Bernardin Gantin | |
|---|---|
| Cardinal Bishop of Palestrina | |
 Gantin during his early years as a cardinal | |
| Church | Roman Catholic Church |
| See | Palestrina |
| Installed | 29 September 1986 |
| Predecessor | Carlo Confalonieri |
| Successor | José Saraiva Martins |
| Previous post(s) |
|
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 14 January 1951 by Louis Parisot |
| Consecration | 3 February 1957 by Eugène Tisserant |
| Created cardinal | 27 June 1977 by Pope Paul VI |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 8 May 1922 |
| Died | 13 May 2008 (aged 86) Paris, France |
| Coat of arms |  |
| Styles of Bernardin Gantin | |
|---|---|
| |
| Reference style | His Eminence |
| Spoken style | Your Eminence |
| Informal style | Cardinal |
| See | Palestrina (suburbicarian) |
Bernardin Gantin (8 May 1922 – 13 May 2008) was a Beninese prelate of the Catholic Church who held senior positions in the Roman Curia for twenty years and the highest position in the College of Cardinals for nine years. His prominence in the hierarchy of the Church was unprecedented for an African and has been equaled by few non-Italians. He began his career in his native country first as an auxiliary bishop and then as archbishop of Cotonou. In 1971 he began his thirty-year career in the Curia. After he had spent several years in the role of senior assistant, he held a series of senior positions as president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, president of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum, and prefect of the Sacred Congregation for Bishops
Pope Paul VI made him a cardinal in 1977, Pope John Paul II promoted him to the rank of cardinal bishop in 1986, and his peers elected him dean, the highest office in the College of Cardinals, in 1993. He retired to Benin when he turned 80.