Carlo Maria Martini

His Eminence Carlo Maria Martini S.J.
Cardinal, Archbishop Emeritus of Milan
Martini in 1992
Church	Roman Catholic Church
Archdiocese	Milan
See	Milan
Appointed	29 December 1979
Installed	10 February 1980
Term ended	11 July 2002
Predecessor	Giovanni Colombo
Successor	Dionigi Tettamanzi
Other post(s)	Cardinal-Priest of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere (1983–2012)
Previous post(s)	Rector of the Pontifical Biblical Institute (1969–78) Rector of the Pontifical Gregorian University (1978–79) President of the Council of European Bishops' Conferences (1986–93)
Orders
Ordination	13 July 1952 by Maurilio Fossati
Consecration	6 January 1980 by Pope John Paul II
Created cardinal	2 February 1983 by Pope John Paul II
Rank	Cardinal-Priest
Personal details
Born	Carlo Maria Martini (1927-02-15)15 February 1927 Orbassano, Kingdom of Italy
Died	31 August 2012(2012-08-31) (aged 85) Gallarate, Italy
Buried	Cathedral of Milan, Italy
Nationality	Italian
Parents	Leonardo Martini Olga Maggia
Alma mater	Pontifical Gregorian University Pontifical Biblical Institute
Motto	Pro veritate adversa diligere ("For the love of truth, dare to choose adverse situations")
Signature
Coat of arms

Carlo Maria Martini SJ (15 February 1927 – 31 August 2012) was an Italian Jesuit and Biblical scholar. He served as Archbishop of Milan from 1980 to 2002 and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1983.

Martini entered the Society of Jesus in 1944 and was ordained a priest in 1952. A towering intellectual figure, Martini was the liberal contender for the papacy in the 2005 conclave, following the death of Pope John Paul II. According to highly placed Vatican sources, Martini received more votes in the first round than Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the conservative candidate. Ratzinger ended up with more votes in subsequent rounds and was elected pope.

Suffering from a rare form of Parkinson's disease, Martini retired as archbishop in 2002 and moved to the Pontifical Institute in Jerusalem. He died at the Jesuit Aloisianum College in Gallarate near Milan eight years later.