CELEBRATING A LIFE OF DEEP FAITH, DEVOTED AND DISCREET SERVICE TO POPES
I attended Angelo Gugel’s funeral Mass on Saturday and my first thought as I entered church, seeing the people already seated and those waiting to enter to pay their final respects to a man who served three popes so extraordinarily well, was this is truly a Vatican family. There were cardinals, archbishops and priests, men and women I knew who worked in various Vatican offices the same years I was there, years of St. John Paul’s papacy, and even Vatican gendarmes in ceremonial position.
After Mass, I was delighted to speak briefly with some of the people with whom I interacted during the years I worked at the Vatican Information Service including Cardinal James Harvey, archpriest of St. Paul Outside the Walls (a monsignor in the Secretariat of State when we first met), Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, head of the Dicastery for Charity but at the time one of the top liturgical celebrants for Pope John Paul, Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, John Paul’s faithful secretary for 40 years, now archbishop emeritus of Krakow, Poland, and Archbishop Piero Marini who for years was the Master of the Liturgical Ceremonies of the Supreme Pontiff. I also spoke with Cardinal Parolin, secretary of State who celebrated the funeral Mass. All were friends with Angelo Gugel and his family. The Papal Household in itself was a Vatican family.
Cardinal Dziwisz, who knew Angelo Gugel very well when he was majordomo for John Paul II, spent some time after Mass with Angelo’s wife Maria Luisa, their four children and other relatives. Gugel served Pope John Paul for the entire period, close to 27 years, of his reign during which there were many visits and events with the Gugel family.
Angelo Gugel, standing in the center in the dark suit, was right there when John Paul II was shot in St. Peter’s Square, May 13, 1981:
Other prelates at the Mass included Cardinal Beniamino Stella, Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra and Archbishop Richard Gallagher.
Also present with a message from Pope Leo that was read to congregants was Father Edward Daleng, an Augustinian priest from Nigeria whom Leo XIV has brought to Rome as vice-regent of the Prefecture of the Papal Household. We were able to meet after Mass. The Holy Father’s description of Angelo Gugel and his decades of service in his message, as you will read below, is very beautiful and heartfelt.
POPE: ANGELO GUGEL WAS A FAITHFUL, DILIGENT MAN IN SERVICE OF THREE POPES
Pope Leo XIV sent a telegram of condolences read out at the funeral of Angelo Gugel, who served three Popes as Papal Chamber Assistant, recalling his “exemplary Christian witness” and generous service to the Vatican.
Vatican News
“A long and precious service to the Holy See,” carried out with “faithfulness and diligence” every day for three Popes: John Paul I, John Paul II, and Benedict XVI.
Pope Leo XIV highlighted these traits in his telegram signed by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, which was read during the funeral rites for Angelo Gugel.
The former Papal Chamber Assistant passed away on Thursday at the age of 90. His funeral was celebrated on Saturday in the Roman church of Santa Maria delle Grazie alle Fornaci, near the Vatican.
Exemplary Christian witness
In the message, the Pope expressed his condolences to Mr. Gugel’s wife and children, recalling “his uprightness of life and exemplary Christian witness,” as well as his service first in the Vatican Gendarmerie and in the Governorate.
He also served for nearly thirty years in the papal apartment, where he carried out his “delicate and valued work, devoting himself daily” to three Popes.
Pope Leo concluded by praying for the soul “of so generous a disciple of Christ,” invoking the Apostolic Blessing upon all who mourn his passing.
At John Paul II’s side
Cardinal Parolin celebrated the funeral Mass, which was attended by the Papal Almoner Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, Cardinal James Michael Harvey, Archpriest of the Papal Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls, Cardinal Beniamino Stella, Prefect Emeritus of the Congregation for the Clergy, Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra, Substitute for General Affairs of the Secretariat of State, and Archbishop Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations.
Cardinal Parolin described Angelo Gugel as “a good man, a most beloved husband, an exemplary father, gentle, discreet, and just.”
The Cardinal recalled the clarity of his eyes and the brightness of his smile, through which his friendship with God shone, thanks to a faith born in times and places marked by poverty, yet “solid as a rock.”
“I like to imagine,” the Secretary of State continued, “that the one who welcomed him into heaven was Saint John Paul II himself,” whom he had served faithfully and discreetly.
The Cardinal emphasized Mr. Gugel’s ability to entrust himself to God and to place himself at the service of others.
In the last months of his illness, he went on, he gave proof of strength of spirit and serenity, showing that problems, hardships, and illness—if lived with the Lord—can become an occasion of true witness.
“Celebrating the funeral of a dear person, a witness of faith,” Cardinal Parolin said, “does not mean celebrating an end, but is an opportunity to renew our belief, so that we may look ahead with the certainty that we are not alone.”
Dziwisz: Gugel, a wise servant
Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, Archbishop Emeritus of Kraków and former secretary of Saint John Paul II, offered a brief greeting to Angelo Gugel’s family.
He recalled his service to the Holy See as “an example of a wise and faithful servant, with evangelical prudence, dedication, discretion, and discipline.”
“I join,” the Cardinal said, “with the family and with all of us here present in prayer for the soul of dear Angelo, that the merciful arms of the Heavenly Father may welcome him into the Jerusalem of heaven, granting him the reward of the righteous, and with gratitude for his faithful service throughout the pontificate of John Paul II, carried out with a sense of duty and fidelity to the Church and to her Pontiffs.”
The return home
At the end of the funeral rites, Mr. Gugel’s coffin will be taken to Miane, the town in the Italian province of Treviso where he was born, for a memorial Mass on Monday, January 19, after which he will be buried in the town’s cemetery.
Joan's Rome 