Vatican’s new UN observer to face key challenges

Last updated on: July 11, 2014 at 6:02 am by CNA Daily News

Vatican’s new UN observer to face key challenges 2014-07-11T06:02:00+00:00 CNA Daily News

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Vatican City, Jul 11, 2014 / 12:02 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Archbishop Bernardito Cleopas Auza, the new head of the Holy See’s Permanent Observer Mission to the United Nations, served on the front lines in response to Haiti’s disastrous 2010 earthquake.

Now he will have to tackle key international issues like restricting the proliferation of nuclear weapons.

Archbishop Auza, 55, hails from the Philippines and is a former nuncio to Haiti. He is the first Filipino to lead the observer mission at the U.N., and the fourth Filipino to serve as nuncio.

On July 2, Archbishop Auza was named to replace Archbishop Francis Chullikat, an Indian-born prelate who had led the Holy See’s main U.N. presence since 2010.

The new permanent observer is set to arrive in New York at the end of August.

The Holy See’s mission at the United Nations is of key importance for the Holy See’s diplomatic work. It aims to assist the U.N. in realizing “peace, justice, human dignity, and humanitarian cooperation and assistance,” the mission’s website says.

The mission aims to communicate the Catholic Church’s centuries of experience to humanity.

Archbishop Auza will likely bring his commitment for the poor to the core of the mission.

He was born in the city of Talibon on the central Philippines island province of Bohol, the eighth of 12 children. Archbishop Auza received a licentiate in philosophy in 1981 and another licentiate in theology in 1986. He received a master’s degree in education in 1986. He advanced his studies in Rome, where he received a licentiate in canon law and earned a doctorate in sacred theology at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas. He also studied at the Vatican diplomatic school, the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy.

Thereafter, he served as secretary of the apostolic nunciature in Madagascar and Mauritius from 1990-1993 and in Bulgaria from 1993-1996. He was appointed counsellor in the nunciature of Albania in 1997, after which he served as charge d’affaires in London. He then served as counsellor of the Second Section of the Vatican Secretariat of State from 1999 to 2006, and worked for the Holy See’s mission to the U.N. in New York from 2006 to 2008.

In 2008, he was appointed papal nuncio to Haiti. He was in Haiti in 2010, when a massive earthquake hit the western part of the country. At least 316,000 people died in the quake and many buildings were destroyed, leaving hundreds of thousands without homes.

Among the dead was Haiti’s senior churchman, Archbishop Joseph Serge Miot of Port-au-Prince.

Archbishop Auza helped lead the Catholic Church’s response. He worked on the front lines of the disaster to rebuild the country and to help its people. He especially helped collect relief money from the Vatican and other sources to direct to Haiti, one of the world’s poorest countries.

Now, the archbishop is going to take over one of the most influential posts of Vatican diplomacy. The first issue he will handle will likely be nuclear weapons, the target of the Non-Proliferation Treaty to be discussed in 2015.

The archbishop’s predecessor at the U.N., in his last intervention at the Non-Proliferation Treaty Preparation Conference April 30, stressed the need to achieve a non-proliferation treaty which would not lead to an indiscriminate nuclear ban that would preclude “civilian” uses.

“It would be better to have the nuclear-weapon states working with the non-nuclear states to prepare a common path to develop a legally binding instrument banning the possession of nuclear weapons,” said Archbishop Chullikat.

Archbishop Auza will continue the Catholic Church’s leading role in the debate. As one of the founders of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the Holy See has always backed the right use of nuclear energy for civilian reasons. At the same time the Holy See has always worked for a treaty which would lead to a ban on the possession of nuclear weapons.

Several times the Holy See has been asked to raise its status in the United Nations to that of a member state. However, it has preferred to keep its permanent observer status so as to be able to exercise its moral authority without being obliged to vote on war resolutions or resolutions against the Church’s teaching.

There is a separate Holy See permanent observer mission to the United Nations and other international organizations in Geneva.

Vatican

Previous Post

July 11, 2014

Indian bishop-elect aims to show God's love to new flock

Next Post

July 11, 2014 Researcher questions data in same-sex parenting study

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Americas Asia - Pacific Europe Middle East - Africa Uncategorized US Vatican

Select a Month November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What does Paul say happens when we are baptized into Christ Jesus?

Select your answer to see how you score.

We are baptized into his death We become children of God We receive the Holy Spirit We are saved