Bishop of Urgell Approves Major Diocese Reorganization Affecting Andorran Parishes

Bishop Josep-Lluís Serrano Pentinat, Episcopal Co-Prince of Andorra and Bishop of Urgell, has approved a major pastoral reorganization across the diocese, affecting several Andorran parishes including Escaldes-Engordany, Sant Julià de Lòria, and Santa Coloma in Andorra la Vella. The changes, signed on 28 May to coincide with the feast of Sant Just, take effect on 1 September 2026.

Key appointments include Antoni Elvira i Gorgorió as the new vicar general and Curia moderator, effectively the diocese's second-in-command. Elvira, who served two years as rector of Sant Pere Màrtir in Escaldes-Engordany, vicar for pastoral action, and director of the diocesan school for ongoing formation, will also preside over the newly formed Episcopal Council. David Codina Pérez, previously general secretary, Curia chancellor, and diocesan economist, replaces him as rector of Sant Pere Màrtir while retaining his economist role. Anna Maria Villas, voluntary president of Càritas Andorra, assumes Codina's former administrative positions.

In Sant Julià de Lòria and Os de Civís, Mn. Pere Chisvert—known locally as mossèn Pepe or Mn. Josep Chisvert—ends his 15-year tenure as rector. He joins the Episcopal Council as representative of the first circumscription, covering the archpriestries of Núria-Cerdanya, Alt Urgell, and Andorra's Valls, while overseeing Sant Ot parish in La Seu d'Urgell and communities including Sant Martí d’Ansovell, Sant Esteve d’Alàs, Sant Serni d’Arfa, Sant Andreu d’Aristot, Santa Coloma d’Arsèguel, Sant Vicenç d’Artedó, Sant Esteve de Bar, Sant Martí de Bescaran, Sant Feliu de Castellciutat, Sant Gervasi de Castellnou de Carcolze, Sants Just i Pastor de Cerc, Sant Vicenç d’Estamariu, Santa Coloma de La Bastida d’Hortons, Sant Vicenç de Montferrer, and Santa Cecília de Vilanova de Banat. Joan Pau Esteban i Osma, born in Colombia in 1973 and previously rector of Sant Feliu in Sort since 2013 (after serving in Agramunt), succeeds him and takes responsibility for Santa Coloma church in Andorra la Vella.

The Episcopal Council, created under canon 473 and the Urgell Presbyteral Council's statutes to strengthen pastoral coordination amid demographic and territorial changes, comprises the vicar general and one priest per circumscription: Chisvert for the first, Jaume Mayoral i Martí for Urgell Mitjà and Noguera, and Alfons Velásquez i Castañeda for Vall d’Aran, Vall de Boí, and Els Pallars.

Additional shifts affect parishes in Cerdanya, Pallars, and Noguera, with priests assuming broader roles. Francesc Torralba, a doctor honoris causa and member of the Dicastery for Culture and Education appointed by Pope Francis, becomes the new director of the diocesan school for ongoing formation. David Codina read the appointments publicly.

Chisvert's departure from Sant Julià follows his initiatives like Canòlich Music and monthly youth masses; he will officiate his final Canòlich gathering on Saturday. The Canòlich Music project reaches Barcelona's Sagrada Família on 19 November as part of "Edificant música," a collaborative event with the Fundació Escola Cristiana de Catalunya and the Secretariat Interdiocesà d’Ensenyament de la Religió to mark Gaudí's centenary through prayer, testimony, and contemporary music tied to evangelical values.