Raúl Biord Castillo takes office as the new archbishop of Caracas

The new archbishop of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Caracas, Monsignor Raúl Biord Castillo took office this Saturday in the capital of Venezuelareplacing Cardinal Baltazar Porras, who had held the post since January 2023.

During the ceremony, Biord Castillo, who has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of La Guaira state (north) since 2013, expressed his gratitude to Pope Francis for having appointed him as the 17th archbishop of Caracas.

“I come with great humility, aware of my limitations and my smallness, but trusting in your grace and in the help of all of you, my brothers,” said the monsignor, quoted on the Archdiocese’s Instagram account.

Raúl Biord Castillo, new archbishop of Caracas

From the Cathedral of Caracas, he called on parishioners to “fervently” ask God that, in “this difficult time, full of conflicts, violence and resentments,” he grant the Venezuelan people “the grace” to feel and treat each other “as brothers” and to seek “not personal interests, but the true good” of the country.

At the event, Biord Castillo also expressed his hope that the canonization of José Gregorio Hernández, known in the country as ‘the doctor of the poor’, to whom numerous miracles are attributed throughout South America, will take place “soon.”

On the other hand, the Archdiocese of Caracas reported, through the social network, that this Saturday Pope Francis named Porras as his pontifical legate for the 53rd International Eucharistic Congress Quito 2024, which will take place from September 8 to 15 in Ecuador.

The Pope recently expressed his concern about the situation in Venezuela and called on all parties to seek the truth and behave with moderation and avoid violence.

He also urged “that disputes be resolved through dialogue for the good of the population and not for the interests of each party.”

Venezuela is experiencing a political crisis following the presidential elections of July 28, in which the National Electoral Council (CNE) declared President Nicolás Maduro the winner. The result has been questioned inside and outside the country and described as fraudulent by the majority opposition, which insists on the “victory” of its standard-bearer, Edmundo González Urrutia.