Cardinal George Jacob Koovakad visits UK

Cardinal George Jacob Koovakad, prefect of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, is conducting his first official visit to the United Kingdom from October 16 to 22. Traveling under the theme "Together in Prayer and Dialogue for Peace," the cardinal will visit London and Birmingham to meet with representatives from various faith traditions, including Sikh and Dharmic communities.

During the weeklong trip, Koovakad will mark the 10th anniversary of the Syro-Malabar Eparchy of Great Britain and speak to seminarians about building bridges at the grassroots level. Before the trip, the cardinal stated that interreligious dialogue allows Catholics to witness to their faith and that all believers share a responsibility to foster mutual respect and peace.

This visit is the first official trip to the U.K. by the head of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue since Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran traveled to engage faith communities in 2013. The diplomatic mission occurs while Pope Leo XIV recovers at Gemelli Hospital in Rome following surgery to remove a cancerous growth from his lung.