Rino Passigato

Rino Passigato, GCC, GCSE (born 29 March 1944) is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church, who was the Apostolic Nuncio to Portugal from 2008 to 2019 and is the current Apostolic Nuncio Emeritus to Portugal.[1]

The Most Reverend Excellency, Dom Rino Passigato GCC GCSE
Apostolic Nuncio Emeritus to Portugal
Church	Catholic Church
Province	Rome
Metropolis	Rome
Diocese	Rome
See	Rome
Appointed	8 November 2008
Installed	17 February 2019
Predecessor	Alfio Rapisarda
Successor	Ivo Scapolo
Other posts	Titular Archbishop of Nova Caesaris
Orders
Ordination	29 June 1968
Consecration	20 November 2011 by Pope Saint Jonh Paull II, Archbishop Giovanni Battista Re and Archbishop Josip Uhač
Rank	Archbishop
Personal details
Birth name	Rino Passigato
Born	29 March 1944 Bovolone
Nationality	Italian
Occupation	Diplomat
Previous post	- Pro-Apostolic Nuncio to Burundi (1991-1996) - Apostolic Nuncio to Bolivia (1996-1999) - Apostolic Nuncio to Peru (1999-2008) - Apostolic Nuncio to Portugal (2008-2019)

Styles of Rino Passigato
Reference style	The Most Reverend
Spoken style	Your Excellency
Religious style	Monsignor

Biography

Passigato was born on Bovolone, Italy, on 29 March 1944. He was ordained a priest on 29 June 1968 in Verona, Italy.

Diplomatic career

In 1991 he was appointed Titular Archbishop of Nova Caesaris and Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to Burundi.

By 1996 he was Apostolic Nuncio to Bolivia and in 1999 he moved on to Peru.

On 8 November 2008, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him Apostolic Nuncio to Portugal.[2]

He also served in the Apostolic Nunciature in Australia in the late 1970s and in the United Kingdom under Apostolic Nuncio Barbaroto.

Criticism

The criticism started shortly after he started his tenure in Portugal and refused to disclose his criteria for the selection of new potential candidates for bishops to the Episcopal Conference of Portugal.[3]

Passagiato was accused by the Portuguese catholic clergy of taking "deplorable" and "inhumane" decisions regarding the affairs of the Holy See in Portugal. Portuguese bishops and clergy accused Passagiato of favouring bishops candidates who are "traditionalists" and "career oriented", and of "not listening to people".

António Francisco dos Santos case

António Francisco dos Santos was Bishop of Aveiro until 2014. Following the appointment of Manuel Clemente to the Patriarchate of Lisbon, Passigato decided, in a nine month lengthy process, to relocate Bishop dos Santos to Porto in order to substitute Bishop Clemente.

The suggestion of Bishop dos Santos, made to Pope, was resisted, in the beginning, by the appointee and shortly before his appointment was made official two priests from Aveiro appealed to Passigato's piety due to the poor heart condition of Bishop dos Santos who himself feared not being capable of heading a bigger diocese.[3] Bishop dos Santos would die 3 years after his appointment to Porto due to heart attack.[3]

João Lavrador case

João Lavrador, current Bishop of Angra, also pleaded Nuncio Passigato for his piety to not be appointed as Bishop at the time in order to be able to assist his bedridden parents. Passigato refused such plead and had Lavrador appointed as Bishop in 2015, shortly after his father died in April 2016 and his mother in January 2017. In this regard Passigato was accused of not taking into consideration catholic family values.[3]

Honours

• Grand Cross of the Order of Christ of the Portuguese Republic (11 March 2010).[4]
• Grand Cross of the Order of Saint James of the Sword of the Portuguese Republic (6 June 2009).[4]

References

1. "Archbishop Rino Passigato [Catholic-Hierarchy]". www.catholic-hierarchy.org. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
2. "Rinunce e Nomine, 08.12.2008" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 8 November 2008. Retrieved 3 May 2019.
3. Marujo, António (14 October 2017). "Bispos e padres acusam núncio em Lisboa de ser pouco humano e nada "franciscano"". Jornal Expresso (in Portuguese). Retrieved 13 March 2019.
4. Portuguese Presidency Website, Orders search form : type "Joan-Enric Vives i" in "nome", then click "Pesquisar"

External links

• Archbishop Rino Passigato at Catholic Hierarchy ^{[self-published]}