Giulio Bevilacqua, Orat (14 November 1881 – 6 May 1965) was an Italian prelate of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

who devoted himself to pastoral work in Brescia and served as a military chaplain, known for his opposition to fascism. A few weeks before his death he was made an auxiliary bishop of

Brescia Brescia (, locally ; lmo, link=no, label= Lombard, Brèsa ; lat, Brixia; vec, Bressa) is a city and ''comune'' in the region of Lombardy, Northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Garda and Iseo ...

and a cardinal. He was a teacher and spiritual confidant of

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo 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 to his death in Augus ...

Biography

Giulio Bevilacqua was born in

Isola della Scala Isola della Scala is a ''comune'' (municipality) of c. 10,000 inhabitants in the Province of Verona in the Italian region of Veneto, located about west of Venice and about southeast of Verona. Isola della Scala borders the following municipalit ...

to a family of merchants. He studied at the University of Louvain in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

and the

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy ...

, and later entered the

Oratory of Saint Philip Neri The Confederation of Oratories of Saint Philip Neri ( la, Confoederatio Oratorii Sancti Philippi Nerii) abbreviated CO and commonly known as the Oratorians is a Catholic society of apostolic life of Pontifical Right for men (priests and lay- ...

. Bevilacqua was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...

to the priesthood on 13 June 1908, and then did pastoral work in Brescia until 1914. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he served as a chaplain to the

Italian Army "The safeguard of the republic shall be the supreme law" , colors = , colors_labels = , march = ''Parata d'Eroi'' ("Heroes's parade") by Francesco Pellegrino, ''4 Maggio'' (May 4) ...

and was captured by Austrian forces in 1916. Following his release in 1918, he resumed his ministry in Brescia, where he became the

spiritual director Spiritual direction is the practice of being with people as they attempt to deepen their relationship with the divinity, divine, or to learn and grow in their personal spirituality. The person seeking direction shares stories of their encounters ...

and a personal friend of

Giovanni Battista Montini Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo 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 to his death in Augus ...

, the future Pope Paul VI, while the latter was a student. He was made an official of the

Vatican Secretariat of State The Secretariat of State (Latin: ''Secretaria Status''; Italian: ''Segreteria di Stato'') is the oldest dicastery in the Roman Curia, the central papal governing bureaucracy of the Catholic Church. It is headed by the Cardinal Secretary of State ...

for his protection against Fascist threats and lived in the Vatican from 1928 to 1933. He also did pastoral work in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

during this time. He then returned to Brescia. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, served as a chaplain on an Italian hospital ship. In 1964, he preached to Pope Paul and the small group of Church officials who were preparing to visit the Holy Land; he accompanied Pope Paul on that visit. On 15 February 1965, Bevilacqua was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of

and

Titular Archbishop 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 Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

of Gaudiaba by Paul VI, in advance of his elevation to the

College of Cardinals The College of Cardinals, or more formally the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. its current membership is , of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Cardinals are app ...

. He received his

episcopal consecration A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

on the following 18 February from Bishop Luigi Morstabilini, with Bishops

Giuseppe Carraro Giuseppe Carraro (26 June 1899 – 30 December 1980) was an Italian Roman Catholic prelate who served as the Bishop of Verona from 1958 until his retirement in 1978. He also served as the Bishop of Vittorio Veneto until his transferral to the see ...

and Carlo Manziana, Orat, serving as co-consecrators, in the basilica of Saints Faustus and Jovita. Pope Paul created him

Cardinal Deacon 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. Co ...

of San Girolamo della Carità in the

consistory Consistory is the anglicized form of the consistorium, a council of the closest advisors of the Roman emperors. It can also refer to: *A papal consistory, a formal meeting of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church * Consistor ...

of 22 February of that year. By the special permission of the pope, Bevilacqua continued to serve as

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

of Sant'Antonio

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one o ...

in Brescia. He assured his parishioners that he would also continue to wear a simple black cassock. He died fifteen weeks later in Brescia on 6 May at the age of 83. He is buried in the church of Santa Maria della Pace.

References

External links

Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bevilacqua, Giulio 1881 births 1965 deaths 20th-century Italian cardinals Cardinals created by Pope Paul VI Italian military chaplains World War I chaplains World War II chaplains Royal Italian Army chaplains Royal Italian Navy chaplains 20th-century Italian Roman Catholic bishops