Matteo Zuppi was an Auxiliary Bishop of Rome until, in 2015, Pope Francis named him the Archbishop of Bologna, in Italy. Four years later, he made him Cardinal.
He says the idea to become a priest developed gradually, thanks to his time with the Community of Sant'Egidio as a teenager.
CARD. MATTEO ZUPPI
Archbishop of Bologna (Italy)
“At first I even felt a sort of revulsion toward the idea because my parents, who were a couple of saints... My father worked at the Vatican, but being a priest wasn't something I wanted to do. But being a part of the Community (of Sant'Egidio) as a teenager gave me a different feeling.”
Cardinal Matteo Zuppi explained that, within the Community of Sant'Egidio, witnessing the lay men and women's closeness and dedication to the poor was just a starting point. His decision to become a priest came gradually. He discovered it over time, with all the challenges that come with complete commitment.
CARD. MATTEO ZUPPI
Archbishop of Bologna (Italy)
“We must be careful. Celibacy does not mean living without affection. Celibacy means knowing how to love people in a different way. And that's no small task. Nor is it unappealing. If we were to take friendship a little more seriously, if we learned to love one another, and not in a pornographic sexual way, it wouldn't be so bad.”
Cardinal Matteo Zuppi is one of the cardinals named by Pope Francs with diplomatic experience in countries submerged in crisis.
He followed the peace talks in Mozambique in the early 1990s. He says that seeing the levels of poverty in that country made him reflect.
CARD. MATTEO ZUPPI
Archbishop of Bologna (Italy)
“The most surprising thing was that life was worth nothing. There was nothing because of the drought, but it was above all the economic crisis caused by the war. There was nothing. The stores were empty. You would go to the market and see nothing. And everyone had to manage somehow, which is why many people turned to the black market for the few resources that were available. And life had no value because there was nothing and so people were willing to turn to any means necessary to survive.”
These experiences make Cardinal Matteo Zuppi among those European Cardinals most familiar with the crisis in Africa.
Javier Romero
TR: CT
