Welcome back Fr. Luca Baraldi
Fr. Luca Baraldi is an Italian priest from the Diocese of Carpi (near Bologna). He was born and raised in that area of Italy where the Po River flows in the plain that extends between the Alps and the Apennines mountains.
After high school, he entered the diocesan seminary, completing the theological studies in 2003. He then continued his academic formation, obtaining a licentiate in the history of the sacraments at the Theological Faculty of Bologna.
In 2005, he was ordained as a priest and began his pastoral service as parish assistant, responsible for the diocese’s Catholic youth, and referent of the diocesan liturgy service. In 2013, he became pastor of the populous parish of St. Joseph in Carpi, and then member of the Cathedral’s chapter.
In 2018, he had the opportunity to visit the Diocese of Mackenzie-Fort Smith for the first time, spending a month in Inuvik. From there he began to feel a profound calling to proclaim the Gospel and walk with the people living in northern Canada. For this reason, from 2021 to 2024 he served this Church as a “fidei donum” priest, in different missions throughout the diocese.
Now, a year and a half after his return to Italy, Fr. Luca has come back to us to continue sharing the adventure of evangelization in our diocese, while taking up the role of Diocesan Chancellor which has been vacant since the passing of Jim Lynn.
In a Roman Catholic diocese, the chancellor plays a vital role in supporting the bishop by ensuring that the diocese’s official acts, records, and governance processes are carried out faithfully, accurately, and in accordance with canon law. Acting as the principal custodian of diocesan documents, the chancellor safeguards decrees, correspondence, and sacramental records, providing the bishop with reliable institutional memory and legal continuity. The chancellor enables the bishop to exercise pastoral leadership with clarity and confidence, freeing him to focus on teaching, sanctifying, and governing the People of God while knowing that the administrative and canonical foundations of the diocese are sound and well ordered.
Fr. Luca will also be involved in a number of other ministries within the diocese which will be revealed with more clarity once he has a chance to settle in. Please keep Fr. Luca in your prayers in this time of transition and for all our pastoral leaders as they endeavor to labor faithfully for the building of the Kingdom.
Mackenzie-Fort Smith 