Antonio Maria De Luca (born 1 July 1956) is an Italian

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

bishop and a member of the Redemptionist order. He currently serves as the Bishop of Teggiano-Policastro.

Biography

Antonio Maria De Luca was born on 1 July 1956 in the ''

comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...

'' of

Torre del Greco Torre del Greco (; nap, Torre d' 'o Grieco; "Greek man's Tower") is a ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Naples in Italy, with a population of c. 85,000 . The locals are sometimes called ''Corallini'' because of the once plentiful cora ...

Campania Campania (, also , , , ) is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islands and the i ...

, Italy.

Priestly ministry

After profession his vows in the

Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer The Redemptorists officially named the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer ( la, links=no, Congregatio Sanctissimi Redemptoris), abbreviated CSsR,is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of pontifical right for men (priests and brother ...

on 29 September 1973, De Luca took theology and philosophy courses with the

Salesians , image = File:Stemma big.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms , abbreviation = SDB , formation = , founder = John Bosco , founding_location = Valdocco, Turin ...

Castellammare di Stabia Castellammare di Stabia (; nap, Castiellammare 'e Stabbia) is a ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Naples, Campania region, in southern Italy. It is situated on the Bay of Naples about southeast of Naples, on the route to Sorrento. History ...

, then obtained a licentiate in moral theology from the

San Luigi Papal Theological Seminary of Southern Italy The San Luigi Papal Theological Seminary of Southern Italy (Italian: ''Pontificia Facoltà Teologica dell'Italia Meridionale, San Luigi'') is an institution of higher learning in Naples, Italy. It is located prominently on via Petrarca in the Posil ...

. He was ordained a priest on 5 July 1981 at the Redemptorist church of Colle Sant'Angelo in Torre del Greco and held numerous positions in the Redemptorist order, working for the propagation of the mission abroad (in

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

and Argentina). He then was the director of the Redemptorist missionary school from 1981 to 1990 and was a parish assistant at the Church of SS. Crocifisso in Torre del Greco. From 1990 to 1999, De Luca served as prefect of the students of philosophy and theology at Colle Sant'Angelo. From 1993 to 1999, he was the superior of the community of Redemptorist students and provincial secretary for formation. De Luca served as dean of the twelfth deanery of the

Archdiocese of Naples The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Naples ( it, Arcidiocesi di Napoli; la, Archidioecesis Neapolitana) is a Roman Catholic Archdiocese in southern Italy, the see being in Naples. A Christian community was founded there in the 1st century AD and ...

and was director and professor of moral theology at the training school for pastoral workers from 1998 to 2003. From 1999 to 2008, he was the provincial superior for the province of Naples and in 2001 became the president of the Italian Conference for Major Superiors. In 2007, he became the episcopal pro-vicar for consecrated life in the Archdiocese of Naples. He was also a member of the

college of consultors A consultor is one who gives counsel, i.e., a counselor. In the Catholic Church, it is a specific title for various advisory positions: *in the Roman Curia, a consultor is a specially appointed expert who may be called upon for advice desired by ...

and the presbyteral council for the Archdiocese of Naples.

Episcopal ministry

On 26 November 2011,

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...

appointed him Bishop of Teggiano-Policastro, succeeding Bishop Angelo Spinillo. He was consecrated a bishop on 7 January 2012 in the

Naples Cathedral The Naples Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Napoli; nap, Viscuvato 'e Napule), or Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary ( it, Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta, links=no), is a Roman Catholic cathedral, the main church of Naples, southern Italy, and the s ...

by Cardinal

Crescenzio Sepe Crescenzio Sepe (born 2 June 1943) is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who served as Archbishop of Naples from 2006 to 2020. He served in the Roman Curia as Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples from 2001 to 200 ...

and co-consecrators Archbishop

Joseph William Tobin Joseph William Tobin, Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, CSsR, (born May 3, 1952) is an American prelate of the Catholic Church, Roman Catholic Church. A member of the Redemptorist order, he has been the archbishop of Roman Catholic Archdi ...

and Bishop Angelo Spinillo. As bishop, he took the Latin motto "''dum omni modo Christus adnuntietur''." De Luca took possession of the diocese on 4 February 2012.

References

External links

Diocese of Teggiano-Policastro

Profile on diocese's website

{{DEFAULTSORT:De Luca, Antonio 21st-century Italian Roman Catholic bishops 1956 births People from Torre del Greco Bishops appointed by Pope Benedict XVI Living people Bishops in Campania Redemptorist bishops