Ernest Simoni

His Eminence
Ernest Simoni
Cardinal-Deacon of Santa Maria della Scala
Cardinal Ernest Simoni in 2016.
Church Roman Catholic Church
Archdiocese Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Shkodër-Pult
Province Shkoder-Pult
Metropolis Archdiocese of Shkodër-Pult
Diocese Shkodër-Pult
Appointed 19 November 2016
Installed 11 February 2017
Predecessor Stanisław Nagy
Orders
Ordination 7 April 1956
Created cardinal 19 November 2016
by Pope Francis
Rank Cardinal-Deacon
Personal details
Birth name Ernest Simoni
Born (1928-10-18) 18 October 1928
Troshani, Albania
Nationality Albanian
Denomination Catholic (Latin Rite)
Motto Zemra Jeme Dotë Triumfojë
Coat of arms
Ordination history of
Ernest Simoni
History
Priestly ordination
Date 7 April 1956
Cardinalate
Elevated by Pope Francis
Date 19 November 2016
Styles of
Ernest Simoni
Reference style His Eminence
Spoken style Your Eminence
Informal style Cardinal

Ernest Simoni Troshani (born 18 October 1928) is an Albanian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church.

He was created a cardinal in a consistory held on 19 November 2016 by Pope Francis.[1]

Life

Ernest Simoni was born in 1928.

He entered the Franciscan seminary in 1938 while remaining there until 1948 when the Communist regime of Enver Hoxha closed the college in a wave of anti-religious sentiment and persecution. He was ordained to the priesthood on 7 April 1956.

On 24 December 1963 he was imprisoned by the Communist authorities because he celebrated a Mass in memory of assassinated President John Fitzgerald Kennedy. He was sentenced to death, but the sentence was converted into a prison term and he spent 28 years at penal labour, first in a mine and then in a sewage canal.[2] By the late 1990s, he exercised his ministry in several Albanian villages.

On 21 September 2014 he met Pope Francis during his apostolic visit to Albania and provided the pope with his own testimony on his experiences under the Communist regime.[3]

On 9 October 2016,[4] Pope Francis announced that he would create Simoni a cardinal in the consistory held on 19 November of the same year. Aged over 80, Simoni can not participate in any future conclave.[5] He was given special dispensation not to be consecrated as a bishop prior to the consistory.

At the consistory, he was assigned the titular church of Santa Maria della Scala.

References

  1. ↑ "Il Papa annuncia un concistoro per il 19 novembre" (in Italian). La Stampa. 9 October 2016. Retrieved 9 October 2016.
  2. ↑ Glatz, Carol (11 October 2016). "This priest's story of persecution brought Pope Francis to tears. Now he's making him a cardinal". America. Catholic News Service. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  3. ↑ "Paoline Ufficio Stampa – Don Ernest Simoni". paoline.it. 9 October 2016. Retrieved 9 October 2016.
  4. ↑ "Mgr Ernest Simoni, simple curé nommé cardinal albanais". lalibre.be. 21 November 2016. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  5. ↑ "Da sacerdote a cardinale: ecco chi è Ernest Simoni, uno dei 17 nuovi porporati voluti dal Papa" (in Italian). ilsole24ore.com. 9 October 2016. Retrieved 9 October 2016.
Additional sources
  • "Albania's new cardinal: a priest who spent 28 years in labour camps". Catholic Herald. Associated Press. 10 October 2016. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
  • "Simoni Card. Ernest". Holy See Press Office. Archived from the original on 4 September 2017. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  • Glatz, Carol (11 October 2016). "This priest's story of persecution brought Pope Francis to tears. Now he's making him a cardinal". America. Catholic News Service. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  • Speech delivered in September 2014 during the visit of Pope Francis to Albania, Rome Reports, 17 November 2016
Catholic Church titles
Preceded by
Stanislaw Nagy		 Cardinal Deacon of Santa Maria della Scala
19 November 2016- present		 Succeeded by
incumbent
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