Domenico Serafini

Domenico Serafini, OSB (August 3, 1852 – March 5, 1918) was an Italian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church who served in various pastoral, diplomatic, and curial posts, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1914.

Domenico Serafini was born in Rome, of ancient nobility, to Luigi Serafini and Costanza Di Pietro. His maternal grandfather, Giovanni Di Pietro, was a consistorial lawyer who, after becoming a widower, was ordained and named auditor of the Roman Rota by Pope Gregory XVI. Through his father, Domenico was related to Marchese Camillo Serafini, who served as the first and only Governor of the Vatican State (1929–1952).

Serafini entered the Order of Saint Benedict in 1871, joining the Cassinese congregation. He made his profession on June 16, 1874, and studied at different Benedictine houses of studies and the Pontifical Gregorian University, where he obtained his doctorates in philosophy and theology. Serafini was ordained to the priesthood on October 21, 1877.