Resignation and appointment of bishop of Valleyfield, Canada
Appointment of bishop of Kotor, Montenegro
Appointment of bishop of Łowicz, Poland
Appointment of auxiliary of Bahía Blanca, Argentina
Appointment of auxiliary bishop of the diocese of the Transfiguration at Novosibirsk, Russian Federation
Resignation and appointment of bishop of Valleyfield, Canada
The Holy Father has accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the diocese of Valleyfield, Canada, presented by Bishop Noël Simard.
The Holy Father has appointed Bishop Alain Faubert, until now titular bishop of Vicus Pacati and auxiliary of Montréal, as bishop of Valleyfield, Canada.
Curriculum vitae
Bishop Alain Faubert was born on 4 April 1965 in Montréal. He carried out his secondary studies at the Collège Laval in Laval and at the Collège Marie-Victorin in Montréal. He entered the major seminary of Montréal, and attended university courses in philosophy and theology.
He was ordained a priest for the archdiocese of Montréal on 9 June 1995.
After ordination, he first served as parish vicar of Saint-Urbain, Sainte-Dorothée (1995-2000) and Saint-Germain (2011), adjunct of the diocesan Office for Education (2004-2008), and deputy moderator of the Curia (2007-2010). He was awarded a doctorate from the Université Laval in 2010, and went on to serve as episcopal vicar for the East Region of the archdiocese of Montréal (2011-2012), and teacher of ecclesiology at the major seminary of Montréal.
He was appointed titular bishop of Vicus Pacati and auxiliary of Montréal on 19 April 2016, and received episcopal consecration the following 15 June.
Appointment of bishop of Kotor, Montenegro
The Holy Father has appointed Fra’ Mladen Vukšić, O.F.M., minister definitor of the Franciscan province of Herzegovina and parish priest of Posušje, as bishop of the diocese of Kotor, Montenegro.
Curriculum vitae
Msgr. Mladen Vukšić, O.F.M., was born on 28 December 1965 in Ljubuški. After completing his novitiate in Humac, he carried out his military service in Skopje and Kumanovo (now North Macedonia).
On 16 September 1990 he gave his solemn vows in Kočerin and on 26 July 1992 he was ordained a priest in Čitluk.
After studying theology in Makarska, Croatia (1986-1989) and Bologna, Italy (1989-1992), he served as deputy parish priest of Saint Anthony of Padua, Humac (1992-1994). He was awarded a licentiate in youth pastoral care and catechetics at the Salesian Pontifical University (1994-1997), and went on to hold the roles of master of clerics, Zagabria (1997-2000), guardian of the Convent and parish priest of Saint Biagio, Slano (2000-2003), parish priest of Saint Francis of Assisi, Posuški Gradac (2003-2010), parish priest of Saints Apostles Peter and Paul, Kočerin (2010-2013), parish priest of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Posušje (2013-2024).
Appointment of bishop of Łowicz, Poland
The Holy Father has appointed Bishop Wojciech Tomasz Osial as bishop of Łowicz, Poland, transferring him from the titular see of Cediae and the office of auxiliary bishop of Łowicz.
Curriculum vitae
Bishop Wojciech Tomasz Osial was born on 19 November 1970 in Łowicz. He entered the major seminary of Warszawa, and received priestly ordination for the diocese of Łowicz on 25 May 1995.
He was awarded a doctorate in catechetics at the Salesian Pontifical University of Rome (1995-2001), and went on to serve as a catechist at the Skierniewice High School (2001-2005), notary, referent for catechistic matters and inspector of religious teaching for the diocese of Łowicz and the major seminary of the Society of the Catholic Apostolate of Oltarzew, member of the diocesan pastoral council, diocesan censor of religious publications; in 2014 he became honorary canon of the Cathedral Chapter and in 2015, lecturer in the Faculty of Theology of the Uniwersytet Kardynała Stefana Wyszyńskiego of Warszawa.
He was elected to the titular Church of Cediae and appointed auxiliary of Łowicz on 24 December 2015, and received episcopal consecration the following 4 February. On 9 March 2024 he was appointed apostolic administrator sede vacante of the same diocese.
Appointment of auxiliary of Bahía Blanca, Argentina
The Holy Father has appointed the Reverend Pedro Ernesto Fournau of the clergy of the metropolitan archdiocese of Bahía Blanca, Argentina, as auxiliary bishop of the same metropolitan archdiocese, assigning him the titular see of Bararo.
Curriculum vitae
Msgr. Pedro Ernesto Fournau was born on 7 July 1977 in Coronel Dorrego. He carried out his ecclesiastical studies in the Santo Curs de Ars Seminary of the archdiocese of Mercedes-Luján.
He was ordained a priest on 7 September 2012 for the archdiocese of Bahía Blanca.
He has held the following offices: parish vicar of Nuestra Señora de los Desamparados, Carhué (2012-2014) and of Nuestra Señora del Carmen, Tres Arroyos (2014-2017), parish priest of Santa Rosa de Lima, Pringles (2017-2020), referent of social pastoral care and of the bas ecclesial communities of the metropolitan archdiocese of Bahía Blanca; since 2020, he has been part of the team of formators of the Santo Cura de Ars Seminary of the archdiocese of Mercedes-Luján.
He is the diocesan delegate of the group responsible for the synodal path.
Appointment of auxiliary bishop of the diocese of the Transfiguration at Novosibirsk, Russian Federation
The Holy Father has appointed the Reverend Fr. Stephan Lipke, S.J., secretary general of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of the Russian Federation and director of the Saint Thomas Institute in Moscow, as auxiliary bishop of the diocese of the Transfiguration at Novosibirsk, Russian Federation.
Curriculum vitae
Msgr. Stephan Lipke, S.J., was born on 31 December 1975 in Essen, Germany. After his seminary formation in Bonn and Cologne, he studied Church history at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.
On 7 June 2002 he was ordained a priest for the archdiocese of Cologne. In 2006 he entered the novitiate of the Society of Jesus in Nuremburg, giving his solemn vows on 18 May 2019.
After ordination, he first served as deputy parish priest in Cologne and carried out pastoral activity at the Saint Michael Church of the Jesuits in Munich (2008-2011) and ministry at the pre-seminary of the Russian dioceses in Novosibirsk (2011-2012). He worked in the Catholic school (2012-2017) and as parish priest (since 2014) in Tomsk. He was awarded a doctorate in Russian literature from the Tomsk State University in 2017, and went on to serve an apprenticeship in the Philippines and to hold the roles of director of the Saint Thomas Institute in Moscow (2018) and lecturer in medieval philosophy and problems of contemporary philosophy at the Patrice Lumumba University of Friendship of Peoples, Moscow.
Since 2020 he has served as secretary of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of the Russian Federation.
