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Aloísio Lorscheider | |
|---|---|
| Archbishop Emeritus of Aparecida | |
 Cdl. Aloísio Lorscheider. | |
| Archdiocese | Aparecida |
| See | Aparecida |
| Appointed | 12 July 1995 |
| Term ended | 28 July 2004 |
| Predecessor | Geraldo Penido |
| Successor | Raymundo Damasceno |
| Other post | Cardinal-Priest of San Pietro in Montorio (1976–2007) |
| Previous posts |
|
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 22 August 1948 |
| Consecration | 20 May 1962 by Alfredo Scherer |
| Created cardinal | 24 May 1976 byPope Paul VI |
| Rank | Cardinal-Priest |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Aloísio Leo Arlindo Lorscheider (1924-10-08)8 October 1924 |
| Died | 23 December 2007(2007-12-23) (aged 83) Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil |
| Denomination | Catholic |
| Motto | In cruce salus et vita |
| Styles of Aloísio Lorscheider | |
|---|---|
.svg) | |
| Reference style | His Eminence |
| Spoken style | Your Eminence |
| Informal style | Cardinal |
Aloísio Leo Arlindo Lorscheider, O.F.M. (8 October 1924 – 23 December 2007) was a BrazilianCatholic cardinal during the 1970s and 1980s. He was known as an advocate ofliberation theology in the 1970s and was seen by some observers as a serious candidate for thepapacy in the twoconclaves of 1978.
Lorscheider was of German descent, born inEstrela, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. He entered the localFranciscan minor seminary of Taquari at the age of nine years. He began his novitiate in December 1942 and was ordained as a priest on 22 August 1948.
Lorscheider taught a number of subjects, such as German,mathematics, andLatin, but it was not long before he went to Rome to study dogmatictheology. Lorscheider received his doctorate in 1952, and returned to Brazil to teach that same subject at the Franciscan Seminary of Divinopolis. In 1958, Lorscheider was called back to Rome to teach, and in 1962 made bishop ofSanto Ângelo. Lorscheider attended theSecond Vatican Council between 1962 and 1965, and he was named Archbishop ofFortaleza in thenortheastern state of Ceará in 1973. After the first meeting between Church and Freemasonry which had been held on 11 April 1969 at the convent of the Divine Master inAriccia, he was the protagonist of a series of public handshakes between high prelates of the Roman Catholic Church and the heads ofFreemasonry.[1]
As Lorscheider grew in popularity with his flock and his ability as a prelate was recognised,Pope Paul VI gave him a cardinal's hat in May 1976, becomingCardinal-Priest ofSan Pietro in Montorio. Although at the time he was the fourth-youngest cardinal in the college, Lorscheider already doubted his own health; however, some oddsmakers withLadbrokes (who had him atodds of 33 to 1) considered him a seriouspapabile in theAugust 1978 conclave. Lorscheider headed theNational Conference of Brazilian Bishops from 1971 to 1978. He led theLatin American Episcopal Conference in 1976.[2]
In 1995, Pope John Paul II named Lorscheider Archbishop ofAparecida in São Paulo State. He resigned the pastoral government of the Aparecida archdiocese at the beginning of 2004. It is also thought Lorscheider was one of the most vital supporters ofAlbino Luciani's rise to the papacy, and also ofKarol Wojtyła's in theOctober 1978 conclave.[2]
After thedeath of John Paul II in 2005, Lorscheider said that the European cardinals' "sense of superiority" would not allow them to elect a non-European pope.[3] In poor health and ineligible to vote because he was over the age of 80, he did not attend the pre-conclave discussions at the2005 conclave that electedJoseph Ratzinger to succeed John Paul II.
Lorscheider defendedLeonardo Boff when that theologian was brought to heel by Ratzinger in the 1980s, and continued his strong social activism, being jailed briefly in 1993 as a result of participating in a protest against government policy. With the crackdown on dissent in the John Paul II papacy, especially after Ratzinger became prefect of theCongregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in 1981, Lorscheider found himself opposing brother cardinals whom he had been very firmly associated with during the papacy of Pope Paul VI.
During his Church career, Lorscheider developed his outspoken stance on the appalling poverty that blighted the region. He believed that the Church was obliged to take a firm stand against this poverty and his hard-working and personable character allowed him to develop links with the poor that he observed to be lacking in previous generations of priests. He was a vehement critic of theBrazilian military dictatorship and itstorture of political opponents, and favoured a flexible approach to church structure.
Lorscheider died on 23 December 2007 inPorto Alegre after a long hospitalization.[2]
