Francesco Borgongini Duca (26 February 1884 – 4 October 1954) was an Italian cardinal 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 served as Apostolic Nuncio to Italy from 1929 to 1953 and was made a cardinal in 1953 by Pope Pius XII.

Biography

Borgongini Duca was born 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 ...

, and studied at the

Pontifical Roman Seminary , type = Major seminary , established = , founder = Pope Pius IV , parent = Diocese of Rome , religious_affiliation = Catholic Church , rector = Gabriele Fara ...

, from where he obtained doctorates in

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

and in

canon and civil law A doctor of both laws, from the Latin ''doctor utriusque juris'', or ''juris utriusque doctor'', or ''doctor juris utriusque'' ("doctor of both laws") (abbreviations include: JUD, IUD, DUJ, JUDr., DUI, DJU, Dr.iur.utr., Dr.jur.utr., DIU, UJD a ...

. He 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 22 December 1906, and then taught

at both the Pontifical North American College and the Pontifical Urbanian Athenaeum ''De Propaganda Fide'' from 1907 to 1909. He was favorably impressed by a young American seminarian named

Francis Spellman Francis Joseph Spellman (May 4, 1889 – December 2, 1967) was an American bishop and cardinal of the Catholic Church. From 1939 until his death in 1967, he served as the sixth Archbishop of New York; he had previously served as an auxiliary ...

, whom Duca would later assist in consecrating as Auxiliary Bishop of Boston in 1932. Borgongini Duca entered the service of the Roman Curia upon being made an official of the

Apostolic Penitentiary The Apostolic Penitentiary (), formerly called the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Penitentiary, is a dicastery of the Roman Curia and is one of the three ordinary tribunals of the Apostolic See. The Apostolic Penitentiary is chiefly a tri ...

in 1909, of which he became secretary on 24 February 1917. He was raised to the rank of

privy chamberlain of his holiness A Chaplain of His Holiness is a priest to whom the Pope has granted this title. They are addressed as Monsignor and have certain privileges with respect to ecclesiastical dress and vestments.pro Pro is an abbreviation meaning "professional". Pro, PRO or variants thereof may also refer to: People * Miguel Pro (1891–1927), Mexican priest * Pro Hart (1928–2006), Australian painter * Mlungisi Mdluli (born 1980), South African retired f ...

-secretary of the

Sacred Congregation for Extraordinary Ecclesiastical Affairs The Section for Relations with States or Second Section of the Secretariat of State is the body within the Roman Curia charged with dealing with matters that involve relations with civil governments. It has been part of the Vatican Secretariat o ...

on 28 June 1921, rising to become full secretary on 14 October 1922 (the pope was the nominal head of that

dicastery A dicastery (from gr, δικαστήριον, dikastērion, law-court, from δικαστής, 'judge, juror') is the name of some departments of the Roman Curia. ''Pastor bonus'' ''Pastor bonus'' (1988), includes this definition: ''Praed ...

). He was made a

domestic prelate of his holiness A Prelate of Honour of His Holiness is a Catholic prelate to whom the Pope has granted this title of honour. They are addressed as Monsignor and have certain privileges as regards clerical clothing.apostolic protonotary In the Roman Catholic Church, protonotary apostolic (PA; Latin: ''protonotarius apostolicus'') is the title for a member of the highest non-episcopal college of prelates in the Roman Curia or, outside Rome, an honorary prelate on whom the pop ...

(11 January 1927) before being named to the commission to negotiate the

Lateran Treaty The Lateran Treaty ( it, Patti Lateranensi; la, Pacta Lateranensia) was one component of the Lateran Pacts of 1929, agreements between the Kingdom of Italy under King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy and the Holy See under Pope Pius XI to settle ...

. On 7 June 1929, he was appointed

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 Heraclea in Europa by Pope Pius XI. 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 29 June from Cardinal

Pietro Gasparri Pietro Gasparri, GCTE (5 May 1852 – 18 November 1934) was a Roman Catholic cardinal, diplomat and politician in the Roman Curia and the signatory of the Lateran Pacts. He served also as Cardinal Secretary of State under Popes Benedict XV and ...

, with Archbishop

Carlo Cremonesi Carlo Cremonesi (4 November 1866 – 25 November 1943) was an Italian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church who served as Territorial Prelate of Pompei from 1926 to 1928, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1935. Biography Cremonesi w ...

and Bishop Agostino Zampini, OSA, serving as co-consecrators, in the Hall of Benedictions at

St. Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican ( it, Basilica Papale di San Pietro in Vaticano), or simply Saint Peter's Basilica ( la, Basilica Sancti Petri), is a church built in the Renaissance style located in Vatican City, the papal e ...

. Duca was named Apostolic Nuncio to Italy, the first after the Lateran Treaty, the next day, on 30 June. In addition to his diplomatic duties, he was also made pontifical administrator of the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls on 1 April 1933, and of the Basilica of Our Lady of Loreto on 25 March 1934. In early 1937, he bestowed the

Golden Rose The Golden Rose is a gold ornament, which popes of the Catholic Church have traditionally blessed annually. It is occasionally conferred as a token of reverence or affection. Recipients have included churches and sanctuaries, royalty, military ...

on Queen Elena of Italy, on the occasion of her fortieth wedding anniversary to

Victor Emmanuel III The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...

. 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 ...

, Benito Mussolini clashed with Duca over the issue of restricting Jewish converts to Catholicism.Shoah Rose
Papal Nuncios of 1933-1945: Ambassadors of the Vatican in the Shoah
In 1952, he wrote ''The Seventy Weeks of Daniel and the Messianic Date'', in which he determined the date of the

crucifixion of Jesus The crucifixion and death of Jesus occurred in 1st-century Judea, most likely in AD 30 or AD 33. It is described in the four canonical gospels, referred to in the New Testament epistles, attested to by other ancient sources, and consid ...

as 7 April 30 AD, by using the cryptographic prophecies contained in the

Book of Daniel The Book of Daniel is a 2nd-century BC biblical apocalypse with a 6th century BC setting. Ostensibly "an account of the activities and visions of Daniel, a noble Jew exiled at Babylon", it combines a prophecy of history with an eschatology ...

."Milestones"
''Time''. 18 October 1954. Pope Pius XII created him

Cardinal-Priest 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. Col ...

Santa Maria in Vallicella Santa Maria in Vallicella, also called Chiesa Nuova, is a church in Rome, Italy, which today faces onto the main thoroughfare of the Corso Vittorio Emanuele and the corner of Via della Chiesa Nuova. It is the principal church of the Oratorians, ...

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 12 January 1953, ending his role as nuncio. Duca died from a heart ailment at his apartment in the

Palace of the Holy Office The Palace of the Holy Office ( it, Palazzo del Sant'Uffizio) is a building in Rome which is an extraterritorial property of Vatican City. It houses the Holy Office of the Roman Catholic Church. The palace is situated south of Saint Peter's Ba ...

in Rome at age 70. He was initially buried in the chapel of the

Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith A congregation is a large gathering of people, often for the purpose of worship. Congregation may also refer to: *Church (congregation), a Christian organization meeting in a particular place for worship *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administra ...

, but his remains were later transferred to the church of San Salvatore in Ossibus in

Vatican City Vatican City (), officially the Vatican City State ( it, Stato della Città del Vaticano; la, Status Civitatis Vaticanae),—' * german: Vatikanstadt, cf. '—' (in Austria: ') * pl, Miasto Watykańskie, cf. '—' * pt, Cidade do Vati ...

References

External links

Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church
{{DEFAULTSORT:Duca, Francesco Borgongini Cardinals created by Pope Pius XII 1884 births 1954 deaths Clergy from Rome 20th-century Italian cardinals 20th-century Italian Roman Catholic titular archbishops Pontifical Roman Seminary alumni Apostolic Nuncios to Italy