- Charles Caruana
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Monsignor Charles Caruana Roman Catholic Bishop Emeritus of Gibraltar 
Diocese Roman Catholic Diocese of Gibraltar Enthroned 14 February 1998 Reign ended 18 March 2010 Predecessor Bernard Patrick Devlin Successor Ralph Heskett Orders Ordination 24 May 1959 Consecration 24 May 1999 Personal details Born 9 October 1932
GibraltarDied 1 October 2010 (aged 77)
St Bernard's Hospital, GibraltarBuried Lying in state, Chapel of Our Lady of Lourdes, Cathedral of St. Mary the Crowned Nationality British Denomination Roman Catholic Residence Gibraltar Charles Caruana CBE (9 October 1932, Gibraltar[1] – 1 October 2010, Gibraltar[2]) was a Gibraltarian Roman Catholic bishop of Maltese descent. He was appointed sixth Roman Catholic Bishop of Gibraltar on 14 February 1998 and ordained on 24 May 1998. His retirement request was accepted on 18 March 2010. He died at St Bernard's Hospital, Gibraltar on 1 October 2010 following a bout of ill health.[2]
Contents
Early life
Charles Caruana was born on 9 October 1932 in the British colony of Gibraltar (now a British overseas territory). His ancestors were part of a group of Caruanas that settled in Gibraltar from their home in Malta during the 1800s. His great grandfather moved to Gibraltar with his grandfather and his four great uncles. This rendered Caruana a second-generation Gibraltarian. At the time of his birth, his family lived in Lynch's Lane, just off Main Street.[3]
During World War II he was evacuated with his family to London where he spent six months in Notting Hill Gate tube station seeking shelter from the bombings. He was first educated by the Christian Brothers when he was later re-evacuated to Northern Ireland. He already felt a religious calling by the age of 13 to 14, wanting to become a Christian Brother himself. On his return to Gibraltar, he joined the civil service, working in the Central Employment Exchange for four years.[3]
Priesthood
Caruana eventually went off to a Seminary in the United Kingdom, where he spent six years studying. He was ordained on 24 May 1959 starting work in the Cathedral of St. Mary the Crowned and later at the Sacred Heart Church, where he remained parish priest for 12 years. He later returned to the Cathedral to take on the role of administrator. He also spent some time as prison chaplain at Moorish Castle.[3]
Roman Catholic Bishop of Gibraltar
On 14 February 1999, Father Caruana was the second Gibraltarian to have been appointed Roman Catholic Bishop of Gibraltar by Pope John Paul II. He was ordained Bishop on 24 May of the same year. On his birthday in 2007 he tendered his resignation to the Holy See, according to canon law provisos.[4] On 18 March 2010 the Holy See announced that his resignation had been accepted and his successor as Bishop of Gibraltar would be the English redemptorist priest Ralph Heskett.[5]
Honours
Bishop Caruana was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2008, receiving the award from Her Majesty Elizabeth II in March 2008.[3] He was also invested in 2003 by HRH Prince Carlo, Duke of Castro, as an Knight Commander of Grace of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of St George.
Gibraltar Song Festival
Bishop Caruana was instrumental in initiating the Gibraltar Song Festival. He first thought of the idea as a way of raising funds to build the Community Centre. The festival became so successful that the festival was to become an annual event.[3][6]
Works
Bishop Caruana is the author of several books about his home town. In 1989 he published The Rock Under A Cloud. In 2009, he authored History of Our Lady of Europe, a book published by the Vatican Press as part of the commemoration of the 700 years of devotion of Our Lady of Europe, one of the Catholic patron saints of Gibraltar.[7]
Death
Bishop Emeritus Caruana died at St Bernard's Hospital on Friday 1 October 2010 at around 6 am. He had been in and out of hospital as he had been in poor health for a number of months but his health is believed to have deteriorated rapidly following a fall just over a week prior to his death, just 8 days before his 78th birthday.[2] Flags around Gibraltar, like those at the Moorish Castle, No. 6 Convent Place, The Convent and other public buildings were flown at half-mast as a symbol of respect. His body, robed in his full pontificals, lay in state at the Chapel of Our Lady of Lourdes in the Cathedral of St. Mary the Crowned until his funeral, allowing the public to file past the catafalque to pay their respects. His funeral was on Tuesday 4 October 2010 at John Mackintosh Square, where his body was carried in procession from the Cathedral. After the service he was buried in the crypt beneath the Cathedral.[8]
References
- ^ "A Golden Jubilee for Bishop Caruana"
- ^ a b c "Former Bishop Caruana has died"
- ^ a b c d e Richard Cartwright (August 2008). "Personality profile [Charles Caruana, Bishop of Gibraltar]". Insight (Gibraltar): 8–13.
- ^ "Bishop Charles Caruana resigns from office at 75 years"
- ^ "New Catholic Bishop for Gibraltar". Gibraltar Chronicle. 18 March 2010. http://www.chronicle.gi/headlines_details.php?id=18555.
- ^ Gibraltar Song Festival history
- ^ "Vatican press publishes 'Our Lady of Europe' book", 5 May 2009
- ^ Mascarenhas; Mendez, Alice; Clive (2 October 2010). "Priest, Bishop and a Great Gibraltarian: Rock Mourns Charles Caruana". Gibraltar Chronicle. http://www.chronicle.gi/headlines_details.php?id=20136. Retrieved 2 October 2010.
External links
- Profile at Catholic Hierarchy website
- "A golden jubilee for Bishop Caruana", Gibraltar Chronicle, 26 May 2009
Categories:- 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops
- Roman Catholic bishops of Gibraltar
- 1932 births
- 2010 deaths
- Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
- Accidental deaths from falls
- Gibraltarian Roman Catholics
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