His Eminence

Pietro Fumasoni Biondi
Prefect of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith
Biondi in 1929
ChurchRoman Catholic Church
Appointed16 March 1933
Term ended12 July 1960
PredecessorWillem Marinus van Rossum
SuccessorGregorio Pietro Agagianian
Other post(s)Cardinal-Priest of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme (1933–60)
Orders
Ordination17 April 1897
by Lucido Maria Parocchi
Consecration10 December 1916
by Domenico Serafini
Created cardinal13 March 1933
by Pope Pius XI
RankCardinal-Priest
Personal details
Born
Pietro Fumasoni Biondi

4 September 1872
Rome, Kingdom of Italy
Died12 July 1960(1960-07-12) (aged 87)
Rome, Italy
BuriedCampo Verano
ParentsFilippo Fumasoni Biondi
Gertrude Roselli
Previous post(s)
Alma materPontifical Roman Major Seminary
Styles of
Pietro Fumasoni Biondi
Reference styleHis Eminence
Spoken styleYour Eminence
Informal styleCardinal
Seenone

Pietro Fumasoni Biondi (4 September 1872 – 12 July 1960) was an Italian prelate of the 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 in 1960. He was elevated to the cardinalate in 1933.

Biography

Fumasoni Biondi was born in Rome to the aristocratic Filippo and Gertrude (née Roselli) Fumasoni Biondi; he had a sister who entered the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and became known as Mother Gertrude.[1] After studying at the Pontifical Roman Seminary, he was ordained to the priesthood by Cardinal Lucido Parocchi on 17 April 1897. From 1897 to 1916, he was a professor at the Pontifical Urbaniana University and then an official of the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith.

On 14 November 1916, Biondi was appointed Apostolic Delegate to the East Indies[2] and Titular Archbishop of Dioclea. He received his episcopal consecration on the following 10 December from Cardinal Domenico Serafini, OSB, with Bishops Joseph Legrand, CSC, and Agostino Zampini, OSA, serving as co-consecrators, in the chapel of the Urbaniana University. In this post, he actively tried to improve relations between the Vatican and the Emperor of Japan.[3] Biondi was later named Apostolic Delegate to Japan on 6 December 1919, Secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith on 14 June 1921 and Apostolic Delegate to the United States on 14 December 1922. In 1927, he declared the Vatican had no interest in the presidential campaign of Al Smith, the Catholic governor of New York.[1]

Pope Pius XI created him Cardinal-Priest of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme in the consistory of 13 March 1933, in advance for his appointment as Prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith three days later, on 16 March. Cardinal Fumasoni Bondi served as papal legate to the National Eucharistic Congress in Teramo on 20 August 1935. He was one of the cardinal electors who participated in the 1939 papal conclave, and again in the conclave of 1958.

Biondi died in Rome, at age 87. He is buried in the Campo Verano.

References

  1. ^ a b "Religion: Red Hats". Time Magazine. March 20, 1933. Archived from the original on October 17, 2012.
  2. ^ Acta Apostolicae Sedis (PDF). Vol. VIII. 1916. p. 447. Retrieved 8 January 2020.
  3. ^ "Apostolic Delegate". Time Magazine. March 10, 1923. Archived from the original on December 22, 2008.

External links

Catholic Church titles Preceded byWillem van Rossum Prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith 1933–1960 Succeeded bySamuel Stritchas Pro-PrefectGrégoire-Pierre Agagianianas Prefect Preceded byGiovanni Bonzano Apostolic Delegate to the United States 1922–1933 Succeeded byAmleto Giovanni Cicognani Preceded byCamillo Laurenti Secretary of the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith 1921–1922 Succeeded byFrancesco Marchetti-Selvaggiani Preceded bynone Apostolic Delegate to Japan 1919–1921 Succeeded byMario Giardini, B Preceded byLadislao Zaleski Apostolic Delegate to the East Indies 1916–1919 Succeeded byPietro Pisani
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