Giorgio Zur

Giorgio Zur (15 February 1930 – 8 January 2019) was a Catholic archbishop and diplomat of the Holy See.

His Excellency The Most Reverend Giorgio Zur
Archbishop

Native name	Georg Zur
See	Titular Archbishop of Sesta
Personal details
Born	(1930-02-15)15 February 1930 Görlitz, Lower Silesia, Weimar Republic
Died	8 January 2019(2019-01-08) (aged 88) Vatican City

Biography edit

The son of a master tailor, Giorgio Zur studied in Rome at the Gregorian University, where he obtained a licentiate in philosophy and theology and a doctorate in canon law. On 10 October 1955, he was ordained to the priesthood. After pastoral work as a chaplain in the Archdiocese of Bamberg, he entered the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy in 1960.^[1] He then entered the diplomatic service of the Holy See and fulfilled assignments in India, Mexico, Burundi, and Uganda.

Pope John Paul II appointed him on 5 February 1979 as the Titular Archbishop of Sesta and Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to Malawi and Zambia.^[2] He was consecrated on 24 February by Cardinal Jean-Marie Villot with co-consecrators Cardinal Agostino Casaroli and Archbishop Duraisamy Simon Lourdusamy. On 3 May 1985 Zur was appointed the Apostolic Nuncio to Paraguay.^[3] On 13 August 1990, Pope John Paul appointed him Pro-Nuncio to India and Nepal.^[4]^[5]

He was president of the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy from 1998 to 2000.^[6] Zur was named Nuncio to Russia on 29 January 2000.^[7] In the Russian Federation, Zur worked to improve relations with Patriarch Alexei II of Moscow, but his repeated protests against the Russian Government's expulsion of a Catholic bishop and several priests soon made his position untenable.^[6]

On 8 October 2002 he was appointed Nuncio to Austria.^[6]^[8] Having reached the age limit for bishops, he retired and took up residence in Rome.

^ "Pontificia Accademia Ecclesiastica, Ex-alunni 1950 – 1999" (in Italian). Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
^ Acta Apostolicae Sedis (PDF). Vol. LXXI. 1979. p. 956. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
^ Acta Apostolicae Sedis (PDF). Vol. LXXVII. 1985. p. 677. Retrieved 9 January 2020.
^ Acta Apostolicae Sedis (PDF). Vol. LXXXII. 1990. p. 927. Retrieved 9 January 2020.
^ "H.E. Msgr. Giorgio ZUR (1991-1998) – Indian Catholics". catholicsindia.in. Retrieved 2018-02-12.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Holy See's Representative in Russia Moving to Austria". Zenit. 8 October 2002. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
^ "Rinunce e Nomine, 29.01.2000" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 29 January 2000. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
^ "Rinunce e Nomine, 08.10.2002" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 8 October 2002. Retrieved 30 November 2019.

Diplomatic posts
Preceded by Agostino Cacciavillan	Apostolic Nuncio to India 13 August 1990 – 7 December 1998	Succeeded by Lorenzo Baldisseri