Geremia Bonomelli (1831–1914) was the bishop of the

diocese of Cremona The Diocese of Cremona ( la, Dioecesis Cremonensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in northern Italy. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Milan. ...

in the late years of the 19th century and first years of the 20th century. Bonomelli is still remembered for his work in support of Italian emigrants.

Life

Born in

Corte Franca Corte Franca (Brescian: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Brescia, in Lombardy. Twin cities/towns * - Aberdour, Fife, Scotland (since 31 July 2004). References

Cities and towns in Lombardy {{Brescia-geo-stub ...

in the time of the

Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia The Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia ( la, links=no, Regnum Langobardiae et Venetiae), commonly called the "Lombardo-Venetian Kingdom" ( it, links=no, Regno Lombardo-Veneto, german: links=no, Königreich Lombardo-Venetien), was a constituent land ...

, he was ordained priest for his native diocese of Brescia in 1855. In 1871,

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...

named him bishop of

Cremona Cremona (, also ; ; lmo, label= Cremunés, Cremùna; egl, Carmona) is a city and ''comune'' in northern Italy, situated in Lombardy, on the left bank of the Po river in the middle of the ''Pianura Padana'' ( Po Valley). It is the capital of th ...

Monsignor Geremia Bonomelli, vescovo di Cremona

From 1896 on, he was involved in the pastoral care of Italians that were living abroad, and many missions were founded for Italian emigration. For his work in this area, he was commemorated by

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 ...

in ''

Exsul Familia ''Exsul familia nazarethana'' (On spiritual care to migrants) is the apostolic constitution written by Pope Pius XII on the topic of human migration, migration. It was released on 1 August 1952. The title of the document refers to the Holy Famil ...

'' (1952). The pope said that Bonomelli "founded an Agency for the Assistance of Italians who had migrated to other parts of Europe. From this Agency arose many institutions and flourishing centers of civic education and welfare. In 1900, devout priests and eminent laymen attracted to the work founded successful 'missions' in Switzerland, Austria, Germany and France". Bonomelli was also a strong supporter of the involvement of Catholics (priests and laity) in the care of the poor, and he was involved in first attempts to solve the Roman Question. In 1889, one of his brochures was condemned by the Vatican, and so Bonomelli retracted it.

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-old ...

in turn thanked the bishop, saying that he had feared "those who

trove Trove is an Australian online library database owned by the National Library of Australia in which it holds partnerships with source providers National and State Libraries Australia, an aggregator and service which includes full text document ...

to wrest onomelli'swritings to support their own views" and insisted that the Pope's "civil princedom is not a question between man and man, but that the liberty of exercising isapostolic rights and duties is at stake, and this liberty ought not to be in the power and will of another".A LETTER FROM THE HOLY FATHER
. ''The Tablet''. Published: 18 May 1889. Retrieved: 18 January 2016. Bonomelli died in 1914.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bonomelli, Geremia 1831 births 1914 deaths Religious leaders from the Province of Brescia 19th-century Italian Roman Catholic bishops 20th-century Italian Roman Catholic bishops Bishops of Cremona