Bishop Francesco Cavina appointed as new Vatican visitor for Medjugorje

Pope Leo XIV has appointed Bishop Francesco Cavina as the new Apostolic Visitor for the Medjugorje parish in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The appointment, made for an indefinite period, follows the acceptance of Archbishop Aldo Cavalli’s resignation.

Bishop Cavina, 71, is the retired Bishop of Carpi, Italy. A trained canon lawyer, he previously served in the Holy See’s Section for Relations with States. He succeeds Archbishop Cavalli, who had held the position since 2021 following the death of Archbishop Henryk Hoser.

The role of the Apostolic Visitor is primarily pastoral, aimed at providing spiritual care to the local community and the millions of international pilgrims who visit the site. Medjugorje has been a major Catholic pilgrimage center since 1981, following reported apparitions of the Virgin Mary. While the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith granted a “nihil obstat” in 2024, recognizing the spiritual fruits of the site, it has not officially ruled on the supernatural nature of the reported apparitions.