Prefect of Azerbaijan
Apostolic Prefect of Azerbaijan Vladimir Fekete was born on 11 August 1955 in the settlement of Chorvátsky Grob, near Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. He graduated in geology from Comenius University in Bratislava. In 1975, at a time when the Catholic Church in Slovakia, then the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic, was subjected to harsh persecution by the communist regime, V. Fekete secretly entered the congregation of religious founded by Saint John Bosco, the community of Saint Francis de Sales, the Salesian community. On 15 February 1975, V. Fekete made his first vows as a religious. On 30 January 1983, V. Fekete was ordained a priest by the laying on of hands of Wolfgang Weider, auxiliary bishop of Berlin. From 1993 to 1999 he served as vicar, or deputy, of the head of the Salesian community in Slovakia. In 1999 he received a licentiate in theology from the Catholic University of Lublin in Poland. From 1999 to 2005 he was provincial, or head, of the Salesian Order in Slovakia. In 2006 he graduated from a pontifical university in Rome. From 2006 to 2009 he served as master, or director, of Salesian novices, candidates for religious life. Vladimir Fekete speaks Slovak, Russian, Polish, English, and Italian fluently. Service in Azerbaijan: On 5 November 2009, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Vladimir Fekete head of the missio sui iuris, the initial territorial-administrative structure of the Catholic Church in Azerbaijan. On 4 August 2011, by the bull De iuvandis, Pope Benedict XVI raised the status of the Catholic Church in Azerbaijan from missio sui iuris to Apostolic Prefecture. Thus Vladimir Fekete became the first Apostolic Prefect of Azerbaijan. On 8 December 2017, the feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Pope Francis raised Vladimir Fekete to the episcopal rank, with the titular eparchy of Municipa. Thus he began to lead the Apostolic Prefecture of Azerbaijan as a bishop. This decision of the Pontiff can be regarded as an appreciation of V. Fekete's many years of priestly activity, his care for young people, and his fidelity to the promises he made concerning the embodiment of Christian spiritual ideals in his life. At the same time, this decision of Pope Francis once again emphasized the special importance for the Holy See of relations with Azerbaijan, which has declared multiculturalism and interreligious cooperation as state policy and is a unique and praiseworthy example of the peaceful coexistence of different religions and nations. On 11 February 2018, the day commemorating the apparition of the Mother Mary at Lourdes, Vladimir Fekete received episcopal ordination by the laying on of hands in the Church of the Mother Mary in Baku. The principal celebrant of the ordination rite was Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States of the Holy See. Together with Archbishop Gallagher, the rite was also performed by Archbishop and Metropolitan Stanislav Zvolenský of Bratislava and Archbishop Savio Hon Tai-Fai, S.D.B., the ambassador of the Holy See in Greece. A number of well-known Catholic clergy from various countries also took part in the solemn Holy Mass: Bishop Stanislav Stolárik of Rožňava; Paolo Pezzi, archbishop-metropolitan of the Archdiocese of the Mother of God in Moscow; Bishop Giuseppe Pasotto, ordinary of the Apostolic Administration of the Caucasus; Bishop Enrico dal Covolo, S.D.B., rector of the Pontifical Lateran University; Ludwig Schwarz, bishop emeritus of Linz; Cardinal Alois Kothgasser, S.D.B., archbishop emeritus of Salzburg; Father Jozef Ižold, provincial, or head, of the Salesians of Slovakia; and priests and religious of the Salesian Order. Representatives of state bodies of the Republic of Azerbaijan, religious communities, the public, and others participated in the ceremony. At the reception dedicated to his elevation to the episcopal rank, Vladimir Fekete greeted the guests with these words: "After the decision of the Holy Father Francis, Azerbaijan became my second homeland. In recent years I have met many wonderful people here: faithful Muslims, Christians, Jews, and also many people of good will seeking the meaning of life. I admire Azerbaijan's hospitality and sincerity, and at the same time its heroic patience and its graciousness toward the historical wrongs committed against it. I am convinced that the Catholic Church, together with the other traditional religions, has its own distinctive and integral place in Azerbaijan by offering spiritual and practical assistance to individuals and to society as a whole and by contributing to development in a positive direction. May Almighty God, the Creator of us all, help us build a more beautiful and joyful world for future generations. May God bless Azerbaijan and protect Azerbaijan!"