Raffaele Pierotti O.P. (1 January 1836 – 7 September 1905) – born Giovanni Antonio – 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 ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

who was the

papal The pope is the bishop of Rome and the 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 pope was the sovereign or head of sta ...

theologian 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 ...

from 1887 until his death. He was made a

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 ...

in 1896.

Biography

Raffaele Pierotti was born Giovanni Antonio Pierotti in the Sorbano del Vescovo district of

Lucca Città di Lucca ( ; ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the Serchio River, in a fertile plain near the Ligurian Sea. The city has a population of about 89,000, while its Province of Lucca, province has a population of 383,9 ...

on 1 January 1836. He studied at the Seminary of San Michele in Lucca and in 1853 he entered the

Dominicans Dominicans () also known as Quisqueyans () are an ethnic group, ethno-nationality, national people, a people of shared ancestry and culture, who have ancestral roots in the Dominican Republic. The Dominican ethnic group was born out of a fusio ...

and attended their novitiate in

Anagni Anagni () is an ancient town and ''comune'' in the province of Frosinone, Lazio, in the hills east-southeast of Rome. It is a historical and artistic centre of the Latin Valley. Geography Overview Anagni still maintains the appearance of a s ...

, taking the name of Fra Raffaele. He took his final vows in 1857. On 9 January 1857 he was ordained a priest. He then studied at the Collegio San Tommaso d'Aquino in Rome and the Dominican College of Perugia. He taught

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

in Viterbo for five years, was professor of theology and master of novices at Collegio San Tomasso d'Aquino, and then regent of studies from 1870 to 1873. From 1873 to 1877 he was pastor of

Santa Maria sopra Minerva Santa Maria sopra Minerva is one of the major Church (building), churches of the Order of Preachers (also known as the Dominicans) in Rome, Italy. The church's name derives from the fact that the first Christian church structure on the site was b ...

in Rome. On 25 June 1887

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII (; born Gioacchino Vincenzo Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2March 181020July 1903) was head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 until his death in July 1903. He had the fourth-longest reign of any pope, behind those of Peter the Ap ...

appointed him Master of the Sacred Apostolic Palace, the title then given to the now known as the

Theologian of the Pontifical Household In the Roman Catholic Church, Theologian of the Pontifical Household () is a Roman Curial office which has always been entrusted to a Friar Preacher of the Dominican Order and may be described as the pope's theologian. The title was formerly known ...

and traditionally assigned to a Dominican. He was also a member of the Pontifical Biblical Commission and of the Holy Office. He was secretary (relator) to the commission that Pope Leo appointed in 1896 to consider the validity of ordinations in the

Anglican Church Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

. When the commission proved equally divided, the pope relied on Pierotti's analysis, resulting in the papal bull ''

Apostolicae Curae ''Apostolicae curae'' is the title of an apostolic letter, issued in 1896 by Pope Leo XIII, declaring all Anglican ordinations to be "absolutely null and utterly void". The Anglican Communion made no official reply, but the archbishops of C ...

'' that argued against their validity. Pierotti also believed that a reaffirmation of this negative assessment would produce large numbers of converts to

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. Pope Leo XIII made him a

with the title

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. C ...

of Santi Cosma e Damiano on 30 November 1896. He received his red biretta on 3 December. Both before and after becoming a cardinal he was a member of the

Sacred Congregation of the Index The (English: ''Index of Forbidden Books'') was a changing list of publications deemed heretical or contrary to morality by the Sacred Congregation of the Index (a former dicastery of the Roman Curia); Catholics were forbidden to print or r ...

. In 1903 he participated in the conclave that elected

Pope Pius X Pope Pius X (; born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto; 2 June 1835 – 20 August 1914) was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 to his death in August 1914. Pius X is known for vigorously opposing Modernism in the Catholic Church, modern ...

. He died in Rome on 7 September 1905 at the age of 69 and was buried in the Cimitero del Verano.

Notes

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pierotti, Raffaele 1836 births 1905 deaths People from Lucca Dominican cardinals Cardinals created by Pope Leo XIII