Bishop Philippe Jourdan Marks 20 Years of Service as Estonia’s Catholic Leader

This week brought Estonia another important anniversary—the 20th anniversary of Bishop Philippe Jourdan’s episcopal ordination in the Catholic Church.

To mark the jubilee, a Mass was held on September 10th in Sts. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Tallinn, followed by a reception in the church garden hosted by the Ambassador of the Order of Malta, Manfred von Markhof.

As September has felt more like summer, the entire reception took place outdoors. Present were members of the Order of Malta, leaders of other churches, as well as our current and hopefully future volunteers. In his speech, the ambassador thanked Bishop Jourdan, whose contribution to Estonia’s spiritual and cultural life is difficult to overstate.

To confirm this, the ambassador also honoured Bishop Philippe with the Order of Malta medal. Of course, Bishop Jourdan himself also spoke at the event. Alongside this, the Order of Malta expressed gratitude to all its volunteers who had helped prepare the beatification Mass of Eduard Profittlich just a few days earlier.

“A bouquet of flowers, a warm handshake, and a sincere smile—such small but meaningful gestures count for a lot. They show that the organisation cares about its people and values their work.

The ability to support the workers or volunteers and bring out the best in them is the key to success both in business and in charity. I am convinced that the Order of Malta in Estonia has a very bright future,” said Lennart, one of the co-workers.