Gilberto Agustoni

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Gilberto Agustoni : biography

26 July 1922 –

Gilberto Agustoni (born 26 July 1922) is a Swiss prelate, a former Prefect of the Apostolic Signatura and a Cardinal-Deacon of the Roman Catholic Church.

Ottaviani Intervention

He was secretary to Ottaviani at the time of the Ottaviani Intervention. Jean Madiran, a critic of the reforms of Vatican II and founder-editor of the French journal Itinéraires, claimed that this letter was fraudulently presented to the elderly and already blind cardinal for his signature by his secretary Agustoni, and that Agustoni resigned shortly afterwards., by Michael Davies No confirmation of this story by the cardinal himself was published. Agustoni resigned as Ottaviani’s secretary in 1970 to join the Ecclesiastical Magistrature as Prelate Auditor of the Tribunal of the Roman Rota and there is no evidence to suggest his departure was anything more than a routine change of assignment. Furthermore, Madiran admits that he was not in the room to see this alleged deception of Ottaviani., by Michael Davies

Roman Curia appointments

In 1950, Cardinal Alfredo Ottaviani asked Jelmini for the young Agustoni, whom he had met on several occasions, to work in the Holy Office, while continuing his studies. Agustoni began his service there on 1 July 1950 and eventually became Ottaviani’s secretary.

Santi Urbano e Lorenzo a Prima Porta

He resigned his post on 5 October 1998, becoming Prefect Emeritus of the Signatura. In early 2005, he took the option, open to Cardinal-Deacons after ten years, of becoming a Cardinal-Priest.

Early life

Agustoni was born in Schaffhausen, Switzerland and had four brothers and one sister. Two of his brothers were also priests. Their mother came from a village on the shores of Lake Constance. He was educated at the Seminary of Lugano; because of the war, his bishop, Angelo Jelmini, kept his student in Switzerland and had him continue his studies at the University of Fribourg, but later sent him to the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas, Angelicum and the Pontifical Lateran University in Rome, where he earned licentiates in theology and law.