Francesco Ingoli (21 November 1578 – 24 April 1649) was an Italian Catholic priest, lawyer and professor of civil and canon law.
Born in Ravenna Italy, Ingoli learned a number of languages, including Arabic,[1] and graduated from the University of Padua in civil and canon law in 1601, he entered the order of Theatines and studied astronomy, writing an essay on stars in 1604 and another on comets in 1607.
He used a combination of theological and scientific arguments to support the astronomical theory of Tycho Brahe (see Tychonic System) over that of Copernicus.
The Congregation also charged Ingoli with the task of correcting Copernicus’ work, so as to remove those parts which the Church now regarded as unacceptable.
He also sought to combine the jurisdictional prerogatives of the Congregation with the missionary practices of the individual orders, and left many texts on this subject.
[1] To promote the circulation of books in the languages of countries being evangelised, Ingoli founded the Congregation's famous multilingual printing press.
From 1636 he was, for ten years, secretary of the Congregatio super Correctione euchologii Graecorum, which produced an edition of texts for the Melkite Greek Catholic Church.