Memorial Page for Paul Josef Cordes

Cardinal Paul Josef Cordes (born 5 September 1934 in Kirchhundem; died 15 March 2024 in Rome) was a German cleric of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as an auxiliary bishop in Paderborn, in the Roman Curia and later as president of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum.

Origins, studies and priestly ordination

Cordes was born in Kirchhundem in the Sauerland region. After finishing school, he studied theology in Paderborn and Lyon. He was ordained a priest in Paderborn on 21 December 1961. During the 1960s he worked as a prefect in church study houses; in 1971 he received a doctorate in theology with a dissertation on priestly ministry as seen by the Second Vatican Council.

Paderborn and the German Bishops' Conference

In 1972 Cordes became responsible for pastoral questions in the secretariat of the German Bishops' Conference in Bonn and took part in the joint synod of the dioceses in the Federal Republic of Germany. Pope Paul VI appointed him auxiliary bishop of Paderborn and titular bishop of Naissus on 27 October 1975. He was ordained a bishop on 1 February 1976 by Archbishop Johannes Joachim Degenhardt of Paderborn.

Rome, the laity council and World Youth Days

On 26 January 1980 Pope John Paul II called Cordes to Rome. As vice president of the Pontifical Council for the Laity, he worked with international church movements, the Catholic Charismatic Renewal and the Neocatechumenal Way. His involvement with the San Lorenzo International Youth Centre led to a world youth meeting on Palm Sunday 1984; from that beginning the Catholic World Youth Days developed.

Cor Unum and worldwide aid

On 2 December 1995 Cordes was appointed archbishop and president of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum. The Vatican body coordinated humanitarian aid by the Holy See and charitable work in crisis and disaster areas. In this role Cordes travelled to regions marked by war, displacement and poverty. After his death, Vatican News and the German Bishops' Conference emphasized his work for disaster relief, refugees and people in need.

Cardinal and later years

Paul Josef Cordes was involved in the preparation of Pope Benedict XVI's encyclical Deus Caritas est. Benedict XVI created him cardinal on 24 November 2007. Cordes retired from his offices in 2010 because of age. In March 2013 he took part in the conclave that elected Pope Francis. Even after retirement, he remained connected with the Archdiocese of Paderborn and his Sauerland home region.

Death and burial

Cardinal Paul Josef Cordes died in Rome on the morning of 15 March 2024 after a long illness. The requiem in St Peter's Basilica was celebrated on 18 March 2024; exactly one week after his death he was buried in the parish church of St Peter and Paul in Kirchhundem. Pope Francis honoured him in a telegram as a servant of the Church who had been attentive to young people and vulnerable persons.