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Virgilio Noè (30 March 1922 – 24 July 2011) was an
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
prelate and
cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to * Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae ***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...
. He was elevated to the cardinalate in 1991.


Early life and ministry

Noè was born in 1922 in Zelata di Bereguardo, Lombardy. He studied at the Seminary of
Pavia Pavia ( , ; ; ; ; ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, in Northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino (river), Ticino near its confluence with the Po (river), Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was a major polit ...
and was ordained a priest on 1 October 1944 by the Bishop of
Pavia Pavia ( , ; ; ; ; ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, in Northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino (river), Ticino near its confluence with the Po (river), Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was a major polit ...
, Carlo Allorio. After ordination he became parish priest of the parish of San Salvatore in Pavia and founded a youth association to promote participation in the liturgy. In 1948, Bishop Allorio sent him to Rome to study at the
Pontifical Gregorian University Pontifical Gregorian University (; also known as the Gregorian or Gregoriana), is a private university, private pontifical university in Rome, Italy. The Gregorian originated as a part of the Roman College, founded in 1551 by Ignatius of Loyo ...
, where he earned a doctorate in
ecclesiastical history Church history or ecclesiastical history as an academic discipline studies the history of Christianity and the way the Christian Church has developed since its inception. Henry Melvill Gwatkin defined church history as "the spiritual side of the ...
in 1952, with a thesis entitled "The Religious Policies of the Lombard Kings". He taught
Ecclesiastical History Church history or ecclesiastical history as an academic discipline studies the history of Christianity and the way the Christian Church has developed since its inception. Henry Melvill Gwatkin defined church history as "the spiritual side of the ...
,
Patristics Patristics, also known as Patrology, is a branch of theological studies focused on the writings and teachings of the Church Fathers, between the 1st to 8th centuries CE. Scholars analyze texts from both orthodox and heretical authors. Patristics e ...
, Liturgy and
Art History Art history is the study of Work of art, artistic works made throughout human history. Among other topics, it studies art’s formal qualities, its impact on societies and cultures, and how artistic styles have changed throughout history. Tradit ...
in the seminaries of Pavia and
Tortona Tortona (; , ; ) is a ''comune'' of Piemonte, in the Province of Alessandria, Italy. Tortona is sited on the right bank of the Scrivia between the plain of Spinetta Marengo, Marengo and the foothills of the Ligurian Apennines. Its ''frazione'' of ...
. He was also spiritual director in the Collegio Sant'Agostino and the Collegio San Giorgio, and played a leading role in the diocesan liturgical commission. Among the projects undertaken were diocesan Eucharistic Congresses in 1956 and 1964.


Activity in Rome

In the years 1964–1969, starting therefore during the period of the
Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the or , was the 21st and most recent ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. The council met each autumn from 1962 to 1965 in St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City for session ...
, he was in charge of the national ''Centro di Azione Liturgica'' (''Centre for Liturgical Action'') in Rome, and editor of its journal ''Liturgia''. He was also lecturer in
Sacred Art Religious art is a visual representation of religious ideologies and their relationship with humans. Sacred art directly relates to religious art in the sense that its purpose is for worship and religious practices. According to one set of definit ...
at the recently founded Pontifical Liturgical Institute of Sant'Anselmo in the city, and when a commission was formed to revise the papal liturgical celebrations, he was made a member. From 1966 to 1968 he also served as vice-rector of the Pontifical Lombard Seminary in
Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
. When the Sacred Congregation for Divine Worship (''Sacra Congregatio pro Cultu Divino'') was established in 1969 to take over the historical brief for liturgical affairs handled since 1588 by the Sacred Congregation of Rites (''Sacra Rituum Congregatio''), Mons. Noè was appointed its Undersecretary and held the post until the
Congregation Congregation may refer to: Religion *Church (congregation), a religious organization that meets in a particular location *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administrative body of the Catholic Church *Religious congregation, a type of religious instit ...
's short life came to an end. In the meantime, in 1970,
Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI (born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding John XXII ...
appointed him Master of ceremonies, a post now renamed for the first time '' Master of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations'' and which he held until his appointment as a bishop in 1982, when Mons. John Magee was appointed to succeed him. In the same period he was chaplain to what is since called the Papal Gendarmeria. During his period in the office, the challenge for Mons. Noè was to find ways of apply the governing principles and the practical norms of the new liturgical books that were gradually being revised and published to unique circumstances of the papal liturgy. The papal liturgy is in many respects seen as a model, but is also almost always televised and has some papal rites which in the nature of things are peculiar to it. The results of Mons. Noè's work were considered by traditionalists to be a minimization of proper traditional Catholic rites and detrimental to life of the liturgy. Critics of post-Vatican II reforms denounced alterations to St Peter's Basilica. The new papal practice which he established was moderate, sober, and simplified, which some people celebrated and others criticized. The Masses and the more frequent liturgies for beatifications and canonizations, but also the special ceremonies called for by the Jubilee of 1975, the funeral of Paul VI and the inauguration of the pontificates of his successors, were all given a novel and nontraditional shape. The issuing of booklets for the people that were collector's items in their own right became a consolidated practice. Throughout this period, Mons. Noè's career then followed the complicated course of successive partial internal organizations of the Roman Curia. When in the summer of 1975 the Sacred Congregation for Divine Worship was amalgamated with the Sacred Congregation for the Discipline of the Sacraments (''Sacra Congregatio de Disciplina Sacramentorum'') (founded in 1908 by
Pope Pius X Pope Pius 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 Modernism in the Catholic Church, modern ...
) to form a Sacred Congregation for the Sacraments and Divine Worship (''Sacra Congregatio de Sacramentis et Cultu Divino''), Mons. Noè was appointed Undersecretary in charge of liturgical affairs.


Archbishop and Cardinal

On 30 January 1982, Noè was appointed Secretary of the
Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments The Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments () is the dicastery (from , from δικαστής, 'judge, juror') of the Roman Curia that handles most affairs relating to liturgical practices of the Latin Church as distin ...
and made
Titular Titular may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Title character in a narrative work, the character referred to in its title Religion * Titular (Catholicism), a cardinal who holds a titulus, one of the main churches of Rome ** Titular bisho ...
Archbishop of Voncaria. He was ordained a bishop on 6 March 1982 in St. Peter's Basilica by
Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...
, assisted by Archbishop
Eduardo Martínez Somalo Eduardo Martínez Somalo (; 31 March 1927 – 10 August 2021) was a Spanish prelate of the Catholic Church who spent most of his career in the Roman Curia, first in the Secretariat of State from 1956 to 1975 and from 1979 to 1988, and then l ...
and Antonio Giuseppe Angioni, Bishop of Pavia. Between 1984 and 1988 the dicastery was briefly redivided into the Congregation for the Sacraments (''Congregatio de Sacramentis'') and the Congregation for Divine Worship (''Congregatio de Cultu Divino'') under a single Prefect. In this new version of the latter, Archbishop Noè was the sole Archbishop Secretary, according to the classic system. Then, as a result of the
Apostolic Constitution An apostolic constitution () is the most solemn form of legislation issued by the Pope.New Commentary on the Code of Canon Law, pg. 57, footnote 36. By their nature, apostolic constitutions are addressed to the public. Generic constitutions use ...
'' Pastor Bonus'' of 1988, this move was reversed and there emerged the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments (''Sacra Congregatio de Cultu Divino de et Disciplina Sacramentorum''), which still exists. In this new entity, Archbishop Noè was no longer the sole Archbishop Secretary, but reverted to being once more Archbishop Secretary but in charge of a distinct section for Divine Worship. On 15 May 1989, Noè was named Coadjutor Archpriest of St. Peter's Basilica, giving him the right to succeed the ailing Cardinal
Aurelio Sabattani Aurelio Sabattani JUD (18 October 1912 – 19 April 2003) was an Italian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Prefect of the Apostolic Signatura from 1967 until his death and was elevated to the rank of cardinal in 1983. Ed ...
in that position. At the same time he was appointed Delegate of the Fabric of St. Peter, a body he could expect to head as Archpriest. Noè was made
Cardinal-Deacon A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. As titular members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome, they serve as advisors to the pope, who is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. Ca ...
of San Giovanni Bosco in Via Tuscolana in the consistory of 28 June 1991 by
Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...
. Three days later, upon the retirement of Cardinal Sabattani, he was made
Archpriest The ecclesiastical title of archpriest or archpresbyter belongs to certain priests with supervisory duties over a number of parishes. The term is most often used in Eastern Orthodoxy and the Eastern Catholic Churches and may be somewhat analogo ...
of
St. Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican (), or simply St. Peter's Basilica (; ), is a church of the Italian High Renaissance located in Vatican City, an independent microstate enclaved within the city of Rome, Italy. It was initiall ...
, President of the Fabric of St. Peter, and Vicar General of Vatican City. From 1993 to 1996 he was also President of the Cardinalatial Commission for the Pontifical Shrines of Pompei, Loreto and Bari. After 10 years as Cardinal-Deacon, Noè took the option of elevation to the rank of Cardinal-Priest with the
titular church In the Catholic Church, a titular church () is a Churches in Rome, church in Rome that is assigned to a member of the Holy orders in the Catholic Church, clergy who is created a Cardinal (Catholic Church), cardinal. These are Catholic churches in ...
of Regina Apostolorum as of 26 February 2002. He once said that
Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI (born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding John XXII ...
spoke of the "smoke of Satan" when referring to priests who celebrated Mass badly.


Death and Burial

On 24 July 2011, Cardinal Noè died in Rome at the age of 89. His funeral Mass was celebrated on 26 July 2011 in the apse of
St. Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican (), or simply St. Peter's Basilica (; ), is a church of the Italian High Renaissance located in Vatican City, an independent microstate enclaved within the city of Rome, Italy. It was initiall ...
, by Cardinal
Angelo Sodano Angelo Raffaele Sodano (23 November 1927 – 27 May 2022) was an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as the Dean of the College of Cardinals from 2005 to 2019 and previously as the Cardinal Secretary of State from 1991 to 2006; S ...
, Dean of the College of Cardinals and concelebrated by a large number of Cardinals and bishops. He is buried in the cemetery of Campo Verano, Rome.


Notes


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Noè, Virgilio 1922 births 2011 deaths 21st-century Italian cardinals 20th-century Italian Roman Catholic titular archbishops Cardinals created by Pope John Paul II People from the Province of Pavia Pontifical Gregorian University alumni Italian art historians Liturgists 20th-century Italian cardinals