Donato Raffaele Sbarretti Tazza (NovemberSources differ as to whether he was born on 10 or 12 November. 1856 – 1 April 1939)(2 April 1939)
Donato Sbaretti, Cardinal, 82, Dead
''

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'' was an Italian

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Cardinal whose career included pastoral service in

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and

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, diplomatic service in America and the Pacific, and ultimately high office in the Roman Curia.

Biography

Born in Montefranco di Spoleto, Sbarretti was educated and first served in the archdiocese of Spoleto. His uncle, Enea Sbarretti, was named a Cardinal in 1877, two years before Donato was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...

at the age of 22. However, Donato Sbarretti's career advancement cannot be ascribed to nepotism; his uncle's longtime patron Pope Pius IX had died before Donato even became a priest, and his uncle died in 1884, when Donato's career was barely underway. In 1893, after pastoral work, teaching, and minor curial staff positions, such as a ''minutante'' at Propaganda, Sbarretti was made canon of a church in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

and posted to the

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in the apostolic delegation. In 1895 he was named a privy chamberlain, then the lowest grade of

monsignor Monsignor (; it, monsignore ) is an honorific form of address or title for certain male clergy members, usually members of the Roman Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" ca ...

. His next postings were results of the aftermath of the

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, as he was named Bishop of

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in 1900, serving only briefly, before the

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named him Apostolic Delegate Extraordinary to settle an urgent matter in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. The

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refused to allow him to take up this posting because they wanted to negotiate this issue with their own special mission to the Vatican under

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...

. Before the end of 1902 Sbarretti was sent to

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Apostolic Delegate An apostolic nuncio ( la, nuntius apostolicus; also known as a papal nuncio or simply as a nuncio) is an ecclesiastical diplomat, serving as an envoy or a permanent diplomatic representative of the Holy See to a state or to an international o ...

and remained there until recalled to Rome in 1910. In 1916

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elevated Sbarretti to the cardinalate as

Cardinal-Priest A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Col ...

of ''

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''. Then serving as Assessor of the Sacred Congregation of the Holy Office, he became Prefect of the Sacred Congregation of the council (predecessor of today's

Congregation for the Clergy The Dicastery for the Clergy, formerly named Congregation for the Clergy (; formerly the Sacred Congregation for the Clergy and Sacred Congregation of the Council), is the dicastery of the Roman Curia responsible for overseeing matters regardi ...

) in 1919. A

Cardinal Bishop A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. C ...

after 1928, he finally became Secretary of the Holy Office (today's

Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) is the oldest among the departments of the Roman Curia. Its seat is the Palace of the Holy Office in Rome. It was founded to defend the Catholic Church from heresy and is the body responsible ...

), of which the Pope then personally served as Prefect in 1930, and

Vice-Dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals The dean of the College of Cardinals ( la, Decanus Collegii Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae Cardinalium) presides over the College of Cardinals in the Roman Catholic Church, serving as ''primus inter pares'' (first among equals). The position was establi ...

in 1935. He died less than a month after participating in the

conclave A papal conclave is a gathering of the College of Cardinals convened to elect a bishop of Rome, also known as the pope. Catholics consider the pope to be the apostolic successor of Saint Peter and the earthly head of the Catholic Church. Co ...

that elected Pope Pius XII, and according to his will was buried in the parish church of Montefranco, where he had been born.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sbarretti 1856 births 1939 deaths People from the Province of Terni 20th-century Italian cardinals Cardinal-bishops of Sabina 20th-century Italian Roman Catholic archbishops Apostolic Nuncios to Canada Apostolic Nuncios to the Philippines Members of the Holy Office Members of the Sacred Congregation of the Council Pontifical Roman Seminary alumni Roman Catholic bishops of Havana