Pope Francis has mourned the death of Cardinal Renato Raffaele Martino, a “fervent pastor who served the Gospel and the Church”, who died on October 28 in Rome at the age of 91.
Through a telegram of condolences, the Holy Father expressed his deepest condolences to the relatives of the protodeacon and president emeritus of the Pontifical Councils for the Pastoral Care of Emigrants and Itinerant People and for Justice and Peace.
Receive the main news from ACI Prensa by WhatsApp and Telegram
It is increasingly difficult to see Catholic news on social media. Subscribe to our free channels today:
The Pontiff remarked that he was a “very esteemed priest” and especially recalled his collaboration as Apostolic Nuncio in some Asian countries, “and especially in the United Nations organization, where he spared no energy to bear witness to the Pope’s paternal concern for the fate of humanity.”
He also praised his career as president of the Pontifical Council of Justice and Peace and stated that “in the various roles entrusted to him, he worked with great dynamism for the well-being of the populations, constantly promoting dialogue and harmony.”
The Holy Father asked the Lord to receive him, while “heartily” imparting his blessing to those “who mourn his departure, with a grateful thought for those who have cared for him.”
Cardinal Martino was born on November 23, 1932 in Salerno, Italy. He was ordained a priest in 1957 and entered the diplomatic service of the Holy See five years later.
He worked in the nunciatures of Nicaragua, the Philippines, Lebanon, Canada and Brazil, as well as in the Secretariat of State.
He was elected to the titular see of Segerme, with the personal title of archbishop on September 14, 1980 and appointed pro-Apostolic Nuncio to Thailand and Apostolic Delegate to Singapore, Malaysia and Laos.
On December 14, 1981, he was ordained bishop and years later he was named Apostolic Delegate in Brunei. In 1986 he was appointed permanent observer of the Holy See to the United Nations in New York, United States.
He was also at the head of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace and in the Consistory of October 21, 2003 he was created Cardinal Deacon of San Francesco di Paola ai Monti.
In 2006 he was also named President of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerants, a position from which he resigned on February 28, 2009. That same year he also resigned from the presidency of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace.
Since June 12, 2014, he served as cardinal protodeacon, a group formed by the four most senior cardinals of the diaconal order.
Almudena Martínez-Bordiú
I am a graduate in Journalism and Advertising from the CEU San Pablo University in Madrid. Specialized in religious information in Spain since 2015. I have been a senior correspondent for ACI Prensa and EWTN Noticias in the Vatican for two years and I am currently a European correspondent based in Spain.