Angelo Bagnasco Biography

Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco is a former Archbishop of Genoa who rose to international recognition as a possible replacement for Pope Benedict XVI in early 2013.

A student of theology and metaphysics from the University of Genoa, Bagnasco was ordained in the Catholic church in 1966. He was made Bishop of Pesaro in 1998 and was elevated to Archbishop of Pesaro in 2000.

Bagnasco’s reputation as a mediator earned him a position in the Military Ordinariate — he was the Archbishop of the military from 2003 to 2006 — and in 2007 he was installed as president of the Italian Bishops’ Conference (referred to as the C.E.I.).

Bagnasco was elevated to cardinal by Benedict XVI in 2007 and appointed Cardinal of Gran Madre di Dio.

A conservative on social issues who has spoken out against euthanasia and same-sex marriage, Bagnasco is considered a weighty thinker with a reputation for political pragmatism.