Santiago Luis Copello (7 January 1880 – 9 February 1967) was an Argentine Cardinal of the

Roman 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 ...

. He served as

Archbishop of Buenos Aires The Archdiocese of Buenos Aires (''Archidioecesis Bonaerensis'') is one of thirteen Latin Metropolitan archdioceses of the Catholic Church in Argentina, South America. The Archbishopric of Buenos Aires is the Primatial see (protocollary first-r ...

from 1932 to 1959, and was elevated to the

cardinalate 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 appoi ...

in 1935. Copello served as the first Argentine cardinal and the first cardinal from Hispanic America.

Biography

Born in

San Isidro, Buenos Aires San Isidro is a city in Greater Buenos Aires. It is located 27.9 km from the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires (CABA). It ranks as the province's most affluent neighborhood. History In 2007, San Isidro celebrated its 300 years of existence wi ...

, Copello studied at 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 ...

in La Plata and the

Pontifical Gregorian University The Pontifical Gregorian University ( it, Pontificia Università Gregoriana; also known as the Gregorian or Gregoriana,) is a higher education ecclesiastical school ( pontifical university) located in Rome, Italy. The Gregorian originated as ...

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 ...

before being

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 28 October 1902. He then did pastoral work in La Plata from 1903 to 1918. On 8 November 1918, Copello was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of La Plata and

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 Catholic, Eastern Orthodox ...

of ''Aulon''. 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 30 March 1919, from Bishop Juan Terrero y Escalada, with Bishops Francisco Alberti and José Orzali serving as co-consecrators. After becoming Auxiliary Bishop of

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

on 15 May 1928, Copello was named

Vicar General A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop' ...

of the same see and

Vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pre ...

of the Argentine

Military Ordinariate A military ordinariate is an ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Catholic Church, of the Latin or an Eastern church, responsible for the pastoral care of Catholics serving in the armed forces of a nation. Until 1986, they were called "military ...

on the following June 12. He was elected

Vicar Capitular :''See: Catholic Church hierarchy#Equivalents of diocesan bishops in law'' A diocesan administrator is a provisional ordinary of a Roman Catholic particular church. Diocesan administrators in canon law The college of consultors elects an admi ...

on 2 August 1932, and was appointed

on 20 September of that year. Pope Pius XI created Copello

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 ...

of '' San Girolamo dei Croati'' 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 16 December 1935, making him the first cardinal from

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

and

Spanish America Spanish America refers to the Spanish territories in the Americas during the Spanish colonization of the Americas. The term "Spanish America" was specifically used during the territories' imperial era between 15th and 19th centuries. To the e ...

. Raised to the rank of

Primate Primates are a diverse order of mammals. They are divided into the strepsirrhines, which include the lemurs, galagos, and lorisids, and the haplorhines, which include the tarsiers and the simians ( monkeys and apes, the latter including ...

of the Church in Argentina on 29 January 1936, Copello was one of the cardinal electors in the 1939 papal conclave that selected Pope Pius XII. In November 1945, he prohibited Argentine Catholics from supporting parties or candidates who promoted the

separation of Church and State The separation of church and state is a philosophical and jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the state. Conceptually, the term refers to the creation of a secular sta ...

, removing religion from public schools, or legalizing civil divorce in the February 1946 elections. Copello even had a

parish priest 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 or ...

removed from his position for criticizing

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Juan Perón.TIME Magazine
"May God Help You"
January 17, 1949 After attending the first general conference of the

Latin American Episcopal Conference Based in Bogotá ( Colombia), the Latin American Episcopal Council ( es, Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano; pt, Conselho Episcopal Latino-Americano), better known as CELAM, is a council of the Roman Catholic bishops of Latin America, created i ...

in 1955, he was temporarily forced to take up residence in the Roman Curia as a consequence of the Peronist regime's fall. Cardinal Copello participated in the conclave of 1958, which resulted in the election of

Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII ( la, Ioannes XXIII; it, Giovanni XXIII; born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, ; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death in June 19 ...

. He resigned, after twenty-six years of service, as

' archbishop on 25 March 1959, and was appointed Apostolic Chancellor on the same date (remaining in that post until his death). Copello thus became Cardinal-Priest of ''

San Lorenzo in Damaso The Minor Basilica of St. Lawrence in Damaso (Basilica Minore di San Lorenzo in Damaso) or simply San Lorenzo in Damaso is a parish and titular church in central Rome, Italy that is dedicated to St. Lawrence, deacon and martyr. It is incorporated ...

'' on 14 December 1959. From 1962 to 1965, he attended the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions), each lasting between 8 and ...

, during the course of which he served as a cardinal elector in the 1963 papal conclave that selected

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 ...

. Copello died in Rome, at age 87. He is buried in the Basilica of the Holy Sacrament, located behind the

Kavanagh Building The Kavanagh Building () is a famed skyscraper in Retiro, Buenos Aires, Argentina. Designed in 1934 by architects Gregorio Sánchez, Ernesto Lagos and Luis María de la Torre, it is considered a pinnacle of modernist architecture. At the time of ...

in the Retiro section of Buenos Aires.

References

External links

Catholic-Hierarchy
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Copello, Santiago 1880 births 1967 deaths Argentine people of Italian descent Pontifical Gregorian University alumni Argentine cardinals Roman Catholic archbishops of Buenos Aires Participants in the Second Vatican Council 20th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Argentina Burials at Buenos Aires Metropolitan Cathedral Roman Catholic bishops of Buenos Aires Roman Catholic bishops of La Plata in Argentina