Girolamo Seripando ( Troja,

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, 6 May 1493 –

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, 17 March 1563) was an

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, Italian theologian and

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Life

He was of noble birth, and intended by his parents for the legal profession. After their death, however, at the age of fourteen, he entered the

Augustinian Order Augustinians are members of several religious orders that follow the Rule of Saint Augustine, written about 400 A.D. by Augustine of Hippo. There are two distinct types of Augustinians in Catholic religious orders dating back to the 12th–13th ...

, at

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, where he studied Greek and Hebrew as well as philosophy and theology. After a short stay in Rome, where he had been called by his superior general, he was appointed lecturer at

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(1515), professor of theology at

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(1517), and vicar-general (1532), a role he filled with great credit for two years. He won such a reputation for eloquence by his discourses in the principal cities of Italy, that the

Emperor Charles V Charles V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain (as Charles I) from 1516 to 1556, and Lord of the Netherlands as titular Duke of Burgundy (as Charles II) fr ...

often made it a point to be present at his sermons. Elected

superior general A superior general or general superior is the leader or head of an 'order' of religious persons (nuns, priests, friars, etc) or, in other words, of a 'religious institute' in the Catholic Church, and in some other Christian denominations. The super ...

in 1539, he governed for twelve years. The 1913

Catholic Encyclopedia ''The'' ''Catholic Encyclopedia: An International Work of Reference on the Constitution, Doctrine, Discipline, and History of the Catholic Church'', also referred to as the ''Old Catholic Encyclopedia'' and the ''Original Catholic Encyclopedi ...

describes him as displaying "singular prudence, zeal, and piety." In 1546, he attended the sessions of the

Council of Trent The Council of Trent (), held between 1545 and 1563 in Trent (or Trento), now in northern Italy, was the 19th ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. Prompted by the Protestant Reformation at the time, it has been described as the "most ...

, where he distinguished himself by his zeal for the purity of biblical texts, and also by his views concerning

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and justification that council fathers felt were more in line with Lutheran view.

Pope Paul III Pope Paul III (; ; born Alessandro Farnese; 29 February 1468 – 10 November 1549) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 13 October 1534 to his death, in November 1549. He came to the papal throne in an era follo ...

sent him as his

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to the emperor and to the King of France, after which he was offered the Bishopric of Aquila. Seripando not only declined this dignity, but even resigned his position as superior general (1551), and withdrew into a small convent. He was called from this retirement (1553) on a mission from the city of Naples to Charles V. Upon completion of this he was appointed

Archbishop of Salerno The Archdiocese of Salerno-Campagna-Acerno () is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in Campania, southern Italy, created in 1986. The historic Archdiocese of Salerno was in existence from the tenth century, having been elevated from a ...

. The Catholic Encyclopedia describes him as a "zealous and efficient pastor." A few years later (1561),

Pope Pius IV Pope Pius IV (; 31 March 1499 – 9 December 1565), born Giovanni Angelo Medici, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 25 December 1559 to his death, in December 1565. Born in Milan, his family considered itself a b ...

made him cardinal and second legate of the Holy See at the Council of Trent. Upon the death of Cardinal Gonzaga, he became first president of the same council.

Works

The Catholic Encyclopedia describes Seripando as "an elegant and prolific writer, and a vigorous controversialist, rather than an orator." The following are his principal published works: * (Venice, 1549) * (Naples, 1559) * (Venice, 1567) * (Venice, 1569) * (Naples, 1601) * (Lyons, 1670) * several letters, included by Lagomarsini in (Rome, 1762).

References

Sources

* Louis Ellies du Pin, (Paris, 1703) * Odorico Raynaldi and

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, (Lucca, 1735–6) * Johann Felix Ossinger, (Ingolstadt, 1768) * * *Abbondanza, Rocchina (1982). ''Girolamo Seripando tra Evangelismo e Riforma Cattolica''. . Naples: Editrice Ferraro 1982. *Cesareo, Francesco C. (1999). ''A Shepherd in Their Midst: The Episcopacy of Girolamo Seripando (1554-1563)''. Augustinian Press, 1999. *Jedin, Hubert (1947). ''Papal Legate at the Council of Trent: Cardinal Seripando''. trans. Frederic C. Eckhoff (St. Louis: B. Herder, 1947). *Olivier, D. (1968). "Les deux sermons sur la double et la triple justice," . ''Öcumenica'' 3 (1968), pp. 39–69. *Schmitz, Edwin F. (1955). ''Girolamo Seripando and Justification at the Council of Trent''. St. Mary's Seminary (Baltimore, Md.), 1955. {{DEFAULTSORT:Seripando, Girolamo 1493 births 1563 deaths Augustinian friars 16th-century Italian cardinals Participants in the Council of Trent 16th-century Italian Roman Catholic archbishops