Cardinal Kurt Koch
1950-
Cardinal Kurt Koch read the Old Testament lesson at an ecumenical service of Morning Prayer in Canterbury Cathedral to mark the 60th anniversary of the Common Declaration of Pope Paul VI and Archbishop Michael Ramsey
Cardinal Kurt Koch read the Old Testament lesson at an ecumenical service of Morning Prayer in Canterbury Cathedral to mark the 60th anniversary of the Common Declaration of Pope Paul VI and Archbishop Michael Ramsey. Photo credit: Neil Turner/Lambeth Palace ~ 26 Mar. 2026
Cardinal Kurt Koch reads a letter from Pope Leo XIV to Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally
Cardinal Kurt Koch reads a letter from Pope Leo XIV to Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally. Photo credit: Neil Turner/Lambeth Palace ~ 26 Mar. 2026
Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally and Cardinal Kurt Koch knelt in prayer together at the shrine of St Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral
Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally and Cardinal Kurt Koch knelt in prayer together at the shrine of St Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral. Photo credit: Neil Turner/Lambeth Palace ~ 26 Mar. 2026
Cardinal Kurt Koch, prefect of the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, and the Rev. Anne Burghardt, general secretary of the Lutheran World Federation, pray during an ecumenical service at the LWF assembly in Krakow, Poland
Cardinal Kurt Koch, prefect of the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, and the Rev. Anne Burghardt, general secretary of the Lutheran World Federation, pray during an ecumenical service at the LWF assembly in Krakow, Poland. Photo credit: Albin Hillert/LWF ~ 19 Sept. 2023
Cardinal Kurt Koch, prefect of the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, speaking at the LWF assembly in Krakow, Poland
Cardinal Kurt Koch, prefect of the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, speaking at the LWF assembly in Krakow, Poland. Photo credit: Albin Hillert/LWF ~ 19 Sept. 2023
Cardinal Koch, Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity (Roman Catholic Church) delivers greetings from Pope Francis of the Roman Catholic Church to the WCC 11th Assembly during its first thematic plenary, focused on Care for Creation. The 11th Assembly of the World Council of Churches is held in Karlsruhe, Germany from 31 August to 8 September, under the theme ‘Christ’s Love Moves the World to Reconciliation and Unity’
Cardinal Koch, Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity (Roman Catholic Church) delivers greetings from Pope Francis of the Roman Catholic Church to the WCC 11th Assembly during its first thematic plenary, focused on Care for Creation. The 11th Assembly of the World Council of Churches is held in Karlsruhe, Germany from 31 August to 8 September, under the theme ‘Christ’s Love Moves the World to Reconciliation and Unity’. Photo credit: Albin Hillert/WCC ~ 1 Sept. 2022
Cardinal Kurt Koch, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, seen speaking in a March 2017 photo
Cardinal Kurt Koch, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, seen speaking in a March 2017 photo. Photo credit: Jens Schulze/CNS ~ Mar. 2017
Swiss Cardinal Kurt Koch, president of the Pontifical Commission for Religious Relations with Judaism, prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, and a member of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith
Swiss Cardinal Kurt Koch, president of the Pontifical Commission for Religious Relations with Judaism, prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, and a member of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Photo credit: CNS

A Swiss bishop, Kurt Koch has been a cardinal since November 2010 and president of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity since 1 July 2010. He was the bishop of Basel from 1996 until 2010.

He studied theology at the Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich and at the University of Lucerne, graduating in 1975 with a Doctor of Theology degree. He was ordained to the priesthood on 20 June 1982.

Documents authored by Cardinal Kurt Koch