Renato Corti (1 March 1936 – 12 May 2020) was an Italian

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 ...

and

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Minister (Christianity), Christian clergy who is an Ordinary (church officer), ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which me ...

of the

Roman 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 ...

. He was Bishop of

Novara Novara (; Novarese Lombard, Novarese: ) is the capital city of the province of Novara in the Piedmont (Italy), Piedmont region in northwest Italy, to the west of Milan. With 101,916 inhabitants (on 1 January 2021), it is the second most populous ...

from 1990 to 2011.

Pope Francis Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...

raised Corti to the rank of cardinal on 19 November 2016.

Early years

Renato Corti was born in

Galbiate Galbiate ( Brianzöö: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Lecco in the Italian region Lombardy, located about northeast of Milan and about south of Lecco. Galbiate borders the following municipalities: Annone di Brianza, Civa ...

in the

province of Lecco The province of Lecco (; Lecchese: ) is a Provinces of Italy, province in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Lecco. As of 2017, the province had a population of 337,211 on a surface of divided into 85 ''comuni'' (: ''com ...

, part of the

Archdiocese of Milan The Archdiocese of Milan (; ) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Italy which covers the areas of Milan, Monza, Lecco and Varese. It has long maintained its own Latin liturgical rite usage, the Ambr ...

on 1 March 1936. He studied at the seminary in Milan and was ordained on 28 July 1959 by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Montini (later

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 ...

). His assignments included serving as parochial vicar of the Oratory of

Caronno Pertusella Caronno Pertusella ( ) is a town and ''comune'' located in the province of Varese, in the Lombardy region of northern Italy. It has a population of about 17,775. Caronno Pertusella has a train station, which has Milan’s suburban railway lines ...

from 1959 to 1967, spiritual director at the College of

Gorla Minore Gorla Minore is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Varese in the Italian region Lombardy, located about northwest of Milan and about southeast of Varese. As of 31 December 2018, it had a population of 8,364 and an area of .All demogr ...

from 1967 to 1969, and spiritual director of the archdiocesan seminary of

Saronno Saronno (; ) is a ''comune'' of Lombardy, Italy, in the province of Varese. It received the honorary title of city with a presidential decree in 1960. With an estimated population of inhabitants, it is the most densely populated among the big m ...

from 1969 to 1977. He then became rector for theology at the seminary of Saronno. He became vicar general of the Milan Archdiocese in November 1980.

Episcopacy

Pope John Paul II named him auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Milan on 30 April 1981 and titular bishop of Zallata. He received episcopal ordination on 6 June 1981 from Archbishop

Carlo Maria Martini Carlo Maria Martini (15 February 1927 – 31 August 2012) was an Italian Jesuit and Biblical scholar. He served as Archbishop of Milan from 1980 to 2002 and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1983. Martini entered the Society of Jesus in ...

, with Bishops Libero Tresoldi and Bernardo Citterio as co-consecrators. The same pope named him Bishop of Novara on 19 December 1990 to succeed Aldo Del Monte, and he was installed on 3 March 1991. In November 2007, four months after

Pope Benedict XVI Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...

issued new rules about use of the 1962

Roman Missal The Roman Missal () is the book which contains the texts and rubrics for the celebration of the Roman Rite, the most common liturgy and Mass of the Catholic Church. There have been several editions. History Before the Council of Trent (1570) ...

(see ''

Summorum Pontificum (English: 'Of the Supreme Pontiffs') is an Ecclesiastical letter#Letters of the popes in modern times, apostolic letter of Pope Benedict XVI, issued on 7 July 2007. This letter specifies the circumstances in which Priesthood in the Catholic Chur ...

''), three priests in the Novara diocese refused to celebrate Sunday Mass unless allowed to celebrate the

Tridentine Mass The Tridentine Mass, also known as the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite or ''usus antiquior'' (), Vetus Ordo or the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) or the Traditional Rite, is the liturgy in the Roman Missal of the Catholic Church codified in ...

exclusively. Corti suspended them. While Bishop of Novara he served terms as vice president of the Italian Bishops Conference (2000 to 2005) and vice president of the Regional Bishops Conference of Piedmont. He also held assignments 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 ...

as a member of the

Congregation for the Oriental Churches The Dicastery for the Eastern Churches (also called the Dicastery for the Oriental Churches), previously named the Congregation for the Oriental Churches or Congregation for the Eastern Churches (), is a dicastery of the Roman Curia responsible f ...

and the

Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples The Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples (CEP; ) was a congregation (Roman Curia), congregation of the Roman Curia of the Catholic Church in Rome, responsible for Catholic missions, missionary work and related activities. It is also kn ...

. Pope Benedict XVI accepted his resignation as bishop of Novara on 24 November 2011. In retirement he continued to lead spiritual exercises for both religious and lay groups. He lived at

Rho Rho (; uppercase Ρ, lowercase ρ or ; or ) is the seventeenth letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals it has a value of 100. It is derived from Phoenician alphabet, Phoenician letter resh . Its uppercase form uses the same ...

, near the college of the Oblates of St. Ambrose and St. Charles. Corti was known for his work as a spiritual director. Pope John Paul II asked him to lead his

Lenten Lent (, 'Fortieth') is the solemn Christian religious observance in the liturgical year in preparation for Easter. It echoes the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring temptation by Satan, according to the Gospels of Matthe ...

retreat in 2005 and at the invitation of Pope Francis he wrote the meditations used at the

Stations of the Cross The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Via Dolorosa, Way of Sorrows or the , are a series of fourteen images depicting Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ on the day of Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion and acc ...

at Rome's

Colosseum The Colosseum ( ; , ultimately from Ancient Greek word "kolossos" meaning a large statue or giant) is an Ellipse, elliptical amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, just east of the Roman Forum. It is the largest ancient amphi ...

in 2015. Pope Francis raised Corti to the rank of cardinal at a consistory held on 19 November 2016. He was given the rank of Cardinal-Priest and assigned the titular church of

San Giovanni a Porta Latina San Giovanni a Porta Latina (Italian: "Saint John Before the Latin Gate") is a Basilica church in Rome, Italy, near the Porta Latina (on the Via Latina) of the Aurelian Wall. History According to Tertullian, as quoted by Saint Jerome, in the ...

Death

Corti died in

at the age of 84 on 12 May 2020.

Works

* * ''Il miracolo sarebbe la santità. Meditazioni sul ministero sacerdotale'' (1999) * * * * *

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Corti, Renato 1936 births 2020 deaths 20th-century Italian Roman Catholic bishops 21st-century Italian Roman Catholic bishops People from the Province of Lecco Members of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches Members of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples Spiritual teachers 21st-century Italian cardinals Cardinals created by Pope Francis