Eduardo Martínez Somalo
Encyclopedia
Eduardo Martínez Somalo (born March 31, 1927) is a Spanish
Cardinal
of the Roman Catholic Church
.
, and had five brothers and four sisters. He studied at the diocesan seminary
of Logroño
, the Pontifical Spanish College and the Pontifical Gregorian University
(where he received licentiates in theology
and in canon law
) in Rome
. He was ordained
to the priesthood
on March 19, 1950 by Archbishop Luigi Traglia.
and curial
work in Calahorra. Returning to Rome to prepare to serve as a Vatican diplomat, he attended the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy
(where he later taught as a professor
) and obtained a doctorate in canon law
in (1956) from the Pontifical Lateran University
.
He then entered the Roman Curia, in the Secretariat of State
; he later advanced to the head the Spanish section. He was elevated to the rank of Monsignor
on May 14, 1970. Pope Paul VI
appointed him Apostolic Nuncio
to Colombia
and elevated him to Titular Archbishop
of Thagora.
on December 13, 1975, from Jean-Marie Villot, then Secretary of State
, with Archbishop Giovanni Benelli and Bishop Francisco Álvarez Martínez serving as co-consecrators. In 1979 Pope John Paul II appointed him to the Secretariat of State.
of June 28, 1988, he was created Cardinal-Deacon
of SS. Nome di Gesù by Pope John Paul II, and on July 1 of that year he was appointed to the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.
He served as Prefect
of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. He was Cardinal protodeacon from January 29, 1996 to January 9, 1999.
in the Roman Curia
. He was a close collaborator of Pope John Paul II
.
. He served in that position until his 80th birthday. He was Camerlengo during the 2005 Vacancy of the Holy See
.
, 2005. He ceased to be Camerlengo on his 80th birthday, and was succeeded by Tarcisio Bertone, who also serves as Secretary of State.
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
Cardinal
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
of the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
.
Early life and ordination
Martínez Somalo was born in the small town of Baños de Río Tobía in La Rioja, SpainLa Rioja (Spain)
La Rioja is an autonomous community and a province of northern Spain. Its capital is Logroño. Other cities and towns in the province include Calahorra, Arnedo, Alfaro, Haro, Santo Domingo de la Calzada, and Nájera.-History:...
, and had five brothers and four sisters. He studied at the diocesan seminary
Seminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
of Logroño
Logroño
Logroño is a city in northern Spain, on the Ebro River. It is the capital of the autonomous community of La Rioja, formerly known as La Rioja Province.The population of Logroño in 2008 was 153,736 and a metropolitan population of nearly 197,000 inhabitants...
, the Pontifical Spanish College and the Pontifical Gregorian University
Pontifical Gregorian University
The Pontifical Gregorian University is a pontifical university located in Rome, Italy.Heir of the Roman College founded by Saint Ignatius of Loyola over 460 years ago, the Gregorian University was the first university founded by the Jesuits...
(where he received licentiates in theology
Licentiate of Sacred Theology
Licentiate of Sacred Theology is the title of the second cycle of studies of a Faculty of Theology offered by a pontifical universities or ecclesiastical faculties of sacred theology. An Ecclesiastical Faculty offers three cycles of study: Baccalaureate or fundamentals, Licentiate or specialized,...
and in canon law
Canon law (Catholic Church)
The canon law of the Catholic Church, is a fully developed legal system, with all the necessary elements: courts, lawyers, judges, a fully articulated legal code and principles of legal interpretation. It lacks the necessary binding force present in most modern day legal systems. The academic...
) in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
. He was ordained
Holy Orders
The term Holy Orders is used by many Christian churches to refer to ordination or to those individuals ordained for a special role or ministry....
to the priesthood
Priesthood (Catholic Church)
The ministerial orders of the Catholic Church include the orders of bishops, deacons and presbyters, which in Latin is sacerdos. The ordained priesthood and common priesthood are different in function and essence....
on March 19, 1950 by Archbishop Luigi Traglia.
Pastoral work
He did pastoralParish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
and curial
Curia (Roman Catholic Church)
In Roman Catholicism, a curia consists of a group of officials who assist in the governance of a particular Church. These curias range from the relatively simple diocesan curia, to the larger patriarchal curias, to the Roman Curia, which is the central government of the Catholic Church.Other...
work in Calahorra. Returning to Rome to prepare to serve as a Vatican diplomat, he attended the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy
Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy
The Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy is one of the Roman Colleges of the Roman Catholic Church. The academy is dedicated to training priests to serve in the diplomatic corps and the Secretariat of State of the Holy See....
(where he later taught as a professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
) and obtained a doctorate in canon law
Doctor of Canon Law
Doctor of Canon Law is the doctoral-level terminal degree in the studies of canon law of the Roman Catholic Church.It may also be abbreviated I.C.D. or dr.iur.can. , ICDr., D.C.L., D.Cnl., D.D.C., or D.Can.L. . Doctor of both laws are J.U.D...
in (1956) from the Pontifical Lateran University
Pontifical Lateran University
The Pontifical Lateran University is a university by pontifical right based in Rome, Italy. The university also hosts the central session of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family...
.
He then entered the Roman Curia, in the Secretariat of State
Secretariat of State (Vatican)
The Secretariat of State is the oldest dicastery in the Roman Curia, the government of the Roman Catholic Church. It is headed by the Cardinal Secretary of State, Tarcisio Bertone, S.D.B., and performs all the political and diplomatic functions of Vatican City and the Holy See...
; he later advanced to the head the Spanish section. He was elevated to the rank of Monsignor
Monsignor
Monsignor, pl. monsignori, is the form of address for those members of the clergy of the Catholic Church holding certain ecclesiastical honorific titles. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian monsignore, from the French mon seigneur, meaning "my lord"...
on May 14, 1970. Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI
Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
appointed him Apostolic Nuncio
Nuncio
Nuncio is an ecclesiastical diplomatic title, derived from the ancient Latin word, Nuntius, meaning "envoy." This article addresses this title as well as derived similar titles, all within the structure of the Roman Catholic Church...
to Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
and elevated him to Titular Archbishop
Titular bishop
A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese.By definition a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop the tradition of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches is that he be ordained for a specific place...
of Thagora.
Bishop
He received his episcopal consecrationBishop (Catholic Church)
In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders and is responsible for teaching the Catholic faith and ruling the Church....
on December 13, 1975, from Jean-Marie Villot, then Secretary of State
Cardinal Secretary of State
The Cardinal Secretary of State—officially Secretary of State of His Holiness The Pope—presides over the Holy See, usually known as the "Vatican", Secretariat of State, which is the oldest and most important dicastery of the Roman Curia...
, with Archbishop Giovanni Benelli and Bishop Francisco Álvarez Martínez serving as co-consecrators. In 1979 Pope John Paul II appointed him to the Secretariat of State.
Cardinal
In the consistoryConsistory
-Antiquity:Originally, the Latin word consistorium meant simply 'sitting together', just as the Greek synedrion ....
of June 28, 1988, he was created Cardinal-Deacon
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
of SS. Nome di Gesù by Pope John Paul II, and on July 1 of that year he was appointed to the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.
He served as Prefect
Prefect
Prefect is a magisterial title of varying definition....
of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. He was Cardinal protodeacon from January 29, 1996 to January 9, 1999.
Curial prefect
Somalo became Prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life on January 21, 1992. He was also Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the SacramentsCongregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments
The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments is the congregation of the Roman Curia that handles most affairs relating to liturgical practices of the Latin Catholic Church as distinct from the Eastern Catholic Churches and also some technical matters relating to the...
in the Roman Curia
Roman Curia
The Roman Curia is the administrative apparatus of the Holy See and the central governing body of the entire Catholic Church, together with the Pope...
. He was a close collaborator of Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
.
Camerlengo
He was named Chamberlain of the Roman Church, or Camerlengo, on April 5, 1993, an office of special importance during vacancy of the Holy SeeHoly See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
. He served in that position until his 80th birthday. He was Camerlengo during the 2005 Vacancy of the Holy See
Sede vacante
Sede vacante is an expression, used in the Canon Law of the Catholic Church, that refers to the vacancy of the episcopal see of a particular church...
.
Retirement
He retired on February 11, 2004, and participated as a Cardinal elector in the Papal conclavePapal conclave
A papal conclave is a meeting of the College of Cardinals convened to elect a Bishop of Rome, who then becomes the Pope during a period of vacancy in the papal office. The Pope is considered by Roman Catholics to be the apostolic successor of Saint Peter and earthly head of the Roman Catholic Church...
, 2005. He ceased to be Camerlengo on his 80th birthday, and was succeeded by Tarcisio Bertone, who also serves as Secretary of State.