The Apostolic Nuncio to New Zealand, Archbishop Martin Krebs, has been appointed by Pope Francis to a similar position in Uruguay.
Archbishop Martin Krebs
In a June 27 statement, it was noted that he would leave New Zealand “in just over a month” to be the Apostolic Nuncio to Uruguay.
For more than five years, he has been the Apostolic Nuncio to New Zealand, Cook Islands, Fiji Islands, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu, as well as being the Apostolic Delegate for Pacifica Oceania.
New Zealand Catholic Bishops Conference president Bishop Patrick Dunn expressed his sadness at the departure of Archbishop Krebs.
“There is always some sadness, when someone who has become a friend and colleague departs, but we also know that these periodic shifts are a fact of life for our Nuncios. Archbishop Krebs leaves behind many friends in New Zealand and the Pacific. We wish him well on his new appointment and assure him of our prayers as he leaves the vast region
he has served so diligently for the past five years.”
During his time in New Zealand, Archbishop Krebs has actively participated in the life of the Church, becoming part of his local parish community in the northern suburbs of Wellington. Parishioners at St Francis of Assisi parish will fondly remember singing Christmas carols
together with the Nuncio.
On his time in New Zealand, Archbishop Martin says, “in this relatively small nation, I was happy to see how much attention is paid to people whom others consider too small and too weak. And as a keen hiker, I often looked down from hills far over the sea, deeply enjoying
the large horizons offered to the people of this country, which for a time has been also my country”.
An announcement regarding the new Apostolic Nuncio for New Zealand and the Pacific is expected to be made this month.
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