Carlo Martini (1 October 1913 – 16 July 1986) was an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See from 1937 to 1973 and then served for ten years as Archbishop of L'Aquila.

Biography

He was born in Fontana Fredda, part of Cadeo, in the Province of Piacenza on 1 October 1913. Before deciding to become a priest, he studied at the lower technical institute of Fiorenzuola d'Arda. He then entered the seminary of Piacenza. In 1929 he began studying philosophy and theology at Collegio Alberoni. On 4 October 1936 he was ordained a priest. The same year he became a student at the Pontifical Lateran University, where he obtained a doctorate in canon law in 1939. He completed the course of study at the

Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy The Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy ( la, Pontificia Ecclesiastica Academia, it, Pontificia Accademia Ecclesiastica) is one of the Roman Colleges of the Catholic Church. The academy is dedicated to training priests to serve in the diplomatic c ...

in 1937. He entered the diplomatic service of the Holy See and served in several nunciatures, as secretary in Spain from 1940 to 1942 and in Cuba from 1942 to 1948; then in Rome at the Secretariat of State until 1951; then as auditor in

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

from 1951 to 1954 and as councilor in Spain. On 25 March 1958,

Pope Pius XII Pope Pius XII ( it, Pio XII), born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli (; 2 March 18769 October 1958), was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death in October 1958. Before his e ...

named him apostolic nuncio to Paraguay. He was the youngest nuncio at the time. On 5 October 1961, Pope John XXIII appointed him titular archbishop of Abari, and on 29 October he received his episcopal consecration in the

Piacenza Cathedral Piacenza Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Piacenza), fully the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta e Santa Giustina, is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Piacenza, Italy. The current structure was built between 1122 and 1233 and is one of the most valuable examp ...

from Archbishop Antonio Samorè. Pope Paul VI named him apostolic nuncio to the Philippines on 29 November 1963, apostolic nuncio to Chile on 5 August 1967, and apostolic delegate to Mexico on 6 July 1970. On 2 June 1973, Pope Paul appointed him Archbishop of L'Aquila. On 31 December 1983, Pope John Paul accepted his resignation presented for health reasons. He retired to the "Cerati" Residence for Clergy in Piacenza, where he continued to perform confirmations and perform the functions of a bishop as needed. He died in Piacenza on 16 July 1986 at the age of 72. On 19 July his funeral was celebrated by Cardinal Agostino Casaroli, his classmate at the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy, in Piacenza cathedral.

References

External links

zanetti.ca/zio_monsignore/carlo_martini.html Carlo Martini page
o
Giorgio Zanetti website
a collection of documents, newspaper extracts, photographs, and information compiled by Carlo Martini's nephew.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Martini, Carlo 1913 births 1986 deaths People from the Province of Piacenza Apostolic Nuncios to Paraguay Apostolic Nuncios to the Philippines Apostolic Nuncios to Chile Apostolic Nuncios to Mexico