George_Kocherry

George Kocherry

George Kocherry

Indian prelate of the Catholic Church (born 1945)

George Kocherry (born 4 February 1945) is an Indian prelate of the Syro-Malabar Church who joined the diplomatic service of the Holy See in 1978 and became an archbishop and nuncio in 2000. After serving as apostolic nuncio to Togo, Ghana, and Zimbabwe, he was the nuncio to Bangladesh from 2013 to 2022.

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Biography

George Kocherry was born in Changanacherry, Kerala, on 4 February 1945,[1] the eldest of fourteen children.[2]

He left India in 1967 to study philosophy and theology in Rome, where he obtained his doctorate in canon law.[3] He was ordained a priest of the Archeparchy of Changanacherry on 26 June 1974.[1]

Diplomatic career

To prepare for the diplomatic service, he completed the course of study at the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy in 1974.[4]

He entered the diplomatic service of the Holy See on 1 May 1978. He served in the nunciatures in South Korea, Costa Rica, Nigeria, Trinidad and Tobago, Thailand, Singapore, Switzerland and Australia.[1]

On 10 June 2000, Pope John Paul II appointed him Apostolic Nuncio to Ghana and Togo and Titular Archbishop of Othona.[1] He received his episcopal consecration from Archbishop Joseph Powathil on 21 August. As a rare nuncio not raised in the Roman rite, he said: "By my appointment, the Vatican has declared its love and consideration for the Syro-Malabar archdiocese."[2]

He was replaced as nuncio to Togo in November 2002, when Pierre Nguyên Van Tot received that title along with that of nuncio to Benin.[5]

On 22 December 2007, Pope Benedict XVI named him Apostolic Nuncio to Zimbabwe.[6]

On 6 July 2013, Pope Francis appointed him Apostolic Nuncio to Bangladesh.[7] He held that position when Pope Francis visited Bangladesh in November 2017 and he coordinate later efforts to support Rohingya refugees.[8]

Pope Francis accepted his resignation from his Bangladesh assignment on 24 August 2022.[9]

See also

References

  1. [1]
    "Rinunce e Nomine, 19.06.2000" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  2. [2]
    "Syro-Malabar Church Rejoices over New Nuncio". 25 August 2000. Archived from the original on 14 February 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  3. [3]
    "Indian appointed new Bangladesh papal nuncio". UCAN India. 10 July 2013. Archived from the original on 11 July 2019. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  4. [4]
    "Pontificia Accademia Ecclesiastica, Ex-alunni 1950 – 1999" (in Italian). Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  5. [5]
    "Rinunce e Nomine, 25.11.2002" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 25 November 2002. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  6. [6]
    "Rinunce e Nomine, 22.12.2007" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 22 December 2007. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  7. [7]
    "Rinunce e Nomine, 06.07.2013" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 6 July 2013. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  8. [8]
    Uttom, Stephan (24 August 2022). "Papal nuncio hailed for empowering Bangladeshi Church". UCA News. Retrieved 25 August 2022.
  9. [9]
    "Rinunce e nomine, 24.08.2022" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 24 August 2022. Retrieved 25 August 2022.
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