Emil Paul Tscherrig (born 3 February 1947) is a Swiss
prelate of the
Catholic Church who has spent his career in the diplomatic service of the
Holy See. He became an archbishop in 1996 and has since held assignments as Apostolic Nuncio to several countries. He was most recently nuncio to
Italy and
San Marino when he retired in 2024.
He was born in
Unterems on 3 February 1947,[1] the eldest of eight children.[2] He was ordained a priest on 11 April 1974 for the
Diocese of Sion.[1]
Diplomatic career
He entered the diplomatic service of the Holy See in 1978. In addition to overseas assignments, he also worked in Rome in the
Secretariat of State from 1985 to 1996, assisting in preparations for Pope John Paul's international trips.[1][2]
On 8 July 2000, John Paul named him Delegate to the Antilles and Nuncio to Trinidad and Tobago, Dominica, Jamaica, Grenada, Guyana, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and Grenadines, and Bahamas.[4] On 20 January 2001, John Paul named him Nuncio to Barbados, Antigua and Barbuda, and Suriname as well.[5] On 1 June 2001, he was made Nuncio to Saint Kitts and Nevis as well.[6]
On 22 May 2004 he was named Nuncio to Korea[7] and on 17 June Nuncio to Mongolia as well.[8]
On 26 January 2008
Pope Benedict XVI named him Nuncio to Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Norway.[9]
On 5 January 2012 he was named Nuncio to Argentina.[10] On the night of his election to the papacy, Pope Francis called Tscherrig to ask him to inform the Argentine Catholic hierarchy and community that they could miss his investiture as Bishop of Rome and instead perform an act of charity with the money they would have spent.[11]
On 12 September 2017,
Pope Francis named him Nuncio to Italy and San Marino.[12] He was the first non-Italian ever to hold the position of Apostolic Nuncio to Italy.[2]
On 9 July 2023, Pope Francis announced he plans to make him a cardinal at a consistory scheduled for 30 September.[13] At that consistory he was made Cardinal-Deacon of
San Giuseppe al Trionfale.[14]
Pope Francis accepted his resignation as nuncio to Italy and San Marino on 11 March 2024.[15]