Pope Francis yesterday appointed a senior Vatican diplomat as his new Secretary of State, to replace Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone. The Secretary of State is considered the top political and diplomatic position in the Vatican and in some instances he can stand in for the pope.
His replacement for the "number two" position at the Vatican, is Italian ARCHBISHOP PIETRO PAROLIN. He is currently the Catholic Church's envoy to Venezuela.
At 58, Archbishop Parolin is seen as relatively youthful for a top Vatican office. Some think he could help a process of renewal within the church, as well as making it more influential in the modern world.
"I feel the full weight of the responsibility placed upon me: this call entrusts to me a difficult and challenging mission," the Archbishop said in a statement.
Ordained in 1980, he was previously a Vatican envoy to Mexico, where he fought to gain legal recognition for the Catholic Church. His first foreign posting for the Vatican was in Nigeria where he became familiar with the problems in Christian-Muslim relations . He has worked on sensitive issues for the Church, including diplomatic relations with Israel and improving ties with communist China. In 2009, he was appointed papal nuncio to Caracas. He speaks Italian, English, French, and Spanish
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"I feel very strongly the grace of this call, which is yet another and the latest of God's surprises in my life," Archbishop Parolin said in a statement quoted by Vatican Radio.