Grégoire-Pierre Agagianian

Cardinal Agagianian was made a cardinal on 18 February 1946, by Pope Pius XII. He was appointed Cardinal-Priest of San Bartolomeo all'Isola on 22 February 1946. Herbert Matthews noted that it was Pope Pius's "desire to emphasize the universality of the Catholic Church". Held in commemoration of the seventh anniversary of the Pope's coronation, it was the "first time any but the Latin rite has been used in the Sistine Chapel". Pius named him a member of the Holy Office in June 1958.

Prefect of Propaganda Fide

Agagianian was appointed Pro-Prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith (Propaganda Fide) on 18 June 1958, by Pope Pius. He assumed the post on 23 June at a "simple ceremony". He became Prefect of the Congregation on 18 July 1960. He was Pope John's official representative at the 8 December ceremony for the consecration of the reconstructed Manila Cathedral.

In February 1959, Agagianian visited Taiwan to oversee missionary work on the island. He later entrusted Archbishop Paul Yü Pin to reestablish the Fu Jen Catholic University there. He arrived in Japan for a two-week long visit in May 1959, which included a meeting with Emperor Hirohito. His visit to Ireland in June 1961 was the highlight of the Patrician Year, when the 1,500th anniversary of Saint Patrick, Ireland's patron saint, was celebrated. Agagianian received a great popular welcome there. Fianna Fáil President of Ireland Éamon de Valera was famously pictured kissing Agagianian's ring. Agagianian celebrated a pontifical high mass in Dublin's Croke Park attended by more than 90,000 people.

In September 1963, Agagianian met with Madame Nhu, the Catholic first lady of South Vietnam, in Rome. On 18 October 1964, when the Uganda Martyrs were canonized by Pope Paul VI, Agagianian presided over the Holy Mass at Namugongo. In November 1964 he traveled to Bombay, India to open the 38th Eucharistic Congress. It was attended by more than 200 cardinals and bishops.

Second Vatican Council Agagianian sat on the Board of Presidency of the Second Vatican Council (Vatican II), which took place from 1962 to 1965. He was appointed by Pope Paul VI as one of the four moderators who directed the course of the debates, Agagianian was the only one of these four from the Curia, and represented the Eastern Catholic Churches. He had a special role in the preparation of the missionary decree Ad gentes and Gaudium et spes, the Constitution on the Church in the Modern World.

Papal candidate As a cardinal, Agagianian participated in the papal conclaves of 1958 and 1963, during which he was considered to have been papabile. ("In 1958 Agagianian was one of four cardinals reported to have the best chance of being elected Pope.) Today, at 65, he is still rated at the very top among the papabili — those cardinals regarded as likely to succeed Pope John." "In 1958 Agagianian was one of four cardinals reported to have the best chance of being elected Pope. Today, at 65, he is still rated at the very top among the papabili—those cardinals regarded as likely to succeed Pope John.""He was mentioned as a possibility in the 1958 conclave which elected John XXIII and again in the 1963 conclave which elected the present pope." His candidacy was widely discussed in the press. Even before the death of Pope Pius XII, The Milwaukee Sentinel wrote that some authoritative voices of Vatican affairs believe that Agagianian was "without question the leading candidate" to succeed Pius. On October 9, the day Pope Pius died, The Sentinel wrote that he is "considered by very responsible Vatican circles as the foremost choice" to succeed Pope Pius.

The election was seen as a struggle between Italian Angelo Roncalli (who was eventually elected and became Pope John XXIII) and non-Italian Agagianian. Agagianian died of cancer in Rome on 16 May 1971. His funeral took place on 21 May at St. Peter's Basilica. In September 2024, Agagianian's body was exhumed and found incorrupt, with no signs of decomposition, his remains was transferred and re-buried in the Cathedral of Saint Elias and Saint Gregory the Illuminator, Beirut, Lebannon.

Personal life Agagianian was tall and had a slender frame. Since Agagianian spent much of his adult life in Rome, he was "Romanized" and spoke fluent Italian with a Roman accent. Healy argued that "he symbolize the unity of the East and West in the Church" Upon his death, The New York Times wrote that "Despite his failure to win election from the Sacred College of Cardinals, [Agagianian] nevertheless made a major impact on the development of the [Catholic] church and its role in the newly developing nations."

Cardinal Richard Cushing of Boston called Agagianian "one of the most brilliant Churchmen of modern times, and possessor of one of the greatest minds in the history of the Church". Norman St John-Stevas wrote of him in 1955 as "a man of distinguished presence, a fine scholar". Healy opined that he exuded "an attractive combination of modesty and wisdom".

Cause of beatification and canonization Cardinal Angelo DeDonatis, Vicar General of His Holiness, issued a decree on 4 February 2020, officially commencing the process for Agagianian's beatification. The cause was officially opened on October 28, 2022. Honorary Doctor of Letters from Fordham University (1951) Honorary Doctor of Laws from Boston College (1952) Honorary Doctor of Laws from the University of Santo Tomas (1958) Honorary Doctor of Laws from the University of Notre Dame (1960) Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Boston College (1960) Honorary Doctor of Laws from the Catholic University of America (1960) Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from St. John's University (1960) Honorary Doctor of Laws from the National University of Ireland (1961)

State orders and awards Order of Merit of the Italian Republic – Knight (Cavaliere, 1963)

Publications