Pope’s appointments in India and ASEAN

By Robin Gomes

Pope Francis on Monday appointed a new archbishop in Bangalore, in southern India’s Karnataka state, and a new apostolic nuncio to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). 

Bangalore

The Pope appointed Bishop Peter Machado of Belgaum as the new Archbishop of Bangalore.  At the same time he also accepted the resignation of Archbishop Bernard Blasius Moras who stepped down having reached the retirement age of 75 in 2016.   St. Pope John Paul II had appointed Archbishop Moras to Bangalore on July 22, 2004. 

Bishop Peter Machado was born on May 26, 1954, in Honavar. He was ordained a priest on December 8, 1978, for the Diocese of Karwar, which had been created in 1976.

He was appointed Bishop of Belgaum on Feb. 2, 2006, and was ordained bishop on March 30 that year. Prior to his episcopal appointment, he completed doctoral studies in Rome in Canon Law and served as procurator, judicial vicar, consultor and secretary of the Karnataka regional bishops' Laity Commission, based in Bangalore.

ASEAN

Also on Monday, Pope Francis appointed current Apostolic Nuncio to Indonesia, Archbishop Piero Pioppo as the new Apostolic Nuncio to ASEAN.  The post has been vacant since September 13, 2017, following the transfer of Archbishop Leopold Girelli to Israel and Cyprus, as apostolic Nuncio and Apostolic Delegate respectively. 

Headquartered in Jakarta, Indonesia, ASEAN is the regional intergovernmental organization comprising ten Southeast Asian countries, which promotes Pan-Asianism and intergovernmental cooperation, and facilitates economic growth, social progress and cultural development.  It also promotes regional peace and stability, through respect for justice and the rule of law.