Pope Francis names vice director of Holy See press office

Vatican City, Jul 25, 2019 / 04:00 am

Pope Francis Thursday appointed Cristiane Murray as vice director of the Holy See Press Office.

Murray, 57, has worked for Vatican Radio for more than 25 years, where she provided live commentary on papal events and international trips.

"I accepted this appointment with emotion. For journalists and colleagues in the Dicastery of Communication it is a great recognition of our daily work in bringing the Gospel to the world, the message of the Pope and the Church," Murray said July 25.

A native of Rio de Janeiro, Murray has collaborated with the General Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri since April 2018 in preparation for the Special Synod of Bishops for the Pan-Amazonian Region Oct. 6-27.

Murray is married and has two children. In additional to Italian and Portuguese, she speaks Spanish, French, and English.

"The choice of a woman with roots in Brazil and an open outlook to the world testifies to the desire to build a team that can speak the language of those who listen to us," Prefect of the Dicastery of Communications Paolo Ruffini said of Murray's appointment.

Ruffini said that he is sure that Murray will make "a fundamental contribution of intelligence, sensitivity, memory and projects in the service we all try to offer to the Church."

Murray's appointment fills the Holy See press office roster and completes the restructuring announced in January, which created the positions of senior advisor, two assistants to the director, and office manager.

Last week, Pope Francis appointed Matteo Bruni director of the Holy See Press Office, replacing Alessandro Gisotti, who has been serving as director ad interim after the resignations of Greg Burke and Paloma Garcia Ovejero at the end of 2018.

Gisotti has been given the role of vice editorial director of the Dicastery for Communication, serving under editorial director Andrea Tornielli (named to the position in early December 2018) and Paolo Ruffini, prefect of the Dicastery for Communication since July 2018.

Sergio Centofanti, a journalist for Vatican News, was also named a vice director of editorial direction for Vatican communications.

The editorial director and his new deputies will direct all of the content of the Vatican Media platform, coordinate the editorial line of Vatican communications, and oversee the integration of traditional media and digital media with attention to the universal dimension of the Holy See's communications.

"Once again internal professionalism is recognized in the Vatican media and I am certain that the competence of Christiane will be invaluable for the work of the Holy See Press Office," Andrea Tornielli, editorial director of the Vatican Dicastery for Communication said of the appointment.