Cardinal Maradiaga talks with students at St Norbert College.
Camera IconCardinal Maradiaga talks with students at St Norbert College. Credit: Supplied/Chris Richards-Scully

Prominent Catholic Cardinal visits St Norbert College

Pia van StraalenCanning Gazette

CARDINAL Oscar Andres Rodriguez Maradiaga visited St Norbert College last month, the only secondary school the papal advisor visited during his Perth sojourn.

Cardinal Maradiaga was in Perth to attend the National Catholic Education Conference and the Queens Park community was chosen to host him at the close of the event.

The visit was hailed as an honour by college acting-principal Clem Mulcahy.

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“The Cardinal’s visit to St Norbert College is a great honour and a significant moment in the College’s history,” he said.

“His visit is a reflection on the outstanding contribution made by the Norbertines in Queens Park, to Catholic Education in Western Australia over the past fifty years.”

Cardinal Maradiaga is a Honduran Cardinal of the Catholic Church and the current Archbishop of Tegucigalpa.

He was ordained Priest of the Salesians of St John Bosco in 1970 and earned doctorates in philosophy, theology and moral theology, and has a diploma in clinical psychology and psychotherapy.

Cardinal Maradiaga has taught chemistry, physics, music, moral theology and ecclesiology.

Trained in classical piano, he speaks Spanish, English, French, Italian, German and Portuguese.

His Eminence is the first cardinal from Honduras and has participated in the papal enclaves that elected Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis.

He was a former President of Caritas Internationalis, and Vatican spokesperson with the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank on the issue of third world debt.

He is a member of the Congregation for Catholic Education and has been appointed by Pope Francis to co-ordinate the eight Cardinals who are overseeing the renewal of the Roman Curia.

Mr Mulcahy said the visit was memorable for the students.

“The vibrant St Norbert College community continues to flourish and the visit by Cardinal Maradiaga is something our students will remember for years to come. It will undoubtedly inspire them to greater heights of success in the future,” he said.