in Prague Charles University (CUNI; , UK; ; ), or historically as the University of Prague (), is the largest university in the Czech Republic. It is one of the oldest universities in the world in continuous operation, the oldest university north of the ...

. In 2005 he was appointed a coadjutor canon of the Chapter of the

Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore Santa Maria Maggiore (), also known as the Basilica of Saint Mary Major or the Basilica of Saint Mary the Great, is one of the four major papal basilicas and one of the Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome. The largest Marian church in Rome, it is ...

. He was appointed to Hradec Králové by

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 ...

on 3 March 2011, consecrated a bishop on 7 May, and installed on 14 May.

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Vokal, Jan 1958 births People from Hlinsko Charles University alumni Pontifical Lateran University alumni 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in the Czech Republic Living people Bishops appointed by Pope Benedict XVI