Ettore Cunial (November 16, 1905 – October 6, 2005) was an Italian prelate. Born in

Possagno Possagno is a comune in the Province of Treviso, in the Italy, Italian region Veneto. It is located about northwest of Venice and about northwest of Treviso. As of 31 August 2021, it had a population of 2,215 and an area of .All demographics and ...

in the

Province of Treviso The province of Treviso () is a Provinces of Italy, province in the Veneto region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Treviso. The province is surrounded by Province of Belluno, Belluno in the north, Province of Vicenza, Vicenza in the west, Pro ...

on 16 November 1905, Cunial was ordained priest in 1929 and ordained bishop in 1953. In 1953, his appointment as

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 Soteropolis and Vicegerent of Rome followed. He was appointed Vice Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church by

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul 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 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding John XXII ...

in 23 December 1975, and did not retire until 23 October 2004, even though the customary

retirement Retirement is the withdrawal from one's position or occupation or from one's active working life. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours or workload. Many people choose to retire when they are elderly or incapable of doing their j ...

age for the

Roman Curia The Roman Curia () comprises the administrative institutions of the Holy See and the central body through which the affairs of the Catholic Church are conducted. The Roman Curia is the institution of which the Roman Pontiff ordinarily makes use ...

is 75, and very few are permitted by exception to remain in office past 80. In February 2005 the death of

Corrado Bafile Corrado Bafile (4 July 1903 – 3 February 2005) was an Italian cardinal of the Catholic Church who served as Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints from 1975 to 1980, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1976. At the time of hi ...

left Cunial the oldest Catholic bishop in the world. Cunial died on 6 October 2005 in

Castelfranco Veneto Castelfranco Veneto () is a town and (municipality) of Veneto, northern Italy, in the province of Treviso. It is the third largest municipality in the province by population after the capital Treviso and Conegliano. It is centrally located betwe ...

just six weeks before he would have turned 100.

References

1905 births 2005 deaths People from the Province of Treviso 20th-century Italian Roman Catholic titular archbishops Participants in the Second Vatican Council {{Italy-RC-archbishop-stub