Paolo Marella
Encyclopedia
Paolo Marella was an Italian Cardinal
of the Roman Catholic Church
. He served in the Roman Curia
following a career as a delegate of the
Holy See
, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1959.
and the Royal University
. He was ordained
to the priesthood
by Cardinal Basilio Pompilj
on February 23, 1918, and then furthered his studies whilst doing pastoral
work in Rome until 1922.
From 1922 to 1924, Marella was an official of the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith
in the Roman Curia. He was raised to the rank of Privy Chamberlain of His Holiness
on January 9, 1923, and later Domestic Prelate of His Holiness
on April 5, 1933. He then served as auditor
(1924–1933) and chargé d'affaires
(February to September 1933) of the Apostolic Delegation to the United States.
On September 15, 1933, Marella was appointed Titular Archbishop
of Doclea by Pope Pius XI
. He received his episcopal consecration
on the following October 29 from Cardinal Pietro Fumasoni Biondi
, with Archbishops Carlo Salotti
and Domenico Spolverini serving as co-consecrators
, at the chapel
of Collegio de Propaganda Fide in Rome. Marella was named Apostolic Delegate
to Japan the next day, on October 30. In 1942, when the Vatican accepted de facto diplomatic relations with Japan, Marella was given "full diplomatic privileges". He was made Apostolic Delegate to
Australia, New Zealand, and Oceania on October 27, 1948.
Also in the 1940s, Marella was sent to France as an agent of Pope Pius XII
when he was aiming to stamp out the Worker-Priest movement
that the Pope believed Cardinal Emmanuel Célestin Suhard
had been supporting despite his protests otherwise. Although Suhard's death in 1949 greatly eased Pius's task, it was not until Marella succeeded Archbishop Angelo Roncalli (the future Pope John XXIII
) as Nuncio
to France on April 15, 1953 that the suppression was completed.
Pope John XXIII created Cardinal-Priest of Sant'Andrea delle Fratte
in the consistory
of December 14, 1959. Appointed Archpriest
of St. Peter's Basilica
and Prefect
of the Sacred Congregation of the Fabric of St. Peter's Basilica
on August 14, 1961, Marella attended the Second Vatican Council
from 1962 to 1965, and was one of the cardinal electors
who participated in the 1963 papal conclave
, which selected Pope Paul VI
.
He acted as papal legate
to the inauguration of the Vatican pavilion at the New York World's Fair
on February 20, 1964, presiding over the unveiling of the Pietà
and presenting Cardinal Francis Spellman with a topaz brooch once worn by Pius XII as a gift from Pope Paul. Marella returned home with four honorary doctorates
, including one from the Catholic University of America
, which had prohibited four liberal
theologians
from delivering lectures there the previous year, for which the conservative
Cardinal Marella commended the university.
He became President of the Secretariat for Non-Christians
on May 19, 1964, and again served as a papal legate, to the eighth centennial celebration of the erection of Notre-Dame Cathedral
in Paris (May 27, 1964), to the centennial celebration for the arrival of the first Catholic missionaries
in Japan in Tokyo (January 12, 1965), and to the National Congress of the Confederation of the Christian Doctrine in Pittsburgh (August 28, 1966).
In 1970, Marella served as the papal representative to Expo '70
in Osaka
. His career then wound down during the 1970s, and he resigned his presidency of the Secretariat at the end of February 1973, whilst two years later he lost the right to vote in a papal conclave on reaching eighty. From December 12, 1977 until his death Marella was vice-dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals.
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
of the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
. He served in the Roman Curia
Roman Curia
The Roman Curia is the administrative apparatus of the Holy See and the central governing body of the entire Catholic Church, together with the Pope...
following a career as a delegate of the
Nuncio
Nuncio is an ecclesiastical diplomatic title, derived from the ancient Latin word, Nuntius, meaning "envoy." This article addresses this title as well as derived similar titles, all within the structure of the Roman Catholic Church...
Holy See
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1959.
Biography
Paolo Marella was born in Rome to Luigi and Vincenza (née Baldoni) Marella, and studied at the Pontifical Roman SeminaryPontifical Roman Seminary
The Pontifical Roman Seminary is a seminary in Rome, Italy located at the Basilica of St. John Lateran.Its teachings are based on the Roman Pontifical.-History:...
and the Royal University
University of Rome La Sapienza
The Sapienza University of Rome, officially Sapienza – Università di Roma, formerly known as Università degli studi di Roma "La Sapienza", is a coeducational, autonomous state university in Rome, Italy...
. He was ordained
Holy Orders
The term Holy Orders is used by many Christian churches to refer to ordination or to those individuals ordained for a special role or ministry....
to the priesthood
Priesthood (Catholic Church)
The ministerial orders of the Catholic Church include the orders of bishops, deacons and presbyters, which in Latin is sacerdos. The ordained priesthood and common priesthood are different in function and essence....
by Cardinal Basilio Pompilj
Basilio Pompilj
Basilio Pompilj was an Italian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Vicar General of Rome from 1913 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1911.-Biography:...
on February 23, 1918, and then furthered his studies whilst doing pastoral
Parish (Catholic Church)
In the Roman Catholic Church, a parish is the lowest ecclesiastical geographical subdivision: from ecclesiastical province to diocese to deanery to parish.-Requirements:A parish needs two things under common law to become a parish...
work in Rome until 1922.
From 1922 to 1924, Marella was an official of the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith
Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples
The Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples in Rome is the congregation of the Roman Curia responsible for missionary work and related activities...
in the Roman Curia. He was raised to the rank of Privy Chamberlain of His Holiness
Monsignor
Monsignor, pl. monsignori, is the form of address for those members of the clergy of the Catholic Church holding certain ecclesiastical honorific titles. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian monsignore, from the French mon seigneur, meaning "my lord"...
on January 9, 1923, and later Domestic Prelate of His Holiness
Monsignor
Monsignor, pl. monsignori, is the form of address for those members of the clergy of the Catholic Church holding certain ecclesiastical honorific titles. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian monsignore, from the French mon seigneur, meaning "my lord"...
on April 5, 1933. He then served as auditor
Auditor (ecclesiastical)
In ecclesiastical terminology, an Auditor is a person given authority to hear cases in an ecclesiastical court.- Roman Catholic Church :...
(1924–1933) and chargé d'affaires
Chargé d'affaires
In diplomacy, chargé d’affaires , often shortened to simply chargé, is the title of two classes of diplomatic agents who head a diplomatic mission, either on a temporary basis or when no more senior diplomat has been accredited.-Chargés d’affaires:Chargés d’affaires , who were...
(February to September 1933) of the Apostolic Delegation to the United States.
On September 15, 1933, Marella was appointed Titular Archbishop
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 Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches is that he be ordained for a specific place...
of Doclea by Pope Pius XI
Pope Pius XI
Pope Pius XI , born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, was Pope from 6 February 1922, and sovereign of Vatican City from its creation as an independent state on 11 February 1929 until his death on 10 February 1939...
. He received his episcopal consecration
Bishop (Catholic Church)
In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders and is responsible for teaching the Catholic faith and ruling the Church....
on the following October 29 from Cardinal Pietro Fumasoni Biondi
Pietro Fumasoni Biondi
Pietro Fumasoni Biondi was an Italian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church who served as Prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith in the Roman Curia from 1933 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1933.-Biography:Pietro Fumasoni Biondi was born in Rome...
, with Archbishops Carlo Salotti
Carlo Salotti
Carlo Salotti was an Italian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Prefect of the Congregation of Rites from 1938 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in pectore in 1933.-Biography:...
and Domenico Spolverini serving as co-consecrators
Consecrator
Consecrator is a term used in the Roman Catholic Church to designate a bishop who ordains a priest to the episcopal state. The term is often used in Eastern Rite Churches and in Anglican communities. The term "Principal Consecrator" is used to designate the primary bishop who ordains a new bishop...
, at the chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
of Collegio de Propaganda Fide in Rome. Marella was named Apostolic Delegate
Nuncio
Nuncio is an ecclesiastical diplomatic title, derived from the ancient Latin word, Nuntius, meaning "envoy." This article addresses this title as well as derived similar titles, all within the structure of the Roman Catholic Church...
to Japan the next day, on October 30. In 1942, when the Vatican accepted de facto diplomatic relations with Japan, Marella was given "full diplomatic privileges". He was made Apostolic Delegate to
Apostolic Nunciature to Australia
The Nunciature to Australia is an ecclesiastical office of the Roman Catholic Church in Australia. It is a diplomatic post of the Holy See, whose representative is called the Apostolic Nuncio to Australia with the rank of an ambassador...
Australia, New Zealand, and Oceania on October 27, 1948.
Also in the 1940s, Marella was sent to France as an agent of Pope Pius XII
Pope Pius XII
The Venerable Pope Pius XII , born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli , reigned as Pope, head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of Vatican City State, from 2 March 1939 until his death in 1958....
when he was aiming to stamp out the Worker-Priest movement
Worker-Priest
Worker-priest was a missionary initiative by the French Catholic Church in particular for priests to take up work in such places as car factories to experience the everyday life of the working class...
that the Pope believed Cardinal Emmanuel Célestin Suhard
Emmanuel Célestin Suhard
Emmanuel Célestin Suhard was a French Cardinal of the Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Paris from 1940 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1935.-Biography:...
had been supporting despite his protests otherwise. Although Suhard's death in 1949 greatly eased Pius's task, it was not until Marella succeeded Archbishop Angelo Roncalli (the future Pope John XXIII
Pope John XXIII
-Papal election:Following the death of Pope Pius XII in 1958, Roncalli was elected Pope, to his great surprise. He had even arrived in the Vatican with a return train ticket to Venice. Many had considered Giovanni Battista Montini, Archbishop of Milan, a possible candidate, but, although archbishop...
) as Nuncio
Nuncio
Nuncio is an ecclesiastical diplomatic title, derived from the ancient Latin word, Nuntius, meaning "envoy." This article addresses this title as well as derived similar titles, all within the structure of the Roman Catholic Church...
to France on April 15, 1953 that the suppression was completed.
Pope John XXIII created Cardinal-Priest of Sant'Andrea delle Fratte
Sant'Andrea delle Fratte
Sant'Andrea delle Fratte is a 17th-century basilica church in Rome, Italy, dedicated to St. Andrew. The Cardinal Priest of the Titulus S. Andreae Apostoli de Hortis is Ennio Antonelli....
in the consistory
Consistory
-Antiquity:Originally, the Latin word consistorium meant simply 'sitting together', just as the Greek synedrion ....
of December 14, 1959. Appointed Archpriest
Archpriest
An archpriest is a priest with supervisory duties over a number of parishes. The term is most often used in Eastern Orthodoxy and Eastern Catholic Churches, although it may be used in the Latin rite of the Roman Catholic Church instead of dean or vicar forane.In the 16th and 17th centuries, during...
of St. Peter's Basilica
St. Peter's Basilica
The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter , officially known in Italian as ' and commonly known as Saint Peter's Basilica, is a Late Renaissance church located within the Vatican City. Saint Peter's Basilica has the largest interior of any Christian church in the world...
and Prefect
Prefect
Prefect is a magisterial title of varying definition....
of the Sacred Congregation of the Fabric of St. Peter's Basilica
Fabric of Saint Peter
The Fabric of Saint Peter is an office within the Roman Curia of the Roman Catholic Church. The office was founded in 1908 as the Sacred Congregation of the Reverend Basilica of St. Peter and had its named changed in 1967 by Pope Paul VI to the Reverend Fabric of St...
on August 14, 1961, Marella attended the Second Vatican Council
Second Vatican Council
The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...
from 1962 to 1965, and was one of the cardinal electors
Cardinal electors in Papal conclave, 1963
The following were the cardinal electors in the 1963 papal conclave. Arranged by region , and within each alphabetically . Only two out of the eighty electors did not participate in the conclave: József Mindszenty The following were the cardinal electors in the 1963 papal conclave. Arranged by...
who participated in the 1963 papal conclave
Papal conclave, 1963
The Papal conclave of 1963 was convoked following the death of Pope John XXIII on June 3 of that same year in the Apostolic Palace. After the cardinal electors assembled in Rome, the conclave to elect John's successor began on June 19 and ended two days later, on June 21, after six ballots. The...
, which selected Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI
Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
.
He acted as papal legate
Papal legate
A papal legate – from the Latin, authentic Roman title Legatus – is a personal representative of the pope to foreign nations, or to some part of the Catholic Church. He is empowered on matters of Catholic Faith and for the settlement of ecclesiastical matters....
to the inauguration of the Vatican pavilion at the New York World's Fair
1964 New York World's Fair
The 1964/1965 New York World's Fair was the third major world's fair to be held in New York City. Hailing itself as a "universal and international" exposition, the fair's theme was "Peace Through Understanding," dedicated to "Man's Achievement on a Shrinking Globe in an Expanding Universe";...
on February 20, 1964, presiding over the unveiling of the Pietà
Pietà (Michelangelo)
The Pietà is a masterpiece of Renaissance sculpture by Michelangelo Buonarroti, housed in St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City. It is the first of a number of works of the same theme by the artist. The statue was commissioned for the French cardinal Jean de Billheres, who was a representative in...
and presenting Cardinal Francis Spellman with a topaz brooch once worn by Pius XII as a gift from Pope Paul. Marella returned home with four honorary doctorates
Honorary degree
An honorary degree or a degree honoris causa is an academic degree for which a university has waived the usual requirements, such as matriculation, residence, study, and the passing of examinations...
, including one from the Catholic University of America
The Catholic University of America
The Catholic University of America is a private university located in Washington, D.C. in the United States. It is a pontifical university of the Catholic Church in the United States and the only institution of higher education founded by the U.S. Catholic bishops...
, which had prohibited four liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
theologians
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
from delivering lectures there the previous year, for which the conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
Cardinal Marella commended the university.
He became President of the Secretariat for Non-Christians
Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue
The Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue is a dicastery of the Roman Curia, erected by Pope Paul VI on 19 May 1964 as the Secretariat for Non-Christians, and renamed by Pope John Paul II on 28 June 1988....
on May 19, 1964, and again served as a papal legate, to the eighth centennial celebration of the erection of Notre-Dame Cathedral
Notre Dame de Paris
Notre Dame de Paris , also known as Notre Dame Cathedral, is a Gothic, Roman Catholic cathedral on the eastern half of the Île de la Cité in the fourth arrondissement of Paris, France. It is the cathedral of the Catholic Archdiocese of Paris: that is, it is the church that contains the cathedra of...
in Paris (May 27, 1964), to the centennial celebration for the arrival of the first Catholic missionaries
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
in Japan in Tokyo (January 12, 1965), and to the National Congress of the Confederation of the Christian Doctrine in Pittsburgh (August 28, 1966).
In 1970, Marella served as the papal representative to Expo '70
Expo '70
was a World's Fair held in Suita, Osaka, Japan between March 15 and September 13, 1970. The theme of the Expo was "Progress and Harmony for Mankind." In Japanese Expo '70 is often referred to as Ōsaka Banpaku...
in Osaka
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
. His career then wound down during the 1970s, and he resigned his presidency of the Secretariat at the end of February 1973, whilst two years later he lost the right to vote in a papal conclave on reaching eighty. From December 12, 1977 until his death Marella was vice-dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals.