Giovanni Cazzani (4 March 1867 – 26 August 1952) was an Italian archbishop of the

Roman Catholic Church 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 ...

who served as the head 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. ...

; he was granted the title of archbishop in 1944 despite leading a diocese. He had led the Diocese of Cesena prior to his elevation to his new see. Cazzani was hailed as one of the most distinguished to lead the diocese of Cremona for his deep piousness and his vast culture. Cazzani's cause of sainthood commenced on 2 April 2015 thus granting him the posthumous title

Servant of God "Servant of God" is a title used in the Catholic Church to indicate that an individual is on the first step toward possible canonization as a saint. Terminology The expression "servant of God" appears nine times in the Bible, the first five in th ...

Life

Cazzani was born in

Pavia Pavia (, , , ; la, Ticinum; Medieval Latin: ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy in northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was the capit ...

on 4 March 1867 to Vincenzo Cazzani and Amalia Trovati. He had seven siblings and was left motherless at the age of twelve. Cazzani commenced his studies for the priesthood and 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 va ...

at the age of 22 on 1 November 1889. Following this he was assigned to teach

seminarians A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

and at the college of Saint Augustine. He continued his own studies and graduated with honors in philosophical studies in 1892 and then with the completion of his theological studies in 1893 in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

. He also served as the private assistant to the

Archbishop of Ravenna This page is a list of Roman Catholic bishops and archbishops of Ravenna and, from 1985, of the Archdiocese of Ravenna-Cervia.Pope Pius X Pope Pius X ( it, Pio X; born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto; 2 June 1835 – 20 August 1914) was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 to his death in August 1914. Pius X is known for vigorously opposing modernist interpretations of C ...

appointed him as the

Bishop of Cesena The Italian Catholic Diocese of Cesena-Sarsina in Emilia Romagna was created on September 30, 1986, after the Diocese of Sarsina was united with the historic Diocese of Cesena as a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Ravenna-Cervia.

on 5 August 1904. He was installed in his new diocese in 1904 and received his episcopal consecration as a result of his elevation. He was also an acquainted with the

Archbishop of Bologna The Archdiocese of Bologna is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Northern Italy. The cathedra is in the cathedral church of San Pietro, Bologna. The current archbishop is Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, ...

Cardinal Giacomo della Chiesa who became

Pope Benedict XV Pope Benedict XV (Latin: ''Benedictus XV''; it, Benedetto XV), born Giacomo Paolo Giovanni Battista della Chiesa, name=, group= (; 21 November 185422 January 1922), was head of the Catholic Church from 1914 until his death in January 1922. His ...

in 1914 and appointed him as the Bishop of Cremona in 1914 during the onslaught of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

which he was opposed to.

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 ...

granted him the title of archbishop in 1944 "ad personam". As a bishop he published 38

pastoral letters A pastoral letter, often simply called a pastoral, is an open letter addressed by a bishop to the clergy or laity of a diocese or to both, containing general admonition, instruction or consolation, or directions for behaviour in particular circumst ...

and completed a total of six pastoral visits to all parishes across his diocese. Cazzani died on 26 August 1952.

Beatification process

Cazzani gained a strong reputation as a pious and innovative leader who paid strict attention to the needs of the faithful. The beatification process commenced under

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

on 2 April 2015. He has been granted the title

References

External links

Hagiography Circle
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cazzani, Giovanni 1867 births 1952 deaths Religious leaders from Pavia Bishops of Cesena 20th-century Italian Roman Catholic archbishops Italian Servants of God Bishops of Cremona