Luigi Centoz (2 April 1883 – 27 October 1969), also known as Louis Centoz, was an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who spent more than five decades in the diplomatic service of 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 Rome ...

, either in Rome or serving in offices abroad. He became an archbishop in 1932 and served as an Apostolic Nuncio from then until 1962. He was

Vice Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church The Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church is an office of the papal household that administers the property and revenues of the Holy See. Formerly, his responsibilities included the fiscal administration of the Patrimony of Saint Peter. As regul ...

from 1962 to 1969.

Biography

Luigi Centoz was born on 2 April 1883 in

Saint-Pierre, Aosta Valley Saint-Pierre ( Valdôtain: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the Aosta Valley region of north-western Italy. There are about 150 medieval castles, tours and fortified houses in the Aosta Valley.Massetti, E. "Aosta Valley Castles" http://www.naturaosta. ...

, Italy. He was ordained a priest on 9 June 1906. In 1909 he joined the staff of the Holy See's Secretariat of State, where he worked directly for the Cardinal Secretary of State

Rafael Merry del Val Rafael Merry del Val y Zulueta, (10 October 1865 – 26 February 1930) was a Spanish Roman Catholic cardinal. Before becoming a cardinal, he served as the secretary of the papal conclave of 1903 that elected Pope Pius X, who is said to have ac ...

. On 6 January 1921, he was assigned to the nunciatures to Germany and Bavaria (and from 1925 to Prussia), working for the Nuncio

Eugenio Pacelli 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 ...

, later

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 ...

. He participated in the conclave of February 1922, as aide to Cardinal Merry del Val. On 28 January 1932,

Pope Pius XI Pope Pius XI ( it, Pio XI), born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti (; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939), was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 to his death in February 1939. He was the first sovereign of Vatican City fro ...

named him

titular archbishop 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 an ...

of Edessa in Osrhoëne and

Apostolic Nuncio to Bolivia The Apostolic Nunciature to Bolivia the diplomatic mission of the Holy See to Bolivia. It is located in La Paz. The current Apostolic Nuncio to Bolivia is Angelo Accattino, who was appointed by Pope Francis on 12 September 2017. The Apostolic Nu ...

. He received his episcopal consecration in 14 February 1932 from Cardinal

, the future Pope Pius XII. He chose as his episcopal motto "Dominus Fortitudo Mea" (The Lord is my Strength). On 16 September 1936, Pope Pius appointed him Apostolic Nuncio to the Venezuela. On 19 February 1940,

appointed him Apostolic Nuncio to Lithuania. He was expelled from Lithuania on 24 August after the Soviet invasion and returned to Rome. There he led a new Vatican commission considering how to counter Soviet Communism and held "long conferences" with the Pope. On 3 December 1941, Pope Pius appointed him Apostolic Nuncio to

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...

, and

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

. Hostilities prevented him from taking up those posts and he remained in Rome for the duration of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He worked instead at the Secretariat on relief for prisoners of war and displaced persons. In 1946 he donated a building in his home town for use as a nursery school and childhood education center. It is named for him. He finally reached Central America in February 1946. His role in Nicaragua ended with the appointment of his successor on 4 October 1948. He resigned the two other posts on 26 April 1952 and returned to Rome. On 29 November 1954, Pope Pius named him Apostolic Nuncio to Cuba. His half-century in the diplomatic service ended on 5 July 1962, when

Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII ( la, Ioannes XXIII; it, Giovanni XXIII; born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, ; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death in June 19 ...

named him

. His term as Vice Camerlengo ended with the appointment of his successor, Vittorio Bartoccetti, on 24 March 1969. Centoz retired to his home town. He died on 27 October 1969.

Notes

References

External links

Catholic Hierarchy: Archbishop Luigi Centoz
{{DEFAULTSORT:Centoz, Luigi 1883 births 1969 deaths People from Aosta Valley Apostolic Nuncios to Bolivia Apostolic Nuncios to Venezuela Apostolic Nuncios to Lithuania Apostolic Nuncios to Nicaragua Apostolic Nuncios to Panama Apostolic Nuncios to Costa Rica Officials of the Roman Curia Bishops of Edessa