The Latvian Roman Catholic Church has nominated Zbignes Stankevics as the new Archbishop of Riga, because the current Archbishop Janis Pujats will be 80 years old this year, whereas, under the Catholic Church rules, an archbishop who turns 75 has to hand in his resignation to the Pope, the Latvian Roman Catholic Church Information Center told LETA. Pujats called an extraordinary meeting with Riga Diocese priests, where a decision was made to nominate Priest Stankevics for the archbishop of Riga.
The consecration ceremony will take place at St. Jacob's Cathedral on August 8, and Stankevics will officially take the post of the archbishop of Riga on August 21.
Stankevics was born in 1955 in Lejasciems County, Gulbene District.
He graduated from Riga Politechnical Institute in 1978 with a degree in engineering.
In 1996, Stankevics received master's degree from the Catholic University of Lublin.
In 2008, Stankevics received the degree of doctor of theology from the Pontifical Lateran University.
Stankevics currently works as the director of the Riga Institute of Higher Religious Sciences.
Stankevics has published several scientific works and participated in a number of scientific conferences; his hobbies include track and field sports and mountain climbing.
Stankevics is a fluent speaker of Latvian, Polish, Russian, Italian and English, and he can also communicate and read in French and German.
SIC: TBC