Franco Agostinelli (born 1 January 1944) is a retired Italian prelate who served as

Bishop of Prato The Italian Catholic Diocese of Prato ( la, Dioecesis Pratensis) in Tuscany, has existed since 1954. Its see is Prato Cathedral. The diocese is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Florence. History The diocese was created when the Diocese of Pis ...

and

Bishop of Grosseto The Diocese of Grosseto ( la, Dioecesis Grossetana) is a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical territory in Italy, a suffragan of the archdiocese of Siena-Colle di Val d'Elsa-Montalcino, in Tuscany. Its current bishop is Giovanni Roncari, OFMCap.s>Otto ...

Biography

Franco Agostinelli was born on 1 January 1944 in

Arezzo Arezzo ( , , ) , also ; ett, 𐌀𐌓𐌉𐌕𐌉𐌌, Aritim. is a city and ''comune'' in Italy and the capital of the province of the same name located in Tuscany. Arezzo is about southeast of Florence at an elevation of above sea level. ...

, a ''

comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...

'' in

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; it, Toscana ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (''Firenze''). Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, art ...

, Italy. He was ordained a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

on 9 June 1968 by Telesforo Giovanni Cioli, the Bishop of Arezzo, in the Parish of San Marco alla Sella after studying at the seminary of

. After graduating from the

Pontifical Lateran University The Pontifical Lateran University ( it, Pontificia Università Lateranense; la, Pontificia Universitas Lateranensis), also known as Lateranum, is a pontifical university based in Rome. The university also hosts the central session of the Ponti ...

, where he received his licentiate in

dogmatic theology Dogmatic theology, also called dogmatics, is the part of theology dealing with the theoretical truths of faith concerning God and God's works, especially the official theology recognized by an organized Church body, such as the Roman Catholic Ch ...

in 1970, Agostinelli continued his studies at the Pontifical Alphonsian Academy, where he received a degree in moral theology in 1972. He first served in the Diocese of Arezzo as the vicar coadjutor of the cathedral and then as a parish priest of the Parish of the Sacred Heart. In 1984, he became the episcopal vicar for pastoral care and director of the catechetical office. He served as rector of the diocesan seminary from 1992 to 1994, and in 1997, he was appointed

vicar general A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ...

of the Diocese of Arezzo-Cortona-Sansepolcro and was confirmed in the position in 1999 by the new bishop,

Gualtiero Bassetti Gualtiero Bassetti (born 7 April 1942) is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who was Archbishop of Perugia-Città della Pieve from 2009 to 2022. He has been a bishop since 1994 and was made a cardinal in 2014. He was president of the Ital ...

. On 17 November 2001, Agostinelli was appointed the

, and received his episcopal consecration from

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 ...

on 6 January 2002 in St. Peter's Basilica, with Cardinals

Leonardo Sandri Leonardo Sandri (born 18 November 1943) is an Argentine prelate of the Catholic Church who has been a cardinal since November 2007 and vice dean of the College of Cardinals since January 2020. He was prefect of the Congregation for the Eastern Chu ...

and

Robert Sarah Robert Sarah (; born 15 June 1945) is a Guinean prelate of the Catholic Church. A cardinal since 20 November 2010, he was prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments from 23 November 2014 to 20 February ...

acting as co-consecrators. On 3 February 2002, he took possession of the ''Laurentian''

cathedra A ''cathedra'' is the raised throne of a bishop in the early Christian basilica. When used with this meaning, it may also be called the bishop's throne. With time, the related term ''cathedral'' became synonymous with the "seat", or principa ...

, officially taking charge of the diocese. During a pastoral visit launched in 2007, he came to the attention of the national Italian press. While visiting the '' quartiere'' of Barbanella in the city of Grosseto, he visited the local community of

Arcigay Arcigay is Italy's first and largest worldwide gay organisation. The association was first founded as a local association in Palermo in 1980, then nationally established in Bologna in 1985. The organisation became known throughout Italy for its c ...

. Agostinelli maintained that it was his practice to appraise himself of all Catholic and non-Catholic institutions within his diocese. Acrigay interpreted the visit as an endorsement of homosexual relationships by the bishop. At the meeting, Aurelio Mancuso, the national president of Arcigay, was present along with numerous journalists. Following attention by the media, Agostineli renounced the visit, saying that it had been exploited, and said that he would carry out another visit without any political or media interference. Agostinelli continued to demonstrate openness to dialogue with homosexual communities, meeting with other organizations over the years. On 29 September 2012, he was appointed the

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...

and was installed in the diocese on 25 November 2013.

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. ...

accepted his resignation on 15 May 2019.

References

External links

Diocese of PratoDiocese of Grosseto
{{DEFAULTSORT:Agostinelli, Franco 21st-century Italian Roman Catholic bishops Living people 1944 births People from Arezzo Bishops in Tuscany Bishops of Grosseto