Overview
- The Vatican confirmed that Cardinal Camillo Ruini died on Tuesday, June 16, 2026 at age 95 and Pope Leo XIV will preside over a funeral Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica on June 18 at 4:30 p.m.
- Ruini led key Italian church institutions for decades, serving as Vicar General of Rome from 1991 to 2008, president of the Italian Bishops’ Conference through 2007, and archpriest of the Basilica of St. John Lateran.
- He was a prominent conservative public figure who intervened in major cultural debates, notably urging abstention in the 2005 referendum on assisted reproduction and embryonic research to block a quorum.
- His health had declined for more than a year after a heart attack in July 2024 and kidney failure in 2025, which led to hospitalization and daily home care before his death.
- After retirement he continued Vatican work, including heading the Medjugorje commission (2010–2014) and chairing the Ratzinger Foundation committee (2010–2015), and his passing leaves the Italian church without a long‑standing institutional elder whose voice bridged multiple recent papacies.