Vatican City, Jun 24, 2024 / 07:30 am (CNA).
Pope Francis has appointed Archbishop Georg Gänswein, the former private secretary to the late Pope Benedict XVI, to a diplomatic role in the Baltic states.
The Vatican announced Monday that Gänswein will serve as the apostolic nuncio, or papal ambassador, to Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia.
The appointment comes after months of speculation and rumor across Rome and the Church in Germany as to Gänswein’s future after the death of Benedict XVI.
The relationship between Gänswein and the current pope has been notably strained. In a recent Spanish-language interview book, “El Sucesor,” Pope Francis went so far as to say Benedict was “being used” by Gänswein in the context of the publication of a “tell-all” book.
Last year, Pope Francis instructed Gänswein to return to Germany, leaving him without any official role in the Church. The 67-year-old has resided in his home region of the Archdiocese of Freiburg in southern Germany since July 2023, where he is an honorary canon in the Freiburg cathedral.
Before his departure from the Eternal City, Gänswein spent many years in Rome. He served as Benedict XVI’s personal secretary from 2003 until the Bavarian pope’s death on Dec. 31, 2022. Benedict also appointed him to serve as the prefect of the papal household in 2012, a role he carried into the pontificate of Pope Francis and concluded in February 2023.
Hailing from the Black Forest region of Germany, the son of a blacksmith was ordained a priest in 1984 by Archbishop Oskar Saier in Freiburg and holds a doctorate in canon law from Ludwig-Maximilian University in Munich.
As apostolic nuncio to the Baltic states, Gänswein will serve as the permanent diplomatic representation of the Holy See and will perform similar duties to an ambassador.
The Baltic countries have a substantial Christian population. According to the Pew Research Center, 93% of Lithuanians are Christian with 75% of adults identifying as Catholic. Latvia and Estonia both have considerable Orthodox and Lutheran populations with Catholics only making up 1% of Estonia’s population.
Mass attendance is low across the Baltic states with only 7% of Catholics in Latvia and 10% in Lithuania saying they attend Mass weekly.
Gänswein succeeds Archbishop Pedro López Quintana, who served as the nuncio to the Baltic states until Pope Francis reassigned him as Apostolic Nuncio to Austria in 2019.
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On appointment of Gänswein as Apostolic nuncio to the Baltic states. Archbishop Georg Gänswein’s tell all book is not what it was portended to be according to CNA’s Andrea Gagliarducci. There was Benedict’s anger of Traditionis Custodes and not much more regarding conflict.
During Benedict’s monastic emeritus tenure Archbishop Viganò requested a tete a tete with Benedict. Gänswein refused on good grounds, realizing how that would be interpreted by the Church at large and especially by the Lord of the Manor. It was surprising that the Archbishop didn’t seem to take that into account, his judgment questionable. Regarding Archbishop Viganò, he released a communique that was posted by FSSPX News. It quoted Viganò as saying he would not comply with the directive I believe to report to the Vatican June 28. The reason being that he did not recognize the authority of the DDF prefect, nor the person who appointed him. He stated in the communique that Bergoglio, as he calls the Pope, because of his “defect of consent” to the papal office. Unfortunately, the Archbishop can’t prove that defect of consent, or that even if so that it would invalidate his election. Unfortunately he positions himself as separate and in schism with the Roman pontiff.
Archbishop Georg Gänswein has a more pleasant scenario to look forward to. Benedict XVI is perhaps tinkering on his piano with Angelic accompaniment. Viganò needs our prayers. I pray whatever occurs that he’s reconciled with Christ. And that he continues in the best of intent and rectitude to witness to the truth of the faith.