Pope Francis on August 15 appointed Monsignor Dennis Kuruppassery as the auxiliary bishop of Kannur that covers Kerala’s northern districts of Kannur and Kasaragod. The 57-year-old priest is currently the counsellor at the Nunciature in Malta. Monsignor Kuruppassery was born on August 4, 1967, in Palliport in the Kottapuram diocese. He studied philosophy and theology at the St. Joseph Pontifical Seminary in Alwaye, Kerala. He has a degree in canon law. He was ordained a priest on December 23, 1991, for the Kottapuram diocese. He has held the following positions: Assistant Parish Priest of St Francis of Assisi, Thuruthipuram (1991-1993) and of St Sebastian’s, Gothuruth (1994-1995), and Parish Priest of St Anthony’s, Pullot (1996-1997) in the Diocese of Kottapuram. He entered the Diplomatic Service of the Holy See on July 1, 2001, and worked in the Papal Representations in Burundi (2001-2004), Egypt (2004-2007), Thailand (2007-2010), Czech Republic (2010-2013 ), Gabon (2013-2016) and United States of America (2016-2021).