The Pope has nine Spaniards, two of them Jesuits, in positions of responsibility in Vatican departments. The most veteran is the theologian Luis Francisco Ladaria, a Jesuit born in Manacor 78 years ago and for five years prefect of the Department for the Doctrine of the Faith. He is closely associated with Joseph Ratzinger. "We are no longer the Inquisition, my mission is to promote and protect the doctrine, above all to promote it," he recalls when asked about his work. In May 2019, the Pope entrusted the Sevillian Miguel Ángel Ayuso Guixot with the dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue. At 70 years old, this missionary combo that has passed through Sudan and Egypt, is one of the leading Arabists in the world and has been instrumental in the Declaration on Fraternity signed by Francis with Muslim leaders in Abu Dhabi in February 2019, and in there in the preparation of the encyclical “Fratelli tutti”. The pontiff's visit to Bahrain scheduled for the first day of November 3 is currently being prepared. The economic and financial policy of the Vatican has been in the hands of another Spaniard since 2019, the Jesuit priest Juan Antonio Guerrero Alves, born in Mérida 63 years ago. He studied Economics at the Autónoma de Madrid, and Political Philosophy at Boston College. He has worked in Spain, France and Brazil. And he is the first to manage to bring order to the Vatican accounts without making noise. Although he is not from the Curia, another close collaborator of the Pope is Fernando Vérgez. This 77-year-old from Salamanca has been working in the Vatican for 50 years. Since October 1, 2021, he has been the governor of Vatican City State, and the civil authority of the smallest state in the world. Standard Related News If Fernando Vérgez: "When I learned the truth about Marcial Maciel I felt sad and confused, he will answer to God for his actions" Javier Martínez-Brocal The new Spanish cardinal is a Legionary of Christ and has been working in the Vatican for 50 years The Vatican counts the numbers two and three of each dicastery a lot. The Spanish Church has two "secretaries" and three "undersecretaries" who maintain the internal machinery, organize the work and intervene directly in relevant decisions. For 15 years, Juan Ignacio Arrieta, born in Vitoria since 71, has been secretary of the Department of Legislative Texts. The Galician José Rodríguez Carballo, 69, was the superior of the Franciscans since the beginning of April 2013, he became the first major appointment of Pope Francis, as secretary of the dicastery responsible for the religious. The three Spanish undersecretaries are Melchor Sánchez de Toca, from Jaca, 56 years old, from the Department for Education and Culture; Aurelio García Macías, 57, from Valladolid, who worked in the department that dealt with the liturgy; and Luis Marín de San Martín, a 61-year-old Augustinian from Madrid, one of those in charge of preparing the synod of bishops.
