Alfons Maria Stickler (23 August 1910 – 12 December 2007) was an Austrian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archivist and Librarian of the Holy Roman Church from 1985 to 1988. Stickler was elevated to the

cardinalate The College of Cardinals (), also called the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. there are cardinals, of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Appointed by the pope, ...

in 1985, and was the oldest member of the

College of Cardinals The College of Cardinals (), also called the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. there are cardinals, of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Appointed by the pope, ...

. A traditionalist, he was a strong supporter of the

Tridentine Mass The Tridentine Mass, also known as the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite or ''usus antiquior'' (), Vetus Ordo or the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) or the Traditional Rite, is the liturgy in the Roman Missal of the Catholic Church codified in ...

and

clerical celibacy Clerical celibacy is the requirement in certain religions that some or all members of the clergy be unmarried. Clerical celibacy also requires abstention from deliberately indulging in sexual thoughts and behavior outside of marriage, because thes ...

Biography

Stickler was born in Neunkirchen, near

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

, as the second of twelve children. He entered the

Salesians of Don Bosco The Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB), formally known as the Society of Saint Francis de Sales (), is a religious congregation of men in the Catholic Church, founded in 1859 by the Italian priest John Bosco to help poor and migrant youth during the ...

in a German

novitiate The novitiate, also called the noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a Christian ''novice'' (or ''prospective'') monastic, apostolic, or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether ...

, and made his profession on 15 August 1928. Thereafter, Stickler studied philosophy in Germany and then in Austria,

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

, and Rome. He studied

canon law Canon law (from , , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical jurisdiction, ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its membe ...

at the Pontifical Athenaeum of S. Apollinare (from where he received his

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...

) and the

Pontifical Lateran University The Pontifical Lateran University (; ), also known as Lateranum, is a pontifical university based in Rome. The university also hosts the central session of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family. The university ...

, and was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

to the priesthood on 27 March 1937. (Stickler studied with Stephan Kuttner, who lived to see his first pupil in the history of canon law become a cardinal.) Stickler taught at the

Salesian Pontifical University The Salesian Pontifical University (; ) is a pontifical university in Italy run by the Salesians of Don Bosco. It has three campuses, one in Rome, one in Turin, and one in Jerusalem. The Salesian Pontifical University is an ordinary member of ...

as Professor of Canon Law and Church Legal History for eight years. From 1958 to 1966 he served as rector of the University, having previously served as Dean of the Canon Law Faculty since 1953. Stickler participated as a '' peritus'', or expert, at the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the or , was the 21st and most recent ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. The council met each autumn from 1962 to 1965 in St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City for session ...

(1962–1965), working as a member on the Commission for the Clergy, the Commission for the Liturgy, and (in his capacity as rector of the Salesian University) the commission directed by the Congregation for Seminaries and Universities. From the close of the council until 1968, Stickler was president of the newly founded '' Institutum Altioris Latinitas''. On 8 September 1983, 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 ''Volsinium'', Pro-Librarian of the Holy Roman Church, and Pro-Archivist of the Holy Roman Church. Stickler received his episcopal consecration on the following 1 November from

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

himself, with Archbishops

Eduardo Martínez Somalo Eduardo Martínez Somalo (; 31 March 1927 – 10 August 2021) was a Spanish prelate of the Catholic Church who spent most of his career in the Roman Curia, first in the Secretariat of State from 1956 to 1975 and from 1979 to 1988, and then l ...

and Rosalio José Castillo Lara serving as

co-consecrators A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churche ...

, in the

Sistine Chapel The Sistine Chapel ( ; ; ) is a chapel in the Apostolic Palace, the pope's official residence in Vatican City. Originally known as the ''Cappella Magna'' ('Great Chapel'), it takes its name from Pope Sixtus IV, who had it built between 1473 and ...

. He was created

Cardinal-Deacon A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. As titular members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome, they serve as advisors to the pope, who is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. Ca ...

of San Giorgio in Velabro by John Paul II 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 25 May 1985, becoming full

Librarian A librarian is a person who professionally works managing information. Librarians' common activities include providing access to information, conducting research, creating and managing information systems, creating, leading, and evaluating educat ...

and

Archivist An archivist is an information professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to records and archives determined to have long-term value. The records maintained by an archivist can cons ...

two days later, on 27 May. Stickler reported that Karol Wojtyła, the future

had confided to him that during his time as a student at the ''Pontificium Athenaeum Internationale Angelicum'' (subsequently renamed the

Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas The Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (PUST), also known as the ''Angelicum'' or ''Collegio Angelico'' (in honor of its patron, the ''Doctor Angelicus'' Thomas Aquinas), is a pontifical university located in the historic center of R ...

and often known simply as the ''Angelicum'') Wojtyła made a pilgrimage in 1947 to Pietrelcina to visit Padre Pio who told Wojtyła that one day he would ascend to "the highest post in the Church." Stickler added that Wojtyła believed that the prophecy was fulfilled when he became a cardinal. Stickler served as Librarian and Archivist until his resignation on 1 July 1988. During his tenure he promoted the construction of underground storage for the conservation and consultation of all the codices and printed books of the library. He chose to be raised to the rank of

Cardinal-Priest A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. As titular members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome, they serve as advisors to the pope, who is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. ...

(with the same title) on 29 January 1996, after spending ten years as a Cardinal Deacon. Upon the death of Johannes Willebrands on 1 August 2006, Stickler became the oldest living cardinal. In 2007, he celebrated the seventieth anniversary of his priestly ordination. Stickler studied the history of canon law with Stephan Kuttner and published on that subject. Stickler died on Wednesday, December 12, 2007, at 7.30 pm, in his private apartment at the Vatican City. His funeral rite was presided by Pope Benedict XVI, took place on Friday December 14, in the altar of the chair of Saint Peter's Vatican Basilica. He was buried in the cemetery of the Salesian community in the catacombs of San Callisto in Rome.

Support for tradition

Stickler consistently defended the position that the

was never forbidden or suppressed. He believed that the

Mass of Paul VI The Mass of Paul VI, also known as the Ordinary Form or , is the most commonly used Catholic liturgy, liturgy in the Catholic Church. It was Promulgation (Catholic canon law), promulgated by Pope Paul VI in 1969 and its liturgical books were p ...

contradicted the true wishes of the Second Vatican Council, and told the Latin Mass Society of England and Wales that its movement "has full legitimacy in the Church". On 20 May 1995, Stickler stated that in 1986 a commission of nine cardinals (Stickler, Ratzinger (future Pope Benedict XVI), Mayer,

Oddi Oddi ( Icelandic: ) is a small village and church at Rangárvellir in Rangárvallasýsla, Iceland. Oddi at Rangárvellir was a cultural and learning center in South Iceland during the Middle Ages. There has been a church at Oddi since the introd ...

, Casaroli, Gantin, Innocenti, Palazzini, and Tomko) appointed by Pope John Paul II unanimously gave a negative answer to the question "Did Pope Paul VI or any other competent authority legally forbid the widespread celebration of the Tridentine Mass in the present day?" and to the question "Can any bishop forbid any priest in good standing from celebrating the Tridentine Mass?" He said that eight of the nine were in favour of drawing up a general permission declaring that everyone could choose the old form of the Mass as well as the new.
"The Case for Clerical Celibacy: Its Historical Development and Theological Foundations"
written by Stickler, was published in 1995 by

Ignatius Press Ignatius Press is a Catholic theological publishing house based in San Francisco, California, in the United States. It was founded in 1978 by Father Joseph Fessio, a former pupil of both Henri de Lubac and Pope Benedict XVI. Named after Ignatiu ...

. It treats of the

theological Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of an ...

reasons and

scriptural Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They often feature a compilation or discussion of beliefs, ritual practices, moral commandments and ...

and magisterial roots of celibacy for Catholic priests.

References

External links

Bio from Catholic-Hierarchy
*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stickler, Alfons Maria 1910 births 2007 deaths 21st-century Austrian cardinals 20th-century Austrian cardinals Roman Catholic titular archbishops Cardinals created by Pope John Paul II Participants in the Second Vatican Council Salesian cardinals Salesians of Don Bosco Austrian traditionalist Catholics People from Neunkirchen District, Austria Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Pontifical Lateran University alumni Austrian librarians Bishops appointed by Pope John Paul II