Crescenzio Sepe

Early life and ordination

Born at Carinaro, in the province of Caserta, he was ordained for the Diocese of Aversa on 12 March 1967 and holds degrees in theology and canon law from the Pontifical Lateran University and in philosophy from the University of Rome La Sapienza. He taught theology at the Lateran and Urbanian Pontifical Universities and then studied at the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy.

Career in the Curia and elevation to Cardinal

He joined the diplomatic service of the Holy See and was posted to Brazil from 1972 to 1975, when he was recalled to the Secretariat of State, becoming Assessor for General Affairs in 1987. Sepe was appointed Secretary of the Congregation for the Clergy and Titular Archbishop of Gradum on 2 April 1992.

On 3 November 1997, he was named General Secretary of the Central Committee for the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000. He was President of Peregrinatio ad Petri Sedem from 8 November 1997 until July 2001. On 9 April 2001 he was named Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples. He is also the Grand Chancellor of the Pontifical Urban University. He was created and proclaimed Cardinal-Deacon of Dio Padre misericordioso by Pope John Paul II in the Consistory of 21 February 2001. He was one of the Cardinal electors who participated in both the 2005 and 2013 conclaves that selected Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis respectively.

Curial membership:

Archbishop of Naples

He was appointed Archbishop of Naples and became a Cardinal-Priest on 20 May 2006, with his deaconry elevated pro hac vice to title. (It was too early for him to opt for the order of cardinal priests.)

Cardinal Sepe's move to Naples from the prefect's post at the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples made him the first head of a Roman dicastery in decades to be dispatched to a diocese and, in the eyes of some, the first casualty of Pope Benedict's purge of the church's administration.

Cardinal Sepe has been a member of Facebook, where he collected the maximum of 5,000 friends.

In June 2010, Sepe was under investigation by Perugia's public prosecutor's office over alleged corruption cases. Media reports alleged that during his time as prefect, various "Propaganda Fide" apartments were made available, free or for a very low rent, to a variety of public figures including politicians, lawyers and journalists. However, Cardinal Sepe has reportedly said that he has "nothing to hide" and he is expected to waive his Vatican extraterritorial privilege in order to meet investigators.

Cardinal Sepe said in the homily at his morning Mass, appeared to refer implicitly to the probe, speaking of the "many martyrs" who, "in the name of truth and of Christ, remained faithful to his Gospel when they were tortured, humiliated and disrespected." He continued saying "We must not be afraid," he said, according to an Italian wire report. After Calvary, there will be the light of the resurrection."

Clerical celibacy

Many of his memorable statements came from 1995 to 1997 and involved disagreement with the idea of ending the celibate priesthood.

In 1997 he said a relaxing of the celibacy rule for Latin Rite priests would not ease the vocations crisis and would have no theological or pastoral foundation. Linked to his position he also is active in evangelizing efforts.

Priest-sharing program

In 1995 he helped implement a priest-sharing program among dioceses worldwide to help redress the geographical imbalance in vocations.

Return of priests

In 1995 he further said that the Vatican was facilitating the return of hundreds of priests who had left the active ministry and married in civil ceremonies, but who were now divorced or widowed and were "sincerely sorry" for having strayed from their vocation.

Crime in Naples

As Archbishop in 2007 he called on "the youth of Italy's murder capital to unsheathe [their] courage and hand over their knives in church, anonymously and without penalty".