PEOPLE AROUND THE POPE

Pope Benedict names
ex-CDF aide to be #2 man
at the Congregation for Divine Worship
Translated from

June 16, 2009





The Holy Father has appointed Fr. Joseph Augustine Di Noia O.P., until now undersecretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, as secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, at the same time elevating him to the dignity of archbishop.

At CDW, he replaces Archbishop Malcom Ranjith who has been named to be the new Archbishop of Colombo (Sri Lanka).

Archbishop-designate Joseph Augustine Di Noia, O.P., was born in New York City on July 10, 1943 to Italian parents.

He was ordained as a Dominican priest in 1970. After earning his Licentiate in Sacred Theology from the Pontifical Faculty of Theology at the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, D.C., he taught for 3 years at Providence College (Rhode Island).

He earned a Ph.D. from Yale University in 1980, after which he taught theology for 20 years at his Alma Mater, the Dominican House of Studies. he also edited the Dominican magazine The Thomist.

He was named Founding Director of the John Paul II Cultural Center's Inter-Cultural Forum in D.C., and for seven years, he was secretary of the Doctrinal Commission of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops.

In 1998, the Dominican order conferred on him the title of 'Magister in Sacra Theologia'.

From 1997-2002, he was a member of the International Theological Commission [under then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger], and from 2002-2009, he was undersecretary (third-ranking official) of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

He is a member of the Pontifical Academy of Theology and the Pontifical Academy of St. Thomas Aquinas.

He has written the book The Diversity of Religions and co-authored The Love that Never Ends. He has been a prolific writer of articles, commentaries adn reviews as well as a much sought-after theological lecturer in the United States.


Michael Sean Winters wrote this about Fr. DiNoia in his blog for


Father DiNoia was hired by then-Cardinal Ratzinger to be the under-secretary at CDF in 2002. DiNoia had served at the USCCB’s doctrine committee for years before that.

If I may be permitted a personal note, Father DiNoia is one of the smartest people I have ever met. Even when we disagree, which was not infrequent, his arguments and his depth of learning made such disagreements a learning experience for me.

He inhales literature and has always read the most recent journals of ideas, not just of theology but of politics and literature. I remember my mother once spending an entire brunch discussing novels with the good father while my Dad and I discussed the Red Sox. He is unfailingly gracious.

DiNoia’s selection for a post dealing with an issue that is near and dear to the Holy Father’s heart makes sense. The two have collaborated closely in the past. They know each other’s mind.

It is not every day that you encounter news from Rome that is thrilling, but this is thrilling.





Even if Archbishop Ranjith is leaving the Vatican yet again, this time to go back to his native land, I will post a story about his new appointment on this thread - after all, Pope Benedict thought highly enough of him to bring him back to the Vatican in 2005 from Indonesia (to which he had been 'exiled' as Apostolic Nuncio after having been Secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelization fo Peoples) to be #2 at the Congregation for Divine Worship.

He has been named Archbishop of Colombo in time to receive his pallium from the Pope as a Metropolitan Bishop in the annual ceremony on June 29. His CV is truly impressive.


Pope appoints Malcolm Ranjith
as Colombo archbishop
By Gerard O'Connell
Special Correspondent in Rome

June 16, 2009

VATICAN CITY, June 16 (UCAN) -- Pope Benedict XVI has appointed Archbishop Albert Malcolm Ranjith Patabendige Don -- one of his most trusted collaborators in the Vatican and a forceful advocate for justice and peace -- to head the archdiocese of Colombo in Sri Lanka.

A strong leader, he returns as head of the Sri Lankan Church in what many observers see as a particularly difficult moment. A bloody 25-year civil war has just ended with the military defeat of the Tamil Tigers rebels but which has raised many questions about the conduct of the final phase of the war and, more importantly, has not resolved the root causes of that conflict.

One of only two Asians in top positions in the Roman Curia -- the other being Indian Cardinal Ivan Dias, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of the Peoples -- he succeeds Archbishop Oswald Gomis, who reached the official retirement age of 75 over 18 months ago.

The Vatican made the announcement on June 16, confirming rumors that have circulated in Rome for almost a year.

The Pope has appointed the American Dominican, Father Joseph Augustine ("Gus") Di Noia to succeed Archbishop Ranjith as Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments and has promoted him to the rank of archbishop.

Father Di Noia is well known to the Pope as they worked together in the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, when the future Pope was head of that Vatican office and the Dominican priest was under-secretary.

Archbishop Ranjith was born in Polgahawela, Sri Lanka, on Nov. 15, 1947 and completed his early studies in Colombo and Kandy, before going on to the Pontifical Urban University in Rome, where he obtained a degree in theology.

Pope Paul VI ordained him priest in St. Peter's Basilica on June 29, 1975.

He then went for higher studies and gained a licentiate in Sacred Scripture from the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome and a special certificate in Biblical studies from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

After various pastoral and academic appointments in Colombo archdiocese, and having served in various roles at national level, Pope John Paul II named him auxiliary bishop of Colombo in 1991 and appointed him bishop of Ratnapura in 1995.

From 1995-2001, he served as secretary-general of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Sri Lanka and chairman of the National Commission for Justice, Peace and Human Development.

In the latter role, he became heavily involved in the search for a solution to the country's civil conflict. The government appointed him as its emissary on peace negotiations with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam in Sri Lanka.

Pope John Paul II brought him to Rome on Oct. 1, 2001, as adjunct secretary at the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, and on April 29, 2004, appointed him apostolic nuncio to Indonesia and Timor Leste.

Archbishop Ranjith was among the first of the new appointments to the Roman Curia made by Pope Benedict XVI after his election. On Dec. 10, 2005, the pontiff designated him secretary to the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, a post he has held until now and which has given him considerable international experience and a wide understanding of the universal Church.

The archbishop speaks English, French, German, Italian, Sinhalese and Tamil fluently, and has a fair knowledge of Indonesian and Spanish. He has also studied Hebrew, Greek, Latin and Arabic.

Many in Rome believe his new appointment puts him in line for a red hat. Sources expect Pope Benedict to make him a cardinal either in the forthcoming consistory, probably in 2010, or in the next one, about two years later.

Pope Paul VI gave Sri Lanka its first cardinal in 1965 when he gave the red hat to the Archbishop Thomas Benjamin Cooray of Colombo.

Archbishop Ranjith could be Sri Lanka's second cardinal.