Regina Lynch becomes new executive president
As of June 14, 2023, international Pontifical Charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) will be led by Regina Lynch, the long-serving head of projects for the charity. She will take on the role of executive director for the next five years from her predecessor, Dr. Thomas Heine-Geldern (71). Cardinal Mauro Piacenza and Philipp Ozores will maintain their current roles as president and secretary general respectively.
Newly appointed Executive President Regina Lynch (66) originates from Northern Ireland. A literary scholar, she has worked at ACN International’s head office in Königstein im Taunus (Germany) since 1980. In 2008, she took over the position of head of projects and became responsible for the screening of close to 6,000 project requests annually from 138 countries. In her 40-plus years with ACN, she has made many trips to beneficiary countries, establishing and nurturing relationships with project partners, branches of the Church, and other charities.
“In an ideal world, there should be no need for a charity like ACN but sadly our service to the suffering and persecuted Christians around the world is as necessary as ever. I feel both humbled and privileged to take on the role of executive president of our Papal Charity for the next five years and with God’s help and the prayers of our benefactors, I will do my utmost to ensure that ACN remains faithful to its mission,” said Ms. Lynch.
In her new role, she will be responsible for the basic content and statutory leadership of the international charity, which includes 23 national offices. She will also be called to represent ACN externally and will be supported in her duties by the Administrative Council and the General Secretariat. As executive president, she will report to the Supervisory Board under the chairmanship of Cardinal Mauro Piacenza.
In 2021, Ms. Lynch received special recognition for her work: as representative of ROACO (a grouping of charities and aid agencies serving the Oriental Churches), she was able to accompany Pope Francis on his trip to Iraq. Since 2017, ACN has provided significant support to Christians returning to the Nineveh Plains after having been driven out by ISIS (2014-2016).
A year of change
In April 2023, she handed over leadership of the Project Department to her successor Marco Mencaglia (45). A political scientist born in Rome, he has been active in the department since 2014, initially responsible for some Latin American countries and then for the whole of Europe.
Also in April, Fr. Anton Lässer, member of the Congregation of the Passion of Jesus Christ (abbreviated CP), was appointed as the new ecclesiastical assistant of ACN International. He replaced Fr. Martin Barta Opus J.S.S. who, after 13 years, is taking on a new role within his order.
Fr. Anton Lässer CP (62) comes from Austria. He initially studied business management and worked as a management consultant. After theological studies, he was ordained a priest in 1999. In 2007, he joined the Passionists (CP). As international ecclesiastical assistant, he is responsible – along with the ecclesiastical assistants of the 23 National Sections – for the spiritual life of the charity.
“With the new executive president, the new ecclesiastical assistant, and the confirmed secretary general, ACN is excellently established, both organizationally and spiritually,” said the outgoing executive president Heine-Geldern. “Regina Lynch knows and loves ACN. She enjoys the highest recognition inside and outside of the charity. And she is a guarantor that ACN will continue to develop in the fulfilment of its mission.”
Heine-Geldern, who occupied the position since 2018, led the charity through the challenge of the growing persecution of Christians around the world and the COVID-19 pandemic.
In May 2019, he received, on behalf of ACN, the Path to Peace Award from the UN representative of the Holy See in New York as a “leading mouthpiece for persecuted Christians.”
Pope Francis has received Heine-Geldern many times and has repeatedly expressed his appreciation for the work of ACN. One such occasion was on August 15, 2019, when the pope blessed 6,000 rosaries during the Angelus prayer, which were distributed to the surviving relatives of war victims in Syria.
Since March 2022, ACN has strengthened its support for the war-torn Catholic Church in Ukraine.
Founded in 1947, Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) informs, encourages prayer, and supports Christians around the world, wherever they are persecuted or lacking the means for pastoral care. The charity is entirely supported by private donors and does not accept public funding.
