Oscar Cantoni (born 1 September 1950) is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who has been

Bishop of Como The Diocese of Como ( la, Dioecesis Comensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or diocese of the Catholic Church in northern Italy. It was established in the Fourth Century. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of ...

since 2016. He was previously

Bishop of Crema The Diocese of Crema ( la, Dioecesis Cremensis) is a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical territory in Lombardy in northern Italy. It has existed since 1579. It is suffragan to the Archdiocese of Milan.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. ...

made him a cardinal.

Early life

Cantoni was born in

Lenno Lenno ( lmo, Lenn) was a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Como in the Italy, Italian region Lombardy, located about north of Milan and about northeast of Como. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 1,800 and an area of 9.6&n ...

on 1 September 1950 and had moved with his family to the nearby village,

Tremezzo Tremezzo is a ''comune'' (or municipality) of some 1,300 people in the Province of Como, in the Italian region Lombardy. It is located on the western shore of Lake Como between Mezzegra to the southwest and Griante to the northeast, and about ...

, at the age of eight. In 1970, after completing his studies at the Pontificio Collegio Gallio founded by the

Somaschi Fathers , image = SomascosEscut.jpg , image_size = 200px , caption = Coat of arms of the Somascan Fathers , abbreviation = CRS , nickname = Somascans , formation = , founder ...

, he entered the diocesan seminary to study theology. On 28 June 1975, Cantoni was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Como by bishop Teresio Ferraroni. Until 1982 he performed pastoral activity in the parish of Santa Maria Regina in

Muggiò Muggiò (, ; Milanese: Mugg) is a city (municipality) in the Province of Monza and Brianza in the Italian region Lombardy, located about northeast of Milan. It received the honorary title of city with a presidential decree on September 27, 1992. ...

. He then taught religion at the technical institute Pliny Como. On 11 July 2000, he was awarded the title of

Honorary Prelate of His Holiness A Prelate of Honour of His Holiness is a Catholic prelate to whom the Pope has granted this title of honour. They are addressed as Monsignor and have certain privileges as regards clerical clothing.Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

. In 2003 he became the diocese's

episcopal vicar Episcopal may refer to: *Of or relating to a bishop, an overseer in the Christian church *Episcopate, the see of a bishop – a diocese *Episcopal Church (disambiguation), any church with "Episcopal" in its name ** Episcopal Church (United State ...

for

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

Episcopal Ministry

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

appointed him Bishop of Crema on 25 January 2005. Cantoni was given a delegation of the Bishops' Conference of Lombardy for consecrated life and became part of the homologous episcopal commission of the CEI. He was also nominated a pastoral visit to all Italian seminars on 16 June 2005. On 12 October 2007, Cantoni had had his first pastoral visit and was given the permission to perform in all parishes of his diocese. The permission terminated in 2011. In 2009, after two years of intensive preparatory work in Uni-Crema, 'the free university for adulthood', he 'contributed to the promotion of cultural and social citizenship' in the groove of 'Christian humanism and Christian tradition'. In September 2010 he became the first bishop in Italy to organize and launch a 'youth mission' diocesan, a peaceful invasion of 'minstrels of God' in order to communicate His friendship and His benison not only in churches but in nightclubs, theatres, through sport, etc. At the end of his pastoral visit, in 2011, he organized an ecclesial assembly 'in order to prepare our Church to face the times ahead,' open to all different parts of the diocese: priests, associations and groups and individual believers. It was characterized by a public discussion that takes place on three evenings, from 17 to 19 March with its closing on 10 April. On 21 November 2010 he received the insignia of Grand Officer of the

Order of the Holy Sepulchre The Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Equestris Sancti Sepulcri Hierosolymitani, links=yes, OESSH), also called Order of the Holy Sepulchre or Knights of the Holy Sepulchre, is a Catholic Church, Catholic order of ...

and was appointed the Grand Prior of the Lieutenancy for Northern Italy by decree of Cardinal

John Patrick Foley John Patrick Foley (November 11, 1935 – December 11, 2011) was an American cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. From 2007 until 2011, he was Grand Master of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, an order of knighthood un ...

, the grand master of the order. On 4 October 2016,

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. ...

named Cantoni Bishop of Como. He was installed there on 27 November. In May 2022, Pope Francis announced he would make Cantoni a

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

on 27 August 2022. On 27 August, Pope Francis made him a

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 ...

, assigning him the title of

Santa Maria Regina Pacis a Monte Verde Santa Maria Regina Pacis a Monte Verde is a 20th-century parochial church and titular church in Monteverde, central Rome. History The first church for the Monteverde area was built in 1915. The present church was begun in 1925 but construc ...

. On 13 July 2022, Pope Francis named him a member of the

Dicastery for Bishops The Dicastery for Bishops, formerly named Congregation for Bishops (), is the department of the Roman Curia that oversees the selection of most new bishops. Its proposals require papal approval to take effect, but are usually followed. The Dicas ...

Honours

Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem The Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Equestris Sancti Sepulcri Hierosolymitani, links=yes, OESSH), also called Order of the Holy Sepulchre or Knights of the Holy Sepulchre, is a Catholic order of knighthood under ...

(2010) * Merit CerchioAperto (1998)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cantoni, Oscar 1950 births Living people Members of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre People from the Province of Como Bishops of Como 21st-century Italian cardinals Cardinals created by Pope Francis

Early life

Episcopal Ministry

Honours

See also

References

External links