Pope Francis has selected Bishop Charles John Brown as his representative in the Philippines. The 60-year-old New York native has been serving in Vatican diplomatic roles since 2011, when he was appointed to represent the pope in Ireland. He later served in Albania.
Ordained in 1989, he received the title of Chaplain of His Holiness from Pope John Paul II in 2000.
He also was appointed Deputy Secretary of the International Theological Commission in 2009
Consecrated Bishop in 2012 by Pope Benedict XVI, Bishop Brown is one of the few nuncios in the diplomatic service of the Holy See not to have studied at the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy. He had been stationed in Albania since 2017.
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US Celebrates 30 Years of Diplomacy with the Vatican
With 70 million baptized people and 86 dioceses, the Philippines is one of the countries with the highest ratio of Catholics, after Brazil and Mexico, a legacy of Spanish colonization.
The last nuncio, Monsignor Gabriele Caccia, was appointed permanent observer of the Holy See to the United Nations in November 2019.
And today we celebrate...