Celso Costantini

Early Years and Ordination

Celso Costantini was born on 3 April 1876 into a devout farming family in Castions, in the province of Pordenone in north-eastern Italy. As a youth he studied both crafts and painting, and a sensitivity to art stayed with him all his life. On 26 December 1899 he was ordained a priest, and thereafter he worked in pastoral ministry, education and church art in his home region. After the First World War he took part in reorganizing church affairs in the area of Fiume (now Rijeka), showing steady organizational ability.

The First Apostolic Delegate

On 12 August 1922, Pope Pius XI appointed him the first Apostolic Delegate to China. In November of that year he arrived in Hong Kong, and at the end of the year he went to Beijing. Until then the Holy See's affairs in China had long been constrained by the Western powers' "protectorate of missions". After taking up his post, Costantini insisted that the church free itself from political patronage and return to a pure missionary calling, so that the gospel would no longer be seen as an appendage of foreign powers.

Milestones of Indigenization

From May to June 1924 he convened and presided over the First Council of China (Concilium Sinense) in Shanghai, the first national council in the history of Chinese Catholicism, which set rules and direction for the local church. Firmly convinced that the Chinese church must be shepherded by Chinese themselves, he actively selected and trained Chinese clergy. On 28 October 1926, the first 6 Chinese bishops were consecrated by the Pope himself in Rome, opening the way for the indigenization of Catholicism in modern China, an event of far-reaching significance.

Art and Education

In matters of culture, Costantini opposed simply copying Western styles and advocated that Catholic art and architecture be integrated with Chinese tradition, encouraging the beauty of the faith to be expressed through native brushwork and forms. He also worked hard to bring about the founding and growth of the Catholic University of Peking (Fu Jen University) in Peiping (Beijing), to train Chinese people versed in both Chinese and Western learning, regarding education as a lasting foundation for the gospel to take root.

Return to Europe and Elevation to Cardinal

In 1933 he concluded more than ten years of mission in China and returned to Rome. In 1935 he became Secretary of the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith, overseeing worldwide missionary affairs for more than ten years, with influence reaching every mission territory. On 12 January 1953, Pope Pius XII raised him to cardinal. On 17 October 1958 he went to his rest in Rome, aged 82.

Laying the Foundation of Indigenization

Throughout his life Costantini promoted the indigenization of the church with gentleness and firmness, respected Chinese culture, and cultivated local clergy and scholarship; he has been called the founder of the indigenization of Chinese Catholicism. His memoir, Zai Zhongguo Gengyun [Labouring in China], records these years of deep attachment and is still valued today.