Raúl Eduardo Vela Chiriboga (1 January 1934 – 15 November 2020) was an Ecuadorian prelate of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

who was the Archbishop of Quito from 2003 to 2010. He became a bishop coadjutor in 1972 and served as an auxiliary in Guayaquil, Bishop of Azogues, and Military Ordinary of Ecuador before his appointment in Quito. Pope Benedict XVI raised him to the rank of cardinal in 2010.

Biography

Raúl Eduardo Vela Chiriboga was born on 1 January 1934 in

Riobamba Riobamba (, full name San Pedro de Riobamba; Quechua: ''Rispampa'') is the capital of Chimborazo Province in central Ecuador, and is located in the Chambo River Valley of the Andes. It is south of Ecuador's capital Quito and located at an ele ...

, Ecuador. He was one of nine children. He attended a Salesian high school there. In 1951 he entered the major seminary in Quito and studied theology and philosophy in the local seminary. On 28 July 1957, he was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Riobamba. He was the director of Caritas for that diocese. From 1968 to 1970 he served as undersecretary of the Ecuadorian Episcopal Conference and was then elected its secretary general. On 20 April 1972

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his death in Augus ...

appointed him titular Bishop of Ausafa and Auxiliary Bishop of Guayaquil. He received his episcopal consecration on 21 May 1972. During this time he worked with the Christian Family Movement. On 29 April 1975 Pope Paul named him Bishop of Azogues. In February 1979, he participated as a delegate of Ecuador's bishops in the third General Conference of Latin American Bishops and from 1981 to 1988 he was a member of the Latin American Episcopal Council (CELAM). On 8 July 1989,

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

transferred him to the titular see of Pauzera and appointed Military Ordinary of Ecuador. On 21 March 2003, Pope John Paul appointed him Archbishop of Quito, where he worked above all for education and priestly formation.

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the soverei ...

accepted his resignation as Archbishop of Quito on 11 September 2010. Pope Benedict elevated Vela Chiriboga to the status of cardinal at a consistory on 20 November 2010, making him Cardinal-Priest of Santa Maria in Via. He participated in the papal conclave of 2013 which elected

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

. He died on 15 November 2020 in Quito.

References

External links

*
Profile on the Archdiocese of Quito's website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vela Chiriboga, Raul Eduardo 1934 births 2020 deaths People from Riobamba 21st-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Ecuador Ecuadorian cardinals Cardinals created by Pope Benedict XVI 21st-century cardinals Roman Catholic bishops of Azogues Roman Catholic bishops of Guayaquil Roman Catholic archbishops of Quito