Monsignor Antonio Arcari, an Italian-born Catholic priest and Vatican diplomat who served in the Apostolic Nunciature in the United States, passed away on Friday, May 1, in Gavardo, in the northern Italian region of Lombardy, after a period of illness. He was 72 years old and would have turned 73 on May 8.
Ordained a priest in Brescia on June 11, 1977, Monsignor Arcari began his pastoral ministry in the small Italian town of Borgosatollo before embarking on a distinguished diplomatic career in service of the Holy See. In 1978 he enrolled at the Pontificia Accademia Ecclesiastica in Rome, the prestigious institution that trains Vatican diplomats, and on May 1, 1982 - exactly 44 years before his death - he officially entered the diplomatic corps of the Holy See.
His service took him across four continents. Among the many Pontifical Representations where he worked, his posting to the United States held particular significance, placing him at the heart of one of the world's most influential Catholic communities. He also served in the Central African Republic, Bolivia, Ireland, Croatia, Albania, and Peru.
His passing has moved the community of Borgosatollo, where he had begun his priestly life and to which he remained deeply devoted: local authorities have declared an official day of mourning in his honor.