Pope visits Dicastery for Doctrine of the Faith, thanks Cardinal Ladaria for service

By Deborah Castellano Lubov

Pope Francis made a surprise visit to the Vatican's Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, less than 24 hours after returning from his Apostolic Journey to Mongolia.

The Director of the Holy See Press Office, Matteo Bruni, announced in a statement that the Holy Father visited the Vatican Dicastery on Tuesday morning, just after 9 a.m., where he met with and thanked Cardinal Luis Francisco Ladaria for all his work during his years serving as its Prefect.

After meeting with the Jesuit Cardinal, the Holy Father also greeted various officials within the Vatican Dicastery.

In July 2008, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Ladaria, a Spanish Jesuit and theologian, as the Secretary of the then-Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and made him an Archbishop.

Pope Francis named him Prefect during his pontificate, succeeding Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Muller.

Named Cardinal in 2018, Cardinal Ladaria served as the Dicastery’s Prefect from 2017 to 2023. 

Cardinal-elect Victor Manuel Fernández of La Plata, Argentina, is succeeding 79-year-old Cardinal Ladaria as DDF Prefect, and will soon take office in mid-September.

The Holy Father just completed his four-day Apostolic Journey to the Asian country of Mongolia to visit its 1,500-strong Catholic community, mostly concentrated in the nation's capital of Ulaanbaatar.

The visit marked the Pope's 43rd Apostolic Journey abroad and the 61st country visited as Pope.

The Holy Father is scheduled to hold his General Audience in the Vatican on Wednesday morning.