He succeeds Archbishop Paolo Romeo who was recently appointed apostolic nuncio to Italy.
Archbishop Ventura was born in Borgosatollo, Italy, on Dec. 9, 1944, ordained to the priesthood June 14, 1969, and ordained bishop April 29, 1995.
He holds a doctorate in literature. He has served in Brazil, Bolivia and Great Britain as well as at the Sector of the Relations with States in the Secretariat of State of the Holy See.
He headed the Holy See´s diplomatic missions in Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso and Niger for four years before being named apostolic nuncio to Chile in 1999.
