The Carafa, who resided mainly at his archiepiscopal seat, carried out his duties as a prelate by addressing the religious issues of his diocese—he approved, along with the chapter, the Constitutiones Synodales Iohannis [Orsini] archiepiscopi Neapolitani in 1489 and oversaw their publication—and by participating in all public events affecting the monarchy and the Kingdom.

When King Ferdinand fell ill in 1485, while opposition from rebellious barons was mounting against him, Carafa promoted public prayers, culminating in a procession, to implore the sovereign’s recovery.

Between one event and the other, Carafa had been sent by Alfonso II to Rome together with the Marquis of Gerace, the Count of Potenza, and Antonio di Alessandro, to officially request from Alexander VI the remission of overdue payments.

On January 23 of the following year, as the Aragonese monarchy was about to collapse in the face of Charles VIII's forces, Ferrante II, who had succeeded his father after his abdication, crossed Naples at the head of a procession and, upon reaching the cathedral, received the blessing from the Neapolitan archbishop.

On January 13 of the following year, while Naples was ravaged by the plague, Carafa performed the solemn transfer of the relics of St. Januarius from the Monastery of Montevergine, where his brother Oliviero was commendatory abbot, to the cathedral.