Archbishop-elect Arnaldo S. Catalan, newly appointed Nuncio to Rwanda, visited Manila Archbishop Jose F. Cardinal Advincula on Tuesday, Feb. 1.
The Archdiocese of Manila posted pictures of the visit on Facebook the same day.
The archdiocese said Msgr. Catalan was welcomed by the Cardinal together with Msgr. Jose Clemente Ignacio, Moderator Curiae of the Archdiocese of Manila and Fr. Albert Flores, Chairperson and Commissioner of the Commission on Church Cultural Heritage.
Pope Francis appointed Catalan as nuncio to Rwanda on Jan. 31 succeeding Archbishop Andrzej Józwowicz who was transferred to Iran in June 2021.
In appointing Catalan as a Vatican envoy, the Pope also elevated him to the titular See of Apollonia, with the dignity of Archbishop.
A priest of the Archdiocese of Manila, the archbishop-elect was ordained to the priesthood in March 1994.
At 55, he is the first priest of the archdiocese to become a nuncio.
Catalan has been serving as the Chargé d’affaires of the diplomatic mission of the Holy See in China (Taiwan) since 2019.
Catalan joined the Holy See Diplomatic Service in July 2001. Since then, he has served in the Apostolic Nunciatures in Zambia, Kuwait, Mexico, Honduras, Turkey, India, Argentina, Canada, and the Philippines.
The details of his episcopal ordination are yet to be announced.