The Lithuanian Bishops’ Conference held a plenary session on January 26, 2023, and confirmed Archbishop Lionginas Virbalas as its new delegate for pastoral care of Lithuanian Catholics in the diaspora. The announcement included biographical details. Born in 1961 in Biržai, Lithuania, he was ordained a priest in 1991 and continued his studies in Rome, where he received a degree in theology in 1994. In 2005 he was awarded the commemorative January 13 medal. He was Archbishop of Kaunas for four years ending in 2019, when he withdrew from this position due to health issues, and has now agreed to take on the position formerly held by Monsignor Edmundas Putrimas.
For the past two decades, the pastoral care of Lithuanian Catholics in the diaspora was the work of Monsignor Edmundas Putrimas, who passed away in November, 2022. He spent many years visiting Lithuanian parishes and communities throughout the world, maintained ties with Lithiuania and was active in in many important committees. He was especially dedicated to Lithuanian youth and campaigned against human trafficking. Msgr. Putrimas was the long-standing head of the Lithuanian Catholic Religious Aid organization in the US, which raised funds for many projects in the diaspora and especially in Lithuania.
