Lorenzo Priuli (1537–1600) was a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

cardinal and

Patriarch of Venice The Patriarch of Venice ( la, Patriarcha Venetiarum; it, Patriarca di Venezia) is the ordinary bishop of the Archdiocese of Venice. The bishop is one of the few patriarchs in the Latin Church of the Catholic Church (currently three other Latin ...

. Like many Venetian patriarchs, he was a lay member of the

Venetian Senate The Senate ( vec, Senato), formally the ''Consiglio dei Pregadi'' or ''Rogati'' (, la, Consilium Rogatorum), was the main deliberative and legislative body of the Republic of Venice. Establishment The Venetian Senate was founded in 1229, or le ...

, who was only ordained in 1590, at the age of 54, after he won the Senate's election to fill the patriarchy. Previously he had been a successful Venetian diplomat and governor.Ferraro, 28 In the last centuries of the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia, ...

(to 1797), exceptionally among Catholic bishops, the patriarch was elected by the

, who always chose a member of one of the hereditary patrician families of the city, and usually a layman who was only ordained to take up the patriarchate. The papacy obliged them to pass an examination in theology, though many evaded this.Ferraro, 26-28 Usually the new patriarch was a Venetian diplomat or administrator, as with Lorenzo Priuli in 1591 or Francesco Vendramin in 1608, though some were career clerics, who had usually been previously in positions in Rome, like Federico Cornaro in 1631.

Biography

He came from a senatorial family, and made his career as a successful Venetian diplomat, serving as ambassador to Spain, France, and the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...

. On 25 Jan 1591, he was consecrated bishop by Marcello Acquaviva,

Archbishop of Otranto The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Otranto (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Hydruntina'') is a see of the Catholic Church in Italy. The seat of the diocese is at Otranto Cathedral in the city of Otranto, Apulia. It is a suffragan of the archdiocese of ...

. While bishop, he was the

principal consecrator A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churches, ...

of Johann Walser,

Titular Bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox ...

of ''Belline'' and Auxiliary Bishop of Brixen (1592); and the

principal co-consecrator A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churches, ...

of Ferdinando D'Avila, Bishop of Rethymo (1592).

References

*Ferraro, Joanne M., ''Marriage Wars in Late Renaissance Venice'', 2001, Oxford University Press, , 9780198033110
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1537 births 1600 deaths 16th-century Italian cardinals Patriarchs of Venice Republic of Venice diplomats 16th-century Venetian people {{Italy-RC-cardinal-stub