Swiss Cardinal Paul Emil Tscherrig, a veteran diplomat of the Holy See and former apostolic nuncio in Argentina and Italy, passed away this Tuesday, May 12, at the age of 79. The news was officially announced by the Vatican and prompted a telegram of condolences from Pope Leo XIV, who highlighted his “faithful service” to the Church and to the successor of Peter.
Tscherrig had participated just a few months ago in the May 2025 conclave that elected Leo XIV as the new pontiff. At the time of his death, he was a member of the cardinal commission of the Institute for the Works of Religion (IOR), popularly known as the Vatican bank.
A life in service to pontifical diplomacy
Born on February 3, 1947, in Unterems, in the Swiss canton of Valais, Paul Emil Tscherrig was ordained a priest on April 11, 1974. He later obtained a doctorate in Canon Law from the Pontifical Gregorian University and, in 1978, entered the diplomatic service of the Holy See.
For nearly five decades, he developed an extensive diplomatic career in service to various pontiffs. His first assignments included Uganda, South Korea, Mongolia, and Bangladesh.
Saint John Paul II appointed him apostolic nuncio in Burundi in 1996, simultaneously granting him the titular see of Voli. Years later, he was assigned to the Caribbean, representing the Holy See in numerous countries, including the Dominican Republic, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, Bahamas, Barbados, and Suriname.
In 2004, he was sent back to Asia as nuncio in South Korea and Mongolia. Benedict XVI later transferred him to the Nordic countries—Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Norway—before entrusting him in 2012 with one of the most significant diplomatic representations in Latin America: the apostolic nunciature in Argentina.
The first non-Italian nuncio in Italy
In September 2017, Pope Francis appointed him apostolic nuncio in Italy and the Republic of San Marino. The decision was particularly significant because Tscherrig became the first non-Italian to hold that position, historically reserved for Italian diplomats.
Subsequently, Francis created him a cardinal in the consistory of September 30, 2023, assigning him the deaconry of San Giuseppe in Via Trionfale.
In March 2024, he left the position of nuncio upon reaching the age limit established by the Vatican and was succeeded by Archbishop Petar Rajič.
The message from Leo XIV
Upon learning of the passing of the cardinal, the Vatican released a telegram signed by Leo XIV addressed to the cardinal’s family and to the Swiss diocese of Sion, where Tscherrig was incardinated.
The Pope expressed his “heartfelt condolences” and recalled “with grateful spirit his faithful service as a pontifical representative in various countries and later as a member of some dicasteries of the Holy See.”
Leo XIV also emphasized that the cardinal “acted generously” in all the assignments he received, “testifying to his love for the Church and for the successor of Peter.”
The Pontiff concluded by commending the cardinal’s soul “to the light that knows no setting” and imparting his apostolic blessing to all those “affected by this sudden passing.”