By Hannah Brockhaus. The archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels, the primatial see of Belgium, is considered the most important position in the Catholic Church in the country.
The city of Brussels is also a major center of international politics and the de facto capital of the European Union. Terlinden, 54, has been vicar general of the archdiocese since His episcopal ordination will be on Sept. He was ordained a priest a month before his 31st birthday in and proceeded to earn a doctorate in moral theology from the Alphonsian Academy in Rome. His thesis included a study of the writings of St. John Henry Newman.
He spent nine years as the head of vocations for the archdiocese and was president of the French-language archdiocesan seminary, where he has also taught moral theology. Terlinden told the Catholic Flemish magazine Kerk and Leven in that he had a profound experience as a young priest at World Youth Day in Rome in While he was in the military as a young man, he also took part in a military pilgrimage to Lourdes, France.
The archbishop-elect is part of the Jesus Caritas Priestly Fraternity, a community for priests inspired by St. Charles de Foucauld, and has a pet dachshund named Oscar.
With the nomination of Terlinden, who is from the Francophone part of Belgium, Pope Francis has followed the custom of alternating Flemish and French-speakers as archbishop of Brussels. Your monthly donation will help our team continue reporting the truth, with fairness, integrity, and fidelity to Jesus Christ and his Church. In open defiance of the Vatican, Catholic bishops in Belgium on Tuesday announced the introduction of blessing ceremonies for same-sex couples.
