The Vatican announced March 12 that Cardinal Krajewski, 62, who served as papal almoner for nearly the entirety of Pope Francis’ pontificate, has been appointed metropolitan archbishop of Lódz, ending more than a decade of service in the Roman Curia.
Longtime personal friend of pope
As his successor, Pope Leo has selected now-Archbishop Marín, 64, a native of Madrid and a longtime personal friend to oversee the Vatican’s charitable works. With the appointment, the pope conferred on him the dignity of archbishop.
The Spanish Augustinian shares deep personal ties with Pope Leo. The two men lived in the same Augustinian community in Rome for five years when the future pope, then Father Robert Prevost, served as prior general of the order.
Father Prevost asked Father Marín to come to Rome in 2008 to manage the order’s general archives. When Bishop Prevost was later serving as bishop of Chiclayo, Father Marín visited him in Peru on several occasions, according to the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano.
‘Right person to guide the Church’
“Those of us who know him are aware of (our brother Roberto) Robert Prevost’s many virtues, his preparation and his extensive experience,” then-Bishop Marín wrote shortly after Pope Leo’s election. “I sincerely believe that he is the right person to guide the Church at this time.”
The appointment is one of the first of many changes to the Roman Curia expected from Pope Leo, though not among the most anticipated as several cardinal prefects have already reached or surpassed the retirement age of 75, a group that includes Cardinal Michael Czerny, 79, Cardinal Kevin Joseph Farrell, 78, Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, 78, Cardinal Kurt Koch, 75, and Cardinal Arthur Roche, 75.
Archbishop Marín most recently served as joint undersecretary of the Synod of Bishops, a post he has held since his appointment by Pope Francis in February 2021. He was consecrated a bishop that same year and holds a doctorate in sacred theology from Comillas Pontifical University in Madrid.