On Saturday 20 April, in the prestigious setting of Palazzo Orsini, the seat of the Order of Malta’s Embassy to the Holy See, the Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, Fra’ John Dunlap, conferred the insignia of Bailiff Grand Cross of Honour and Devotion on Cardinal Christophe Louis Yves Georges Pierre, Cardinal Deacon of Basilica of St. Benedict Outside the Walls.

The ceremony was attended by dignitaries of the Order of Malta, Msgr. Angelo Acerbi, the prelate Msgr. Luis Manuel Cuña Ramos, the Order of Malta’s Ambassador to the Holy See Antonio Zanardi Landi, and the Ambassadors of France and the United States to the Holy See.

“Cardinal Pierre, Bailiff Grand Cross of Honour and Devotion, will take possession of his Titular Church of St. Benedict Outside the Walls tomorrow, and I am particularly pleased to welcome him today at our Embassy to the Holy See, on a very special occasion filled with joy and happiness” said Grand Master Fra’ John Dunlap in his speech opening the event.

Cardinal Christophe Pierre was born in 1946 in Rennes and spent part of his childhood in Africa, completing his primary education in Madagascar and then pursuing his secondary studies in France and Morocco. He started his priestly formation in the Seminary of Saint-Yves in Rennes, obtained his Master of Theology degree at the Catholic University of Paris and was ordained a priest on 5 April 1970. He spent much of his career as a diplomat of the Holy See, serving in various apostolic nunciatures around the world, including Haiti, Uganda and Mexico, and is recognized for mediating tensions and supporting humanitarian efforts in the countries where he served.

On 12 April 2016, at seventy years of age, the Pope appointed Cardinal Christophe Pierre to head the apostolic nunciature in the United States. During his tenure, he intensified talks with the pontiff and promoted immigrants’ rights, participating in demonstrations and meetings along the border between the United States and Mexico. In July 2023, Pope Francis announced his intention to make him a cardinal, and the following September he was appointed Cardinal Deacon of Basilica of St. Benedict Outside the Walls.