KOLKATA, West Bengal (Indian Catholic News) — Pope Leo XIV has appointed Archbishop Elias Frank of Calcutta as a member of the Dicastery for Evangelization, where he will contribute to the missionary and evangelizing mission of the universal Church.
The appointment is to the dicastery’s Section for First Evangelization and New Particular Churches and was effective May 25, according to a decree issued from Rome. The Dicastery for Evangelization sent Archbishop Frank the decree July 7 and the Archdiocese of Calcutta posted it on its website Aug. 13.
“I am pleased to send you the Decree with which the Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, has appointed you Member of the Dicastery for Evangelization, Section for the First Evangelization and New Particular Churches, ad quinquennium, effective 25 May 2026,” the letter said.
“It is my pleasure, on this occasion, to extend to Your Grace my warmest congratulations and to thank you in advance for the valuable contribution you will offer to the cause of the Missio ad Gentes,” it added.
From parish ministry to Rome
Archbishop Frank was born Aug. 15, 1962, in the Diocese of Mangalore. He was ordained a priest in 1993 for the Archdiocese of Calcutta.
After serving in parish ministry, he pursued higher studies in canon law at the Pontifical Urbaniana University in Rome. He earned a Licentiate in Canon Law in 2001-2002, followed by a Diploma in Jurisprudence and a Doctorate in Canon Law in 2003-2004.
From 2007 to 2023, he was a professor of “The Sanctifying Office of the Church” at the Faculty of Canon Law of the Pontifical Urbaniana University. Since 2020, he has also served as a visiting professor at the Accademia Alfonsiana in Rome.
He has authored two books and published numerous articles in scientific journals. His ecclesiastical responsibilities have included editor of Ius Missionale (missionary law), an external judge of the First Instance Tribunal of the Vicariate of Rome and a consultor to the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.
He has also served as a commissioner for in favorem fidei (in favour of the faith) marriage cases at the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. The process involves papal dissolution of a valid, non-sacramental marriage involving an unbaptized person when, after obtaining a civil divorce, one of them wants to marry a Catholic.
Bishop, archbishop and Vatican member
Pope Francis appointed Frank bishop of Asansol in 2023. He was appointed coadjutor archbishop of Calcutta in June 2025, and has headed the archdiocese since September of that year.
The Holy See first announced June 30 the appointment of members and consultors to the dicastery’s Section for First Evangelization and New Particular Churches.
Among the Asian members named were Cardinal Thomas Aquino Manyo Maeda, archbishop of Osaka-Takamatsu, Japan; Archbishop Peter Soon-Taick Chung of Seoul, South Korea; Archbishop Paulus Budi Kleden of Ende, Indonesia; and Archbishop Michel Jalakh, secretary of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches. Archbishop Frank is the fifth Asian member named in the announcement, representing India.
Read the pope’s letter and the letter from the Dicastery for Evangelization.
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