Julian Leow Beng Kim (born 3 January 1964) is a Malaysian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur since 2014.[1]
Early life
Leow was born on 3 January 1964, in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan to an ethnic Malaysian Chinese family of Cantonese descent. He obtained a Bachelor of Building from the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia in the year 1989. He then studied at College General, Penang from 1994 to 2001. He was ordained priest for the Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur on 20 April 2002, by Most Rev Anthony Soter Fernandez (Later, Cardinal).[2]
Leow has also obtained a licentiate in Church history from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, Italy. He also served as the dean of studies and formator at College General, Penang, from 2009 until his appointment as the archbishop of Kuala Lumpur.[3]
Appointment as archbishop
On 3 July 2014, Pope Francis appointed Leow as the 4th archbishop of Kuala Lumpur.[4] He succeeds Archbishop Emeritus Murphy Pakiam, whose resignation was accepted by the Pope on 13 December 2013 upon the reaching the age limit of 75 according to the Canon Law.[5]
Leow was consecrated and installed archbishop on 6 October 2014, in the presence of the Apostolic Nuncio to Malaysia, Archbishop Joseph Marino at the Church of the Holy Family in Kajang, Selangor.[6] Some 12,000 came from around the country to witness the consecration.[6] His principal consecrator was the Archbishop of Kuching, Most Rev. Dato' John Ha Tiong Hock. His co-consecrators were Archbishop Emeritus Murphy Pakiam and Archbishop Emeritus Anthony Soter Fernandez.
The motto for Leow's episcopacy is "Integrity and Tenderness".[7]
Controversy erupted on the day of Leow's ordination to the episcopacy regarding the inclusion of a 'tree of all religions' in his episcopal coat of arms. An article published by conservative Roman Catholic news portal Rorate Caeli[8] reported that a local group of Catholic faithful had been deeply scandalized by the symbol, which could be suggestive of the heresy of indifferentism.
See also
References
- ^ "OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS". Archived from the original on 2014-10-29. Retrieved 2014-07-04.
- ^ "Father Julian Leow is new Archbishop of Kuala Lumpur". The Star Online. April 24, 2016.
- ^ "Biography – Most Rev. Julian Leow". Archived from the original on 2015-11-21.
- ^ "Appointment of new Archbishop for Kuala Lumpur".
- ^ "Pope Francis accepts resignation of Archbishop Murphy Pakiam of Kuala Lumpur".
- ^ a b "Thousands throng church to witness ordination of Father Julian as Archbishop of Kuala Lumpur".
- ^ "Coat of Arms of Most Rev. Julian Leow". Archived from the original on 2015-11-21. Retrieved 2015-11-20.
- ^ "A New Symbol in Catholic Heraldry: "The Tree of All Religions"".
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