Cardinal Roberto Repole, the Archbishop of Turin, is a liberal and relatively young Church academic closely associated with a group of Italian clerics attached to the progressivism of the 1960s and 1970s. He is also known for editing a 2018 volume on Pope Francis’ theology that controversially involved Benedict XVI.

Born on January 29, 1967, in the Givoletto district of Turin, Italy, Repole was ordained a priest on June 13, 1992, by Cardinal Giovanni Saldarini. His academic journey is noteworthy, having completed his studies at the Liceo Valsalice in Turin and obtaining his bachelor’s degree in theology from the Faculty of Turin. He further pursued his education at the Pontifical Gregorian University, earning his licentiate in 1998 and doctorate in theology in 2001.

Repole served as a parish vicar from 1992 to 1996 and then as a lecturer in systematic theology at the Theological Faculty of Turin and the Higher Institute of Religious Sciences in Turin from 1996 to 2022. His leadership roles include serving as the president of the Italian Theological Association from 2011 to 2016 and as the rector of the Turin section of the Theological Faculty of Northern Italy from 2016 to 2022.

In February 2022, Pope Francis appointed Repole both Archbishop of Turin and Bishop of Susa. This appointment was notable as Repole was the first native of Turin to be named archbishop there since 1897 and the first graduate of the Turin Faculty of Theology to be named archbishop.

In October 2024, Pope Francis announced that Repole would be elevated to the College of Cardinals on December 7 that year.

The cardinal archbishop of Turin has a notable and strong association with Sergio Boarino, a key figure in the formation of a liberal group of priests known as “Boarinians” in the Turin archdiocese. A former rector of the Turin Major Seminary in the 1980s and 1990s, Boarino was a significant mentor to Repole and other priests during their formative years. Repole himself has described him as “an intelligent and good father.”

The Boarinians, called a “sect” by their detractors, are an association of priests who maintain a strong bond with each other even after ordination, are characterized by a self-referential pastoral and ideological system; strong internal cohesion; and have a significant influence on the archdiocese of Turin. They are generally considered theologically and politically progressive, and have a tendency to interpret the “signs of the times” in continuity with the ideas of the 1960s and 1970s.

The appointment of Roberto Repole as archbishop of Turin has been seen by some as an extension of the power and influence of the “Boarinians” in the diocese. This has provoked mixed reactions: the “Boarinians” see the appointment as an opportunity to extend their pastoral and ideological model to the whole diocese; others fear his appointment will accentuate divisions in an already highly polarized diocese.

Cardinal Repole has a vision of the Church closely aligned with that of Pope Francis. He has expressed an openness to change, views issues in the context of contemporary and socio-cultural changes, and stresses listening and synodality.

The key to Don Repole’s theological thought is that of “humility” — he proposes a humble Church, which assumes the style of the humble God and “humble thought.” Observers say it is a “soft theological version” of the philosophical style of “weak thought” coined by Italian philosopher Gianni Vattimo — an attempt to understand and re-configure traces from the history of thought in ways that accord with postmodern conditions. Critics say Repole’s vision of a humble Church “easily becomes the humiliated Church.”

In 2018, Repole became embroiled in controversy when he edited La Teologia di Papa Francesco, an 11-volume series published by the Vatican printing house that analyzed Pope Francis’ theology. The publication drew international headlines as Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI was asked, but declined, to write an official note about the books because he was “surprised” by the inclusion of Father Peter Hünermann, a German theologian who had dissented from Church teaching and was one of Pope St. John Paul II’s strongest opponents.

The books were nevertheless publicized by Msgr. Dario Viganò, then prefect of the Secretariat for Communication, who admitted to intentionally deceiving the media by making it seem, in publicity photos, as though Benedict had endorsed the volume by omitting a key paragraph in the Pope Emeritus’ letter referring to his disapproval of the inclusion of Hünermann. It is not known if or to what extent Repole was involved in the “Lettergate” deception which led to Vigano’s dismissal as prefect.