Luigi Centoz (2 April 1883 – 27 October 1969), also known as Louis Centoz, was an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who spent more than five decades in the diplomatic service of the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

, either in Rome or serving in offices abroad. He became an archbishop in 1932 and served as an Apostolic Nuncio from then until 1962. He was Vice Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church from 1962 to 1969.

Biography

Luigi Centoz was born on 2 April 1883 in

Saint-Pierre, Aosta Valley Saint-Pierre (; ) is a town and commune in the region of Aosta Valley, north-western Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Penins ...

, Italy. He was ordained a priest on 9 June 1906. In 1909 he joined the staff of the Holy See's Secretariat of State, where he worked directly for the Cardinal Secretary of State

Rafael Merry del Val Rafael Merry del Val y Zulueta, (10 October 1865 – 26 February 1930) was a Spanish Catholic bishop, Vatican official, and cardinal. Before becoming a cardinal, he served as the secretary of the papal conclave of 1903 that elected Pope Pius ...

. On 6 January 1921, he was assigned to the nunciatures to Germany and Bavaria (and from 1925 to Prussia), working for the Nuncio

Eugenio Pacelli Pope Pius XII (; born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli; 2 March 18769 October 1958) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death on 9 October 1958. He is the most recent p ...

, later

Pope Pius XII Pope Pius XII (; born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli; 2 March 18769 October 1958) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death on 9 October 1958. He is the most recent p ...

. He participated in the conclave of February 1922, as aide to Cardinal Merry del Val. On 28 January 1932,

Pope Pius XI Pope Pius XI (; born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, ; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939) was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 until his death in February 1939. He was also the first sovereign of the Vatican City State u ...

named him

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 Edessa in Osrhoëne and

Apostolic Nuncio to Bolivia Apostolic may refer to: The Apostles An Apostle meaning one sent on a mission: *The Twelve Apostles of Jesus, or something related to them, such as the Church of the Holy Apostles *Apostolic succession, the doctrine connecting the Christian Churc ...

. He received his episcopal consecration in 14 February 1932 from Cardinal

, the future Pope Pius XII. He chose as his episcopal motto "Dominus Fortitudo Mea" (The Lord is my Strength). On 16 September 1936, Pope Pius appointed him Apostolic Nuncio to the Venezuela. On 19 February 1940,

appointed him Apostolic Nuncio to Lithuania. He was expelled from Lithuania on 24 August after the Soviet invasion and returned to Rome. There he led a new Vatican commission considering how to counter Soviet Communism and held "long conferences" with the Pope. On 3 December 1941, Pope Pius appointed him Apostolic Nuncio to

Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

, and

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

. Hostilities prevented him from taking up those posts and he remained in Rome for the duration of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He worked instead at the Secretariat on relief for prisoners of war and displaced persons. In 1946 he donated a building in his home town for use as a nursery school and childhood education center. It is named for him. He finally reached Central America in February 1946. His role in Nicaragua ended with the appointment of his successor on 4 October 1948. He resigned the two other posts on 26 April 1952 and returned to Rome. On 29 November 1954, Pope Pius named him Apostolic Nuncio to Cuba. His half-century in the diplomatic service ended on 5 July 1962, when

Pope John XXIII Pope John 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 on 3 June 1963. He is the most recent pope to take ...

named him Vice Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church. His term as Vice Camerlengo ended with the appointment of his successor, Vittorio Bartoccetti, on 24 March 1969. Centoz retired to his home town. He died on 27 October 1969.

Notes

References

External links

Catholic Hierarchy: Archbishop Luigi Centoz
{{DEFAULTSORT:Centoz, Luigi 1883 births 1969 deaths People from Aosta Valley Apostolic nuncios to Bolivia Apostolic nuncios to Venezuela Apostolic nuncios to Lithuania Apostolic nuncios to Nicaragua Apostolic nuncios to Panama Apostolic nuncios to Costa Rica Officials of the Roman Curia Bishops of Edessa Bishops appointed by Pope Pius XI Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy alumni 20th-century Italian Roman Catholic titular archbishops