Ninocento at Italian Wikipedia / Wikimedia Commons
CV NEWS FEED // Cardinal Renato Raffaele Martino, diplomat and advocate for social justice, passed away in Rome on October 28 at the age of 91, Vatican News reported.
The funeral Mass for Cardinal Martino will be held on October 30 at the Altar of the Chair in St. Peter’s Basilica and will be celebrated by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, with Pope Francis presiding over the final rites.
The cardinal was born in Salerno, Italy, in 1932. He was ordained a priest in 1957 and later entered the Vatican’s diplomatic service, serving in countries including Nicaragua, Lebanon, Canada, and Brazil. In 1986, he was appointed the Holy See’s permanent observer to the United Nations, where he spent 16 years actively participating in global dialogues for peace and justice.
Pope John Paul II appointed him president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace in 2002, where he addressed pressing issues, including the crisis in the Middle East and civil conflicts in Venezuela and Ivory Coast. He was also President Emeritus of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People.
He was made a cardinal in 2003 and spearheaded the publication of the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church.
According to Vatican News, Cardinal Martino was awarded numerous honorary degrees and honors “given his ongoing work in favor of peaceful and fruitful relations between peoples, the humanities and culture.”
Cardinal Martino’s passing brings the College of Cardinals to 233 members, with 121 electors.
