The Archbishop of Mendoza, Marcelo Colombo, was appointed as the new president of the Argentine Episcopal Conference (CAE). This organization brings together the Catholic bishops of the country, and on this occasion, Colombo will succeed Monsignor Oscar Ojea in the role. The election took place during the 125th Plenary Assembly of the CAE.
In the same assembly, the vice presidents of the entity were also selected: Monsignor Ángel Rossi, Archbishop of Córdoba, and Cesar Daniel Fernández, Bishop of Jujuy. Additionally, the auxiliary bishop of San Isidro, Raúl Pizarro, was appointed Secretary General of the Episcopal Conference.
The meeting where the new authorities were appointed took place at the retreat house in Pilar and involved the participation of about 100 bishops. The aim was to elect the Executive Commission for the period 2024-2027.
Marcelo Colombo was born in Buenos Aires on March 27, 1961, and in 2013 was appointed by Pope Francis as Bishop of the Diocese of La Rioja. Previously, in 2017, he had been designated as the second vice president of the CAE, and the following year he became the Archbishop of Mendoza.
Before taking on the presidency of the Episcopal Conference, Colombo served as the first vice president of the Permanent Commission and the Executive Commission of the organization during a term that spanned from 2021 to 2024. He was ordained a priest in the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of Quilmes on December 16, 1988, by Monsignor Jorge Novak, Bishop of that city, and in 2009 he was elected by Pope Benedict XVI as Bishop of Nueva Orán.
