Issued by the Catholic Center for Studies and Media - Jordan. Editor-in-chief Fr. Rif'at Bader - موقع أبونا abouna.org
Newly-named Apostolic Nuncio to Jordan Giovanni Pietro Dal Toso arrived in Amman on Wednesday, March 1, 2023.
Upon arrival, he was received at Queen Alia International Airport by the Latin Patriarchal Vicar for Jordan Bishop Jamal D'aibes, Chargé d'Affaires of the Apostolic Nunciature in Jordan Monsignor Mauro Lalli, and Caritas Jordan Director Mr. Wael Suleiman.
Pope Francis named him as resident apostolic nuncio to Jordan on January 21, 2023. He was also named apostolic nuncio to Cyprus on February 17 2023.
Director of the Catholic Center for Studies and Media in Jordan Fr. Dr. Rif'at Bader had earlier said that this is the first time that a resident apostolic nuncio has been appointed to Jordan, as earlier the named apostolic nuncio served for both Jordan and Iraq, while his entire period of residence in the past was in Iraq due to its political crises and wars.
Pointing out that this residence in Jordan will be considered from now on a positive development in the diplomatic relations between the Holy See and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan which were officially concluded since 1994, he added that the appointed nuncio is considered the sixth Holy See nuncio to serve in Jordan, as his predecessors had welcomed three great pontiffs during their visits to Jordan at the outset of their pilgrimage trips to the Holy Land, namely in 2000 with Pope Saint John Paul II, in 2009 with the late Pope Benedict, and in 2014 with Pope Francis, while all of whom came to Jordan during the reign of His Majesty King Abdullah II Ibn Al-Hussein.
Who is the new apostolic nuncio to Jordan?
Bishop Giovanni Pietro Dal Toso, born 6 October 1964 in Vicenza, Italy is an Italian Roman Catholic prelate, who was the secretary of the Pontifical Council "Cor unum" since his appointment by Pope Benedict XVI on 22 June 2010 until 1 January 2017, when Council was dissolved. He had previously served as Under-Secretary of the Council.
After studying classics, he attended the major seminary of Brixen, completing his studies in philosophy and theology at the Higher Institute of Philosophy and Theology of Brixen, earning the title Magister Theologiae at the faculty of theology at the University of Innsbruck, Austria.
He was ordained a priest on 24 June 1989 for the diocese of Bolzano-Brixen. After three years of ministry in the diocese, he studied philosophy at the Pontifical Gregorian University, receiving his doctorate in December 1997 with a thesis titled, "The concept of proairesis in Gregory of Nyssa". In June 2001 he obtained a licentiate in canon law from the Pontifical Lateran University.
From 1 March 1996, he served as an official at the Pontifical Council "Cor Unum ". He was appointed under-secretary on 21 June 2004. He is a member of the Special Committee for dealing with cases of nullity of sacred ordination and release from obligations of the diaconate and priesthood established by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments and then, when this competence was moved, at the Congregation for the Clergy.
Since September 2008 he has been a member of the Special Commission for dealing with cases of dissolution of marriage in favorem fidei of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
He was appointed as secretary of the Pontifical Council "Cor unum" on 22 June 2010. After the dissolution of the Pontifical Council in January 2017, he was appointed as secretary delegate of the newly erected dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development.
In November 2017 he became Adjunct Secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, succeeding Protase Rugambwa who moved up to Secretary. He was concurrently named titular archbishop of Foratiana and President of the Pontifical Mission Societies upon his appointment as Adjunct Secretary.
He knows Italian, German, French, English and Spanish.