Augustin Bea


Augustin Bea

President of the Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity
Appointed6 June 1960
Term ended16 November 1968
PredecessorNone
SuccessorJohannes Willebrands
Other post(s)Cardinal–Deacon of San Saba
Previous post(s)
  • Provincial Superior of the Society of Jesus in Germany (1921-1924)
  • Rector of the Pontifical Biblical Institute (1930-1949)
  • Titular Archbishop of Germania in Numidia (1962–1963)
  • President of the Pontifical Commission for the Neo-Vulgate (1965-1968)
Orders
Ordination25 August 1912
by Hermann Jürgens
Consecration19 April 1962
by Pope John XXIII
Created cardinal14 December 1959
by Pope John XXIII
RankCardinal-Deacon
Personal details
Born
Augustin Bea

(1881-05-28)28 May 1881
Riedböhringen, German Empire
Died16 November 1968(1968-11-16) (aged 87)
Rome, Italy
NationalityGerman
DenominationRoman Catholic
MottoIn nomine domini Jesu (In the name of the Lord Jesus)
Coat of armsAugustin Bea's coat of arms

Augustin Bea SJ (28 May 1881 – 16 November 1968) was a German Jesuit priest, cardinal, and scholar at the Pontifical Gregorian University, specialising in biblical studies and biblical archaeology. He also served as the personal confessor of Pope Pius XII.

He was made a cardinal in 1959 by Pope John XXIII and served as the first president of the Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity from 1960 until his death. Bea was a leading biblical scholar and ecumenist, who greatly influenced Christian-Jewish relations during the Second Vatican Council in Nostra aetate. Bea published several books, mostly in Latin, and 430 articles.