Francesco Follo (born 22 October 1946) is an Italian priest of the Catholic Church who has worked in the diplomatic service of the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

as its Permanent Observer to UNESCO from 2002 to 2021. He spent the previous twenty years in the offices of the Vatican Secretariat of State and before that worked as a journalist and performed pastoral work.

Biography

Francesco Follo was born on 22 October 1946 in Pandino, in the

Cremona Province The province of Cremona (; Cremunés: ; ; Casalasco-Viadanese: ) is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its capital city is Cremona. The province occupies the central section of Padana Plain, so the whole territory is flat, without any ...

. He was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Cremona on 28 June 1970. He was vicar of San Marco Evangelista in Casirate d'Adda from 1970 to 1976. He obtained a master's degree in theology from the in 1976, a Master's degree in philosophy at the Aloisianum of Gallarate in 1979 and a doctorate in philosophy at the

Pontifical Gregorian University Pontifical Gregorian University (; also known as the Gregorian or Gregoriana), is a private university, private pontifical university in Rome, Italy. The Gregorian originated as a part of the Roman College, founded in 1551 by Ignatius of Loyo ...

in 1984. From 1976 to 1984, he worked as a reporter for the magazine ''Letture'' published by the San Fedele Center of the

Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...

in Milan. He was also from 1976 to 1983 a spiritual advisor to students of the Polytechnic Institute, the Academy of Fine Arts Brera and the Conservatory of Music "Giuseppe Verdi" in Milan. He became a member of the Order of Journalists in 1978. In 1982 he held the post of deputy director of the weekly ''La Vita Cattolica''. From 1978 to 1983, he was Professor of Cultural Anthropology and Philosophy at the

Catholic University of Milan The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

and at the Higher Institute of Education Assistants in Milan. He joined the staff of the Section for General Affairs of the Secretariat of State of the Holy See on 17 September 1983. From 1988 to 1989, he also taught history of Greek philosophy at the

Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum The Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum (Italian: ''Pontificio Ateneo Regina Apostolorum'') is an educational institute of the Catholic Church in Rome. The Pontifical Athenaeum is directed by the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ. ...

in Rome. On 27 May 2000,

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

awarded him the title Prelate of Honor of His Holiness. On 11 May 2002, he was appointed Permanent Observer of the Holy See to

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

, based in Paris. He was replaced in that position by Eric Soviguidi on 11 November 2021. Since 2004, he has also been a member of the Scientific Committee of ''Oasis'', a magazine specializing in intercultural and inter-religious dialogue.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Follo, Francesco 1946 births Living people Clergy from the Province of Cremona 20th-century Italian Roman Catholic priests Pontifical Gregorian University alumni Permanent observers of the Holy See to the United Nations 21st-century Italian Roman Catholic priests