Polish cardinal named archpriest of Roman basilica

December 28, 2016

Pope Francis has appointed Cardinal Stanislaw Rylko the archpriest of the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome.

Cardinal Rylko, 71, succeeds Cardinal Santos Abril y Castelló, 81, who had served as archpriest since 2011.

Ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of Kraków in 1969 by St. John Paul II, Cardinal Rylko was appointed secretary of the Pontifical Council for the Laity in 1995 and consecrated a bishop the following year.

In 2003, St. John Paul named him president of the Pontifical Council for the Laity, and Pope Benedict XVI created him a cardinal in 2007.

With the recent creation of the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life, the Pontifical Council for the Laity ceased to exist on September 1, and Cardinal Rylko had been awaiting a new assignment.

 

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Further information:

• Rinunce e nomine, 28.12.2016 (Holy See Press Office)