Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru

Mangaluru, Nov 4: The Mangalore diocese congratulated Dr Alfred Rayan D’Souza as he was appointed as chaplain to the Pope at Vatican. His appointment as chaplain of his Holiness was confirmed on October 11 by the Vatican Secretriate which entitles him to be addressed as 'Monsignor'. He is entitled to certain privileges with regards ecclesiastical dress and so on.

Currently, Msgr Alfred Rayan is serving as second secretary at the Apostolic Nunciature at Zagreb in the Republic of Croatia, a diplomatic position in the Vatican Nunciature.

Dr Alfred Rayan hails from Pangala in Udupi district. He was born in March 1980 and ordained as a priest on April 15, 2008 after being trained at St Joseph's Seminary, Mangaluru. He served as assistant parish priest at Rosario Cathedral in 2008-10, and for about a year as assistant director of Gladson Home in 2010-11. From 2011 he attended higher studies in Rome. He completed Licentiate in Canon Law from the Pontifical Urban University. In 2015, he was invited to join Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy which prepares priests for the diplomatic service of the Holy See. He continued his doctorate studies in Canon Law and obtained a doctorate degree from the Pontifical Lateran University. Post his studies, he was assigned to the Apostolic Nunciature in Uganda in August 2017 and in 2019 he was posted to Croatia.