Jozef-Ernest van Roey
Encyclopedia
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
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...
. He served as Archbishop of Mechelen from 1926 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate
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...
in 1927.
Biography
Jozef-Ernest van Roey was born in VorselaarVorselaar
Vorselaar is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises only the town of Vorselaar proper. On January 1, 2006 Vorselaar had a total population of 7,359. The total area is 27.62 km² which gives a population density of 266 inhabitants per km².-Famous...
, as the first of the five children of Stanislas and Anna-Maria (née Bartholomeus) van Roey. His siblings were named Bernadette, Louis, Véronique, and Stephanie (who became a nun
Nun
A nun is a woman who has taken vows committing her to live a spiritual life. She may be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent...
). He was baptized
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
the same day of his birth in the parish church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
of Vorselaar. Van Roey studied under the Jesuits
Society of Jesus
The Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...
in Vorselaar
Vorselaar
Vorselaar is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises only the town of Vorselaar proper. On January 1, 2006 Vorselaar had a total population of 7,359. The total area is 27.62 km² which gives a population density of 266 inhabitants per km².-Famous...
before entering Saint-Joseph School in Herentals
Herentals
Herentals is a city and municipality located in Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium, and in the Flemish province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises the city of Herentals proper and the towns of Morkhoven and Noorderwijk. On January 1, 2006 Herentals had a total population of 26,071...
in 1885. He graduated in 1892, whence he entered the minor seminary
Minor seminary
A minor seminary is a secondary boarding school created for the specific purpose of enrolling teenage boys who have expressed interest in becoming priests. They are generally Roman Catholic institutions, and designed to prepare boys both academically and spiritually for vocations to the priesthood...
in Mechelen
Mechelen
Mechelen Footnote: Mechelen became known in English as 'Mechlin' from which the adjective 'Mechlinian' is derived...
. From 1894 to 1897, he studied theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
at the Major 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 Mechelen. 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....
by Cardinal Pierre-Lambert Goossens on 18 September 1897.
Van Roey then furthered his studies at the University of Louvain
Catholic University of Leuven
The Catholic University of Leuven, or of Louvain, was the largest, oldest and most prominent university in Belgium. The university was founded in 1425 as the University of Leuven by John IV, Duke of Brabant and approved by a Papal bull by Pope Martin V.During France's occupation of Belgium in the...
, from where he obtained his doctorate in theology
Doctor of Theology
Doctor of Theology is a terminal academic degree in theology. It is a research degree that is considered by the U.S. National Science Foundation to be the equivalent of a Doctor of Philosophy....
and the habilitation
Habilitation
Habilitation is the highest academic qualification a scholar can achieve by his or her own pursuit in several European and Asian countries. Earned after obtaining a research doctorate, such as a PhD, habilitation requires the candidate to write a professorial thesis based on independent...
in 1903. He taught at the Collège Americaine
The American College of the Immaculate Conception
The American College of the Immaculate Conception, or the American College at Louvain, was a Roman Catholic seminary in Leuven, Belgium, which operated under the auspices of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops...
from 1901 to 1905, and at the University of Louvain from 1905 to 1907. During this time, Van Roey also became a friend of Columba Marmion
Columba Marmion
Blessed Columba Marmion, born Joseph Aloysius Marmion was an Irish monk, and the third abbot of Maredsous Abbey. Beatified by Pope John Paul II on September 3, 2000, Marmion was one of the most popular and influential Catholic writers of the 20th century...
, OSB
Order of Saint Benedict
The Order of Saint Benedict is a Roman Catholic religious order of independent monastic communities that observe the Rule of St. Benedict. Within the order, each individual community maintains its own autonomy, while the organization as a whole exists to represent their mutual interests...
, who would later be beatified
Beatification
Beatification is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a dead person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in his or her name . Beatification is the third of the four steps in the canonization process...
in 2000. On 19 May 1907, he was made an honorary
Title of honor
An honorary title or title of honor is a title bestowed upon individuals or organizations as an award in recognition of their merits.Sometimes the title bears the same or nearly the same name as a title of authority, but the person bestowed does not have to carry any duties, possibly except for...
canon
Canon (priest)
A canon is a priest or minister who is a member of certain bodies of the Christian clergy subject to an ecclesiastical rule ....
of the metropolitan
Metropolitan bishop
In Christian churches with episcopal polity, the rank of metropolitan bishop, or simply metropolitan, pertains to the diocesan bishop or archbishop of a metropolis; that is, the chief city of a historical Roman province, ecclesiastical province, or regional capital.Before the establishment of...
chapter
Chapter (religion)
Chapter designates certain corporate ecclesiastical bodies in the Roman Catholic, Anglican and Nordic Lutheran churches....
of Mechelen. He served as vicar general
Vicar general
A vicar general is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ordinary executive power over the entire diocese and, thus, is the highest official in a diocese or other particular...
of the city from 30 September 1907 to 1925, and was raised to the rank of Domestic Prelate of His Holiness
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 2 April 1909. Van Roey participated in the Conversations of Mechelen, a series of ecumenical
Ecumenism
Ecumenism or oecumenism mainly refers to initiatives aimed at greater Christian unity or cooperation. It is used predominantly by and with reference to Christian denominations and Christian Churches separated by doctrine, history, and practice...
dialogues between clergymen from the Roman Catholic
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...
and Anglican Churches
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
hosted by Cardinal Désiré-Joseph Mercier
Désiré-Joseph Mercier
-Early life and ordination:Désiré Mercier was born at the château du Castegier in Braine-l'Alleud, as the fifth of the seven children of Paul-Léon Mercier and his wife Anne-Marie Barbe Croquet....
, from 1921 to 1926. He became secretary
Secretary
A secretary, or administrative assistant, is a person whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project management, communication & organizational skills. These functions may be entirely carried out to assist one other employee or may be for the benefit...
of the diocesan
Diocese
A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...
synod
Synod
A synod historically is a council of a church, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. In modern usage, the word often refers to the governing body of a particular church, whether its members are meeting or not...
in 1924, and a protonotary apostolic
Protonotary apostolic
In the Roman Catholic Church, protonotary apostolic is the title for a member of the highest non-episcopal college of prelates in the Roman Curia or, outside of Rome, an honorary prelate on whom the pope has conferred this title and its special privileges.-History:In later antiquity there were in...
on 11 February 1925.
On 12 March 1926, Van Roey was appointed Archbishop of Mechelen, and thus Primate
Primate (religion)
Primate is a title or rank bestowed on some bishops in certain Christian churches. Depending on the particular tradition, it can denote either jurisdictional authority or ceremonial precedence ....
, of Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
by Pope Pius XI
Pope Pius XI
Pope Pius XI , born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, was Pope from 6 February 1922, and sovereign of Vatican City from its creation as an independent state on 11 February 1929 until his death on 10 February 1939...
. He received his episcopal consecration
Bishop (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 the following April 25 from Archbishop Clemente Micara
Clemente Micara
Clemente Micara was an Italian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Vicar General of Rome from 1951 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1946.-Biography:...
, with Bishops Gustave-Joseph Waffelaert and Gaston-Antoine Rasneur serving as co-consecrators
Consecrator
Consecrator is a term used in the Roman Catholic Church to designate a bishop who ordains a priest to the episcopal state. The term is often used in Eastern Rite Churches and in Anglican communities. The term "Principal Consecrator" is used to designate the primary bishop who ordains a new bishop...
, in the Cathedral of Mechelen
St. Rumbolds Cathedral
St. Rumbold's Cathedral is the Belgian metropolitan archiepiscopal cathedral in Mechelen, dedicated to an assumedly Irish or Scottish Christian missionary and martyr who had founded an abbey nearby....
. Pius XI created him Cardinal Priest
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 Santa Maria in Aracoeli
Santa Maria in Aracoeli
The Basilica of St. Mary of the Altar of Heaven is a titular basilica in Rome, located on the highest summit of the Campidoglio. It is still the designated Church of the city council of Rome, which uses the ancient title of Senatus Populusque Romanus...
in the consistory
Consistory
-Antiquity:Originally, the Latin word consistorium meant simply 'sitting together', just as the Greek synedrion ....
of 20 June 1927. The Belgian primate served as papal legate
Papal legate
A papal legate – from the Latin, authentic Roman title Legatus – is a personal representative of the pope to foreign nations, or to some part of the Catholic Church. He is empowered on matters of Catholic Faith and for the settlement of ecclesiastical matters....
to the centennial celebration of the University of Louvain four days later, on June 24. In February 1931, he denounced cremation
Cremation
Cremation is the process of reducing bodies to basic chemical compounds such as gasses and bone fragments. This is accomplished through high-temperature burning, vaporization and oxidation....
, declaring, "That funeral honors should be paid to a cremated corpse is a defiance of Catholic conscience which objects to cremation...Any funeral is meaningless after destruction of the body by burning".
The Cardinal was heavily opposed to Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
, and once said, "With Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
we step many degrees downward and reach the lowest possible depths. We have a duty of conscience to combat and to strive for the defeat of these dangers...Reason and good sense both direct us towards confidence, towards resistance". In 1937, Van Roey condemned Rexism
Rexism
Rexism was a fascist political movement in the first half of the 20th century in Belgium.It was the ideology of the Rexist Party , officially called Rex, founded in 1930 by Léon Degrelle, a Walloon...
as "a danger to the country and the Church
Roman Catholicism in Belgium
The Belgian Catholic Church, part of the global Roman Catholic Church, is under the spiritual leadership of the Pope, the curia in Rome and the Conference of Belgian Bishops.-Dioceses:...
" and issued a precautionary condemnation of anyone who cast a blank ballot, much to the anger of Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
. Although some saw this as an unwarranted ecclesiastical entrance into the political sphere, the Cardinal defended himself by saying, "The hierarchic authority is perfectly entitled to pronounce on any political party or political movement in so far as that party or movement opposes religious well-being or the precepts of Christian morals", a statement which earned the support of Pope Pius. Also known as the "Iron Bishop," he excommunicated
Excommunication
Excommunication is a religious censure used to deprive, suspend or limit membership in a religious community. The word means putting [someone] out of communion. In some religions, excommunication includes spiritual condemnation of the member or group...
members of the Flemish National Union
Flemish National Union
The Flemish National Union was a Nationalist Flemish political party in Belgium, founded by Staf de Clercq on October 8, 1933. De Clercq became known as den Leider .-Creation:...
following World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He was one of the cardinal electors
Cardinal electors in Papal conclave, 1939
The following were the cardinal electors in the 1939 papal conclave. Arranged by region , and within each alphabetically...
in the 1939 papal conclave
Papal conclave, 1939
The Papal conclave of 1939 was convoked on the brink of World War II with the death of Pope Pius XI on 10 February that year in the Apostolic Palace. With all 62 living cardinals in attendance, the conclave to elect Pius' successor began on 1 March and ended a day later, on 2 March, after three...
, and later participated
Cardinal electors in Papal conclave, 1958
The following were the cardinal electors in the 1958 papal conclave. Arranged by region , and within each alphabetically...
in the conclave of 1958
Papal conclave, 1958
The Papal conclave of 1958 occurred following the death of Pope Pius XII on 9 October 1958 in Castel Gandolfo, after a 19-year pontificate. The conclave to elect his successor commenced on 25 October and ended three days later, on 28 October, after eleven ballots. The cardinal electors chose Angelo...
, which selected Pope John XXIII
Pope John XXIII
-Papal election:Following the death of Pope Pius XII in 1958, Roncalli was elected Pope, to his great surprise. He had even arrived in the Vatican with a return train ticket to Venice. Many had considered Giovanni Battista Montini, Archbishop of Milan, a possible candidate, but, although archbishop...
. Van Roey presided over the marriage of Prince Albert
Albert II of Belgium
Albert II is the current reigning King of the Belgians, a constitutional monarch. He is a member of the royal house "of Belgium"; formerly this house was named Saxe-Coburg-Gotha...
and Princess Paola Margherita Consiglia Ruffo di Calabria
Queen Paola of Belgium
Paola, Queen of the Belgians , is the queen consort of Albert II of Belgium....
on 2 July 1959, and of King Baudouin I and Doña Fabiola de Mora y Aragón
Queen Fabiola of Belgium
Queen Fabiola of Belgium is the widow of King Baudouin of Belgium. She was Queen consort of the Belgians for 33 years...
on 15 December 1960. He protested against the abdication of King Leopold III
Leopold III of Belgium
Leopold III reigned as King of the Belgians from 1934 until 1951, when he abdicated in favour of the Heir Apparent,...
in favor of his son, Badouin.
Van Roey, who had long suffered from a circulatory
Circulatory system
The circulatory system is an organ system that passes nutrients , gases, hormones, blood cells, etc...
illness, was administered the last rites and Communion
Eucharist (Catholic Church)
"At the Last Supper, on the night he was betrayed, our Savior instituted the Eucharistic sacrifice of his Body and Blood."...
by Bishop Leo Suenens
Leo Joseph Suenens
Leo Jozef Suenens was a Belgian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Mechelen-Brussel from 1961 to 1979, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1962....
on 5 August 1961. At 6:05 a.m. on the next day, he died at the age of 87. After lying in state for three days in the archiepiscopal
Archbishop
An archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...
palace of Mechelen, his funeral Mass was held on August 10, and was attended by King Leopold and Queen Elizabeth of Belgium
Elisabeth of Bavaria (1876-1965)
Elisabeth of Bavaria , was the queen consort of Albert I of Belgium and was the mother of Leopold III of Belgium and grandmother of Baudouin I of Belgium and Albert II of Belgium.-Family:Born in Possenhofen Castle, her father was Karl-Theodor, Duke in Bavaria, an ophthalmologist of...
, Prime Minister Théo Lefèvre
Théo Lefèvre
Théodore Joseph Albéric Marie "Théo" Lefèvre was a lawyer at the Ghent court of justice. In 1946 he became deputy of the Belgian parliament for the PSC-CVP. Between 25 April 1961 and 28 July 1965 he was the 39th Prime Minister of Belgium.-External links:*...
, the ministers of state
Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians or officials in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a "minister of state" is a junior minister, who is assigned to assist a specific cabinet minister...
, the entire Belgian episcopate, and Cardinals Francis Spellman and Bernardus Johannes Alfrink
Bernardus Johannes Alfrink
Bernardus Johannes Alfrink was a Dutch Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Utrecht from 1955 to 1975, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1960.-Biography:...
. Van Roey was then buried in the crypt
Crypt
In architecture, a crypt is a stone chamber or vault beneath the floor of a burial vault possibly containing sarcophagi, coffins or relics....
of the Cathedral of Mechelen, next to the vault
Burial vault (tomb)
A burial vault is a structural underground tomb.It is a stone or brick-lined underground space or 'burial' chamber for the interment of a dead body or bodies. They were originally and are still often vaulted and usually have stone slab entrances...
of Cardinal Engelbert Sterckx
Engelbert Sterckx
Cardinal Engelbert Sterckx , was Archbishop of Mechelen, Belgium. He was ordained as a priest on 18 February 1815, and he was appointed Archbishop on 24 February 1832....
, in accord with his explicit requests.