Fra' Gherardo joined the order in 1963 and became a Knight of Justice in 1977. He was elevated to the rank of Bailiff Grand Cross of Justice in 1986. He was the Councillor to the Sovereign Council between 1978 and 1983, the Grand Prior of Lombardy and Venetia between 1984 and 1994, a member of the Sovereign Council from 2006 to 2009, and also the President of the Order's Pilgrimages from 2007 to 2009.
