Raffaele Rossi, OCD, born ''Carlo Rossi'', (28 October 1876 – 17 September 1948), was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

Discalced Carmelite The Discalced Carmelites, known officially as the Order of the Discalced Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel () or the Order of Discalced Carmelites (; abbrev.: OCD; sometimes called in earlier times, ), is a Catholic mendicant ...

and

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to * Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae ***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...

. Rossi served in the Sacred Consistorial Congregation in 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 ...

from 1930 until his death and as a friar had the religious name "Raffaele of Saint Joseph".

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 ...

elevated him into 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 1930. His cause of beatification began three decades after his death and he is known as a

Servant of God Servant of God () is a title used in the Catholic Church to indicate that an individual is on the first step toward possible canonization as a saint. Terminology The expression ''Servant of God'' appears nine times in the Bible, the first five in ...

. Rossi served as an investigator into the

stigmata Stigmata (, plural of , 'mark, spot, brand'), in Roman Catholicism, Catholicism, are bodily wounds, scars and pain which appear in locations corresponding to the Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion Five Holy Wounds, wounds of Jesus in Christian ...

Pio of Pietrelcina Pio of Pietrelcina (born Francesco Forgione; 25 May 1887 – 23 September 1968), widely known as , , was an Italian Capuchin friar, priest, stigmatist, and mystic. He is venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church, celebrated on 23 Septembe ...

at the behest of

Pope Benedict XV Pope Benedict XV (; ; born Giacomo Paolo Giovanni Battista della Chiesa, ; 21 November 1854 – 22 January 1922) was head of the Catholic Church from 1914 until his death in January 1922. His pontificate was largely overshadowed by World War I a ...

and reported back to him with a favourable view on the Capuchin. He viewed the stigmata and spoke with the friar while noting that he was "sincere" and concluding that there was no fraud or deceit on the friar's part.

Life

Education and priesthood

Carlo Rossi was born in

Pisa Pisa ( ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Tuscany, Central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for the Leaning Tow ...

in 1876 to Francesco Rossi and Maria Palmidessi. His parents were descended from noble families. Rossi felt called in 1891 to enter the religious life despite the opposition of his father who instead enrolled Rossi for a philosophical course at the college in Pisa where one of his mentors was Giuseppe Toniolo. Rossi entered the

Discalced Carmelites The Discalced Carmelites, known officially as the Order of the Discalced Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel () or the Order of Discalced Carmelites (; abbreviation, abbrev.: OCD; sometimes called in earlier times, ), is a Catho ...

on 3 October 1887 and later made his first vows on 19 December 1899. His solemn vows were made on 20 September 1901. Rossi 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 21 December 1901 in Pisa after he completed his ecclesial studies at the Carmelite International College and at the Carmelite Scholasticate in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. He then taught at

Carmelite The Order of the Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel (; abbreviated OCarm), known as the Carmelites or sometimes by synecdoche known simply as Carmel, is a mendicant order in the Catholic Church for both men and women. Histo ...

houses A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

from 1902 until 1920 after having studied at the Pontifical Gregorian for further studies. One of his lecturers at the Gregorian was Cardinal Louis Billot and he made friends with Father Eugenio Pacelli - future pope. Rossi also served at some stage at the order's house of San Paolino in

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

Consecration

On 22 April 1920 he was appointed as the Bishop of Volterra and he received his

episcopal consecration A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...

a month later from Cardinal Gaetano de Lai with Archbishop Rinaldo Rousset and Bishop Pio Bagnoli serving as the

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 ...

. It was celebrated in the

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

of Santa Teresa al Corso d'Italia. He selected

Charles Borromeo Charles Borromeo (; ; 2 October 1538 – 3 November 1584) was an Catholic Church in Italy, Italian Catholic prelate who served as Archdiocese of Milan, Archbishop of Milan from 1564 to 1584. He was made a Cardinal (Catholicism), cardinal in 156 ...

as his model for his episcopate.

Padre Pio investigation

In 1921 he received a letter from Rome that commissioned him to conduct an investigation into the

Franciscan friar The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor being the largest contem ...

Padre Pio Pio of Pietrelcina (born Francesco Forgione; 25 May 1887 – 23 September 1968), widely known as , , was an Italian Capuchin friar, priest, stigmatist, and mystic. He is venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church, celebrated on 23 Septembe ...

and his

. Rossi did not wish this task and sent a letter to Cardinal del Val asking to be relieved from such a serious investigation but was required to accept the position in response. Rossi travelled to Rome from his diocese to examine the documents on the friar while assessing the accusations and praise before leaving for the Franciscan

convent A convent is an enclosed community of monks, nuns, friars or religious sisters. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The term is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

San Giovanni Rotondo San Giovanni Rotondo is the name of a town and ''comune'' in the province of Foggia and region of Apulia, in southern Italy. San Giovanni Rotondo was the home of Saint Pio of Pietrelcina from 28 July 1916 until his death on 23 September 1968. T ...

that June with a degree of initial scepticism. He met with Padre Pio to discuss the allegations and reported that the friar seemed "simple and even nice" while being allowed to view the stigmata for himself. He observed Pio's routine and noted his activities while later speaking with the other friars to learn that Pio converted people from

Judaism Judaism () is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, Monotheism, monotheistic, ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jews, Jewish people. Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of o ...

and

Protestantism Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

and converted hardened hearts from all across

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. Rossi's investigation was positive and concluded that Pio was a "practiced practitioner of virtue" and noted that the friar did not practice deceit or fraud while noting that Pio did not inflict the wounds upon himself nor did an external source cause it. Rossi noted that "there are stigmata. We have before us a fact" and included that in his report to the pope while also stating that "Padre Pio was a saint who performed miracles" according to the people who came across him.

Episcopate and cardinalate

The pope named him as an Assistant at the Pontifical Throne on 11 March 1930. Before being promoted as the Titular Archbishop of Thessalonica on 20 December 1923 he was named as an assessor of the Sacred Consistorial Congregation.

created him as the Cardinal-Priest of Santa Prassede on 30 June 1930 in advance of Rossi's appointment as the head of the Sacred Consistorial Congregation a month after. He received his red hat and title in the week following his elevation. In his position Rossi was the head of that

congregation Congregation may refer to: Religion *Church (congregation), a religious organization that meets in a particular location *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administrative body of the Catholic Church *Religious congregation, a type of religious instit ...

as the

pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...

held the title of

Prefect Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect' ...

in its traditional sense. He was also one of the cardinal electors who participated in the 1939 papal conclave that selected

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 ...

. Rossi attempted to eschew much of the trappings of the cardinalate and attempted also to keep the ascetic life of a Discalced Carmelites and was held in high esteem by both his colleagues and the pope himself. Rossi later became the Superior General for the Scalabrini Fathers and became quite close to them in his work with them.

Death

His health began to decline at the start of 1947 and the papal doctor advised total rest. Rossi died in

Crespano del Grappa Crespano del Grappa is a small town and a ''frazione'' of Pieve del Grappa in the province of Treviso, Veneto region of Italy. As of 2007 Crespano del Grappa had an estimated population of 4,680. History Crespano del Grappa was a separate ''comu ...

during the night on 17 September 1948 and was buried at the Santa Teresa al Corso d'Italia church. He was discovered dead in his bed (a slight smile on his face) with three books at his side: one was the

Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...

and another was ''

The Imitation of Christ ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

''. He had moved to Crespano del Grappa the month prior due to failing health and resided with the Scalabrini Fathers. Pope Pius XII said that Rossi's contribution to the Church was great and would be recognized in the future. The pope also referred to Rossi as "almost their second father" in relation to the Scalabrini Fathers due to his great closeness and extensive work with them.

Beatification process

His beatication process commenced on 23 April 1976 under

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 ...

and Rossi was titled as a

. The diocesan process for the investigation was held in Rome and closed in 1979 before the

Congregation for the Causes of Saints In the Catholic Church, the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, previously named the Congregation for the Causes of Saints (), is the dicastery of the Roman Curia that oversees the complex process that leads to the canonization of saints, passi ...

confirmed on 29 March 1985 that the process was valid. The

Positio A ''positio'' (short for the Latin ''positio super virtutibus'': "position on the virtues") is a document or collection of documents used in the process by which a Catholic person is declared Venerable, the second of four steps on the path to can ...

was submitted to the congregation in 1989 for further evaluation and underwent theological approval on 23 February 1996. One miracle attributed to him was investigated in the Lucca diocese (it came from Capannori) from 1983 to 1984 and the process received validation on 6 May 1988.

References

External links

The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rossi, Raffaele 1876 births 1948 deaths 20th-century Italian cardinals 20th-century Italian Roman Catholic titular archbishops Bishops of Volterra Carmelite bishops Carmelite cardinals Discalced Carmelites Members of the Sacred Consistorial Congregation Italian Servants of God Clergy from Pisa Pontifical Gregorian University alumni University of Pisa alumni Bishops appointed by Pope Benedict XV