Pope Francis Appoints Cardinal George Koovakad of India as the New Prefect of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue
Pope Francis has appointed Cardinal George Koovakad as the new Prefect of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, on January 24th, 2025.
The Indian-born Cardinal George Jacob Koovakad, is the organizer of the Pope’s Apostolic Visits.
The Dicastery fosters relations with members and groups of religions not under the Christian name, except Judaism, which falls under the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity.
The Holy See Press Office announced his appointment as Prefect on Friday, January 24, adding that Cardinal Koovakad will retain his current role as organizer of papal visits.
The Dicastery that was recently led by Cardinal Miguel Ángel Ayuso Guixot, and before him, the peacebuilder like Cardinal Tauran, until the end of his life.
Koovakad was born 51 years ago in Chethipuzha, Kerala.
He explained in an interview with Vatican News, that he "was born and raised in a multicultural and multi-religious society where all religions are respected and harmony is preserved. Diversity is a richness!"
He explains; "This does not mean giving up one’s identity but rather being aware that identity should never be a reason to build walls or discriminate against others. Instead, it should always be an opportunity to build bridges. Interreligious dialogue is not simply a dialogue between religions but between believers called to bear witness to the beauty of believing in God and practicing fraternal charity and respect."
The cardinal revealed how the Dicastery’s responsibilities including a relationship with the Islamic world have evolved:
The Second Vatican Council marked the beginning of a new era in relations with other religions, including Islam. I recall prophetic words and gestures, such as those of St. Paul VI, who, as a pilgrim in Uganda in 1969, honored the first African Christian martyrs by drawing a parallel that included Muslim believers in the martyrdom they all suffered under local tribal kings.
Then there are the words of St. John Paul II to Muslim youth in Casablanca, Morocco, in 1985, when he said, "We believe in the same God, the one God, the living God, the God who creates worlds and brings His creatures to perfection." Sixteen years later, the same Pope entered a mosque for the first time, crossing the threshold of the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus during his visit to Syria.
The memory of Pope Benedict XVI praying silently in the Blue Mosque of Istanbul in 2006 remains vivid. And how can we not mention the many steps taken by Pope Francis, such as the signing of the Document on Human Fraternity with the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Ahmad Al-Tayyeb, on February 4, 2019, in Abu Dhabi, followed a year later by the encyclical Fratelli tutti.
He mentioned how papal Apostolic Journeys, involved interreligious dimensions:
Indeed, it is true: the Holy Father’s journeys almost always have interreligious dimensions, encounters with authorities of other faiths, and moments of lived fraternity. I think of the recent visit to Asia and Oceania last September when Pope Francis blessed the "Friendship Tunnel" connecting the mosque and the cathedral in Jakarta, Indonesia. I was moved by the gestures of friendship from the Grand Imam Nasaruddin Umar.
I would also like to mention the beautiful experience a few months earlier in Mongolia, where only 1.3% of the population is Christian, as well as the Apostolic Visits to Kazakhstan and Bahrain. The context of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue is entirely new to me, but I believe the experience I have gained and will continue to gain in the Journeys Office has been and will remain valuable.
Likewise, I hope my service in Apostolic Nunciatures in Algeria, South Korea, and Iran will be helpful. I still vividly remember the images of the Pope’s dialogue with Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Ali al-Sistani in Najaf during his historic visit to Iraq in 2021, even though at that time, I was not yet involved in papal visits.
Source: Vatican NewsThe cardinal revealed how the Dicastery’s responsibilities including a relationship with the Islamic world have evolved:
The Second Vatican Council marked the beginning of a new era in relations with other religions, including Islam. I recall prophetic words and gestures, such as those of St. Paul VI, who, as a pilgrim in Uganda in 1969, honored the first African Christian martyrs by drawing a parallel that included Muslim believers in the martyrdom they all suffered under local tribal kings.
Then there are the words of St. John Paul II to Muslim youth in Casablanca, Morocco, in 1985, when he said, "We believe in the same God, the one God, the living God, the God who creates worlds and brings His creatures to perfection." Sixteen years later, the same Pope entered a mosque for the first time, crossing the threshold of the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus during his visit to Syria.
The memory of Pope Benedict XVI praying silently in the Blue Mosque of Istanbul in 2006 remains vivid. And how can we not mention the many steps taken by Pope Francis, such as the signing of the Document on Human Fraternity with the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Ahmad Al-Tayyeb, on February 4, 2019, in Abu Dhabi, followed a year later by the encyclical Fratelli tutti.
He mentioned how papal Apostolic Journeys, involved interreligious dimensions:
Indeed, it is true: the Holy Father’s journeys almost always have interreligious dimensions, encounters with authorities of other faiths, and moments of lived fraternity. I think of the recent visit to Asia and Oceania last September when Pope Francis blessed the "Friendship Tunnel" connecting the mosque and the cathedral in Jakarta, Indonesia. I was moved by the gestures of friendship from the Grand Imam Nasaruddin Umar.
I would also like to mention the beautiful experience a few months earlier in Mongolia, where only 1.3% of the population is Christian, as well as the Apostolic Visits to Kazakhstan and Bahrain. The context of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue is entirely new to me, but I believe the experience I have gained and will continue to gain in the Journeys Office has been and will remain valuable.
Likewise, I hope my service in Apostolic Nunciatures in Algeria, South Korea, and Iran will be helpful. I still vividly remember the images of the Pope’s dialogue with Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Ali al-Sistani in Najaf during his historic visit to Iraq in 2021, even though at that time, I was not yet involved in papal visits.
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