The Italian Legacy in the Dominican Republic

THE ITALIAN LEGACY IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

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Geraldini the Priest

Taking into consideration the human and intellectual qualities that various authors have attributed to Ales-

sandro Geraldini, it is not surprising that he was successful in all career paths he followed, and that, inclined

toward the ecclesiastical, he was appointed in a short period of time as Bishop of Vulturara e Monte Cor-

vino in Italy in 1496, a position that he was occupying in 1516 when appointed to the Bishopric of Santo

Domingo.

A first element that points to the priestly qualities of Bishop Alessandro Geraldini is that, upon learning of

his appointment as Bishop of Santo Domingo, he asked the Pope to release him from his duties in the Diocese

of Vulturara so that he might devote his energies to governing his new diocese. At this point it is striking that

an Italian bishop, with considerable prestige in the European courts, including the Pontifical, would prefer a

miter in a world yet unknown, thereby renouncing the advantages of his position and relations in the world

that was known, and in which he was already a renowned figure.

A second element that I believe supports my understanding about the priestly calling of my predecessor

can be found in the sermon which he gave upon his arrival in Santo Domingo. It is a truly spiritual text well

worth studying and one in which Bishop Geraldini is revealed as a man quite ahead of his time. In it, he speaks

of priestly stewardship, which goes hand in hand with another element proper to the pastor, namely a zeal or

fervent interest in each and every member of the diocesan family.

Priestly zeal is certainly an element that we find in Geraldini. Only his zeal for the priesthood could have

motivated him to leave Europe and venture to a new land to assume his role among the pioneering evange-

lizers of the Americas.

His crowning achievement, within this framework of priestly zeal, was his interest in building a cathedral

worthy of the name. In this regard, it is worth remembering what he wrote to some of his friends, including

Pope Leo X, possibly shortly after arriving at the diocese in Santo Domingo:

The ceremony of

the Te Deum for the

500th anniversary of

the arrival of the first

resident bishop in the

Americas, Alessandro

Geraldini, held in the

First Cathedral of the

Americas, September

19, 2019.